Thursday, May 06, 2004

Tonight, millions will be glued to their televisions as America bids farewell to six of its closest friends: Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey and Ross. Friends ends its 10-year run with an hour-long finale at 8 p.m. tonight on NBC, preceded by an hour of memories from the much-loved sitcom. But the shows six leading actors wont be the only ones crying Friends fans everywhere are saying their Thursday nights just wont be the same. I think its the way they act and how they have fun, said Marita Graham, 16, a student at Warren East High School. Plus, people can relate to things that go on in the show. Fans go into the finale seeking answers to many questions: Will Monica and Chandler successfully move to the New York suburbs with their newly adopted baby? Will there be a new twist with Phoebe, who is married outside the Friends flock to Mike? How will Joey cope with all the changes? And perhaps most importantly, will Rachel really move to Paris with daughter Emma, leaving heartbroken father Ross behind?Marita knows what she wants to happen: I think Rachel should stay with them, she says. When Friends premiered on Sept. 22, 1994, it was an almost-instant hit. Arriving in the midst of NBCs legacy of smash-hit sitcoms such as Frasier, Mad About You and Seinfeld, Friends already had the advantage of being on a hot network but it was the quirky characters, unique dialogue and touching sense of reality that gave it a decades worth of staying power. I think its all the generations it reaches to, said Jennifer Bates, a teacher at Warren Elementary School. It reaches to the younger generation, but my parents watch it too. And its funny. Bates found it difficult to describe how Friends should end. Its hard, because I dont want it to end, she said. But I want it to end up with everyone being happy with where theyre going. Before Friends, there had never been a sitcom with an ensemble of equal characters, each as important to the action as the others. Throughout the shows tenure, all six actors Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox Arquette, Lisa Kudrow, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer have all earned an equal paycheck. In recent years, that paycheck has grown into $1 million per episode for each star. Meg Major, a hairdresser at Off Broadway, says she has watched Friends for about eight of its 10 years. She is rearranging her work schedule tonight so she can be home to watch the finale. Definitely, Ross and Rachel should get married, she said. And Monica and Chandler should get their baby. Major says its the interaction between the shows actors that has kept Friends one of the top 10 shows on television for the past decade. Its the chemistry they each have together, she said. And theres some substance behind that all the actors are still friends when the cameras are off. Aniston reportedly wept throughout the filming of the final episode, and the entire cast has commented on how emotional it was to film the last scene in Central Perk, the Manhattan coffee shop where many Friends moments took place. Rebecca DeSensi, university relations coordinator for Western Kentucky University, says the relationships between the actors have contributed to the shows long run. If theres only one main character, how many story lines can you have? she said. But with six people with equal roles, theres leeway to do more creative things. I think it also made the stars want to stay … they all stuck around a lot longer. DeSensi describes herself as a huge Friends fan shes seen every episode, and watches whether its a new one or a rerun. I think it has a lot to do with touching on peoples real-life situations, she said. People can relate to it because its humor that happens in peoples everyday lives. The situations the friends get in are ones theyve been in or know someone who has. And its hysterical, too. DeSensi said shes received mass chain e-mails in which people list their top 10 favorite Friends episodes. There are so many to pick from, she said. One of my favorites is the one where Joey gets the turkey stuck on his head at Thanksgiving. Thats one of the funniest ones to me. DeSensi also owns the Friends trivia game, which she said was a Christmas present from her father, who is also a big fan of the show. Tonights finale isnt the last time America will ever see Friends. There are several other products available to help fans make sure theyll remember the show for a long time, including Friends party packs, soundtracks and DVD sets of each season. Chris Baker, a sales representative for Target in Bowling Green, said he hasnt noticed a frenzy for the DVDs just yet, but is anticipating it. I think once the seasons done, well see a big increase, he said. With Friends being such a big show thats been on for so long, its not going to affect people until its over with. Well be releasing the last season on DVD real soon, and then well see sales increase. LeBlanc will star in the spinoff Joey, which is tentatively scheduled to air in the same 8 p.m. Thursday time slot that Friends has occupied for so long. And Friends will likely live on in syndication for a long time to come. DeSensi says she fully intends to watch Joey after all, hes her favorite. He adds so much humor to the show with his dumb comments, she said. Im interested to see how they turn his character into a new story. Daily News ·813 College St. ·PO Box 90012 ·Bowling Green, KY ·42102 ·270-781-1700