Quick story: back in the winter of 2015, as I was dragging myself through a brutal round of rewrites on my first book, I watched Friends every single night. I was a first-time author working on a memoir, and after a day spent sitting alone at Starbucks, sorting through the messy reality of my own life, it was a blissful relief to unwind with my warm, familiar (albeit fake) pals at Central Perk. The show played such a crucial role in getting me to the finish line that I actually planned to mention Friends in the acknowledgments. But at the last minute I decided to cut it, worried that thanking a sitcom at the end of my first book might somehow damage my authorial reputation and prevent me from getting the chance to write a second book. Two years later, I did. You’re holding it.
Thus I must start these acknowledgments by doing what I should have years ago, and thank the creators, cast and entire creative team behind Friends. It seems I owe you much of my career. In all sincerity, thank you for creating a show of unparalleled resonance and endurance that altered so many lives—my own included.
I am incredibly grateful to Hanover Square Press, Peter Joseph and the spectacular team who truly championed this book. Above all, I have to thank my editor, John Glynn, who guided me and my book through this journey with patience, vigor, excitement, and a razor-sharp eye. I couldn’t have written this book without you (and probably wouldn’t have even tried). I’d also like to thank my copy editor, Christine Langone, without whom the words and sentences in this book would make a lot less sense (and have way too many commas).
Endless thanks to my agent and friend, Allison Hunter. You are my literary lobster.
I’m deeply indebted to the many people who offered their time, opinions and perspectives on Friends, including Anne Helen Petersen, Elaine Lui, Sarah Beauchamp, Keah Brown, Toby Bruce, Nancy Deihl, Kimberly Chrisman Campbell, Tyler Coates, Dizzy Dalton, Akilah Hughes, Elana Fishman, Ryan O’Connell, Lauren Zalaznick, Tijana Mamula, Mey Rude, Connie Wang, and Chuck Klosterman. Additional thanks to David Wild, who provided invaluable insight into life on the Friends set, not only in our interview but in his own books and articles about the series. Thank you to the Television Academy Foundation, and the historians who maintain its interview archive—a tremendous resource.
Thanks as well to authors Warren Littlefield, T. R. Pearson, Bill Carter, Jennifer Armstrong, and Martha Bayles, whose work gave exceptional insight into this period of American television and its impact on the wider world.
Eternal thanks to the teachers who urged me to become a writer (particularly Julie Faulstich and Jack Murnighan), and the editors who made me a better one. I’d especially like to thank those who’ve helped me grow as a culture writer, including Neha Gandhi, Anna Maltby, Christene Barberich, Missy Schwartz, Molly Stout, Leila Brillson, and Eric Hynes.
Thank you to The Wing, a place and a community that has truly changed my life (and kept me sane throughout the process of writing a book).
Thank you, thank you, thank you to my husband, Harry Tanielyan, who cheered me on every damn day. Thank you for all the salads, the shoulder squeezes, the pick-me-up notes, and the high-fives. And thanks for letting me take over the TV for about a year. We can watch something else now.
Thank you to my family, who gave me (among other things) the faith and ability to even imagine a career as a writer. Shout-out to my aunt and cousins in the UK, whose collective knowledge on Friends is impressive bordering on alarming. Thank you for being my Friends think tank. Special thanks to my dad and my grandfather, who both listened to me talk a lot about Friends in the last year. Neither of them have seen the show, but both of them cheered on this book with the same interest and excitement usually reserved for the Yankees.
Finally, thanks to my own beloved friends, particularly Jonathan Parks-Ramage, Chrissy Angliker, and Deborah Siegel. This book is dedicated to you, because you are—and always have been—there for me.