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01
After making the cover of People magazine for the first time, Perry sent a copy to his former teacher Dr. Webb, who had once told him he would never succeed if he kept joking.
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02
Perry requested that his name be removed from the Best Actor in a Comedy Emmy ballot because the Friends cast had agreed to submit themselves only in supporting categories.
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03
During his audition for Chandler Bing, Perry already knew the pilot script by heart since he had been helping a friend prepare for the role.
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04
Perry delivered the final line of the Friends series finale: as Chandler, he said Where? when the group suggested going for coffee.
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05
He auditioned for Chandler on a Friday and began filming the very next Monday.
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06
Part of his right middle finger was missing from a door-shutting accident in nursery school.
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07
Writers on Friends frequently incorporated Perry’s improvised jokes and suggestions into the script.
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08
Perry was the youngest of the six main Friends cast members.
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09
Jennifer Aniston offered to be Perry’s personal trainer when Warner Brothers executives threatened him over his weight gain.
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10
His father John Bennett Perry guest-starred on Friends in the 1998 episode ‘The One with Rachel’s New Dress’ as the father of Jennifer Aniston’s character’s boyfriend.
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11
Perry and Jennifer Aniston maintained a close friendship throughout their time on Friends.
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12
He was ranked 17th nationally in junior tennis in Canada and said he tried to play in the United States but wasn’t skilled enough.
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13
Perry entered a 28-day rehab program in 1997 for Vicodin addiction after taking up to 55 pills daily, then sought treatment for opioids and alcohol in 2001. He was hospitalized during the filming of Serving Sara in 2002 and later checked into a rehab facility in Marina del Rey. He estimated 65 detox visits, 6,000 AA meetings, 14 surgeries, and that his colon exploded in 2019, leaving him in a coma for 14 days and hospitalized for five months. He was the sole survivor among five patients placed on an ECMO machine that night. He spent an estimated $9 million on sobriety efforts and experienced significant weight fluctuations.
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14
He was raised in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
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15
In the 1997 film Fools Rush In, Perry’s real-life father John Bennett Perry played his on-screen father.
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16
Perry was the only main Friends actor never nominated for a Razzie Award.
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17
John Bennett Perry played his father in the 2004 Scrubs episode My Unicorn.
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18
He turned down a role in the 1996 film Independence Day; the part later went to Harry Connick Jr.
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19
Perry dated Julia Roberts from 1995 to 1996, Neve Campbell from 1997 to 1998, Lauren Graham in 2003, and Lizzy Caplan from 2006 to 2012.
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20
He held dual citizenship in the United States and Canada.
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21
Perry cited Michael Keaton as his acting idol.
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22
He tweeted that ‘Don’t Give Up’ by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush was his favorite song.
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23
The role of Major Don West in the 1998 film Lost in Space was offered to Perry but later given to his Friends co-star Matt LeBlanc.
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24
In both The Whole Nine Yards and Three to Tango, his character is asked Are you always this nervous? and replies yes.
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25
He was close friends with Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip co-star Bradley Whitford and actor Hank Azaria.
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26
Perry admitted that his drinking problem started when he was 14 years old.
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27
After the Friends finale aired on May 6, 2004, the cast appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno from the Central Perk set.
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28
In his spare time, Perry enjoyed ice hockey and softball.
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29
His mother married NBC newscaster Keith Morrison, making Perry his stepson. He had half-siblings Caitlin, Emily, Willy, Madeleine, and Marie Perry.
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30
At Ashbury College, Perry was a classmate of future Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
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31
His mother Suzanne Morrison served as press agent for Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in the 1970s and 1980s.
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32
In May 2013, Perry received the Champion of Recovery award from U.S. drug czar R. Gil Kerlikowske.
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33
Perry starred in six one-season television series: Boys Will Be Boys 1987, Sydney 1990, Home Free 1993, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip 2006, Mr. Sunshine 2011, and Go On 2012.
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34
He served on the board of directors for the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, and portrayed educator Ron Clark in the 2006 TNT film The Ron Clark Story.
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35
Perry said that during the filming of A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon in 1988, he developed a star complex and arrogantly asked co-stars what they planned to do now they were on their way, only to realize after the film flopped that he was wrong.
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36
He made his West End debut in London starring alongside Minnie Driver.
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37
His name was mentioned in an episode of The West Wing before he later appeared as Joe Quincy in three episodes during seasons 4 and 5.
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38
He ranked in the top 30 of Forbes’ list of the 100 most powerful celebrities.
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39
Perry’s ancestry included English, Irish, German, Swiss-German, and French-Canadian roots.
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40
In 1996, he was the Ottawa Loggers’ 10th pick in the Roller Hockey International draft.
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41
He was the son of actor John Bennett Perry.
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42
He attended Ashbury College, a private school in Ottawa.
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43
Perry resided in Los Angeles, Studio City, and Malibu, California.
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44
He was a fan of the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team.
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45
He supported the NHL’s Ottawa Senators and frequently attended their playoff games, including the 2004 series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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46
Perry was the first of the six main Friends cast members to die, on October 28, 2023.
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47
The Friends cast agreed to submit themselves for Emmy consideration in the leading role categories.
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48
He was the godfather of Reagan Fletch Holder.
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49
A 75-year-old woman ran a stop sign and crashed into Perry’s BMW; no one was injured.
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50
Perry never married and had no children.
