Friends
Lisa Kudrow Says Friends Writers Had “No Business” Writing About People of Color
You don’t need to be a Friends expert to notice that the long-running sitcom is extremely white — so much so that co-creator Marta Kauffman donated millions to her alma mater Brandeis University’s African-American studies department. Money can’t change the past, but in a new interview with The Daily Beast, Lisa Kudrow opined that the show’s writers had “no business” writing about “being a person of color” in the show. “[Friends] was a show created by two people who went to Brandeis and wrote about their lives after college,” the real-life Phoebe Buffay said. “And for shows especially, when it’s going to be a comedy that’s character-driven, you write what you know. They have no business writing stories about the experiences of being a person of color. I think at that time, the big prob...
Friends Creator Marta Kauffman Feels Guilty the Show Was So White, Donates $4 Million to an African Studies Program
It took her a while, but Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman is finally ready to face the criticism about her sitcom’s lack of diversity. In an attempt to “course-correct,” Kauffman has donated $4 million to her alma mater, Brandeis University, to establish an endowed professorship in the school’s African and African American studies department. Brandeis’ African and African American studies department was established in 1969 and is one of the oldest such departments in the country. The Marta F. Kauffman ’78 Professorship in African and African American Studies will help the department recruit more students and teachers, as well as support one distinguished scholar in the program. Friends has long been criticized for featuring almost zero people of color in the show, whic...
R.I.P. Mike Hagerty, Mr. Treeger on Friends Dead at 67
Mike Hagerty, an icon of Chicago comedy known for roles on Friends and HBO’s Somebody, Somewhere, has died at 67. His passing was confirmed “with great sadness” by his Somebody, Somewhere co-star Bridget Everett. “A beloved character actor, his love of his hometown of Chicago and his family were the cornerstones of his life,” she wrote on Instagram. The cause of death has not been made public. Born May 10th, 1954 in Chicago, Illinois, Hagerty cut his teeth as part of the famed comedy troupe The Second City. He landed his first film role as an unnamed cop in 1983’s Doctor Detroit, and he booked his first small-screen job in an 1986 episode of Cheers. With his trademark mustache, thick Chicago accent, and impeccable comic timing, he became a constant presen...
China Censored Friends so Ross’ Wife Isn’t Gay and There’s No Such Thing as Sex
Call it “The One Where Nothing Happens.” The first season of Friends recently appeared China’s most popular streaming platforms, but with key moments altered to remove references to sex and LGBTQ people. It’s the latest casualty of China’s “national rejuvenation,” in which the Communist Party requires that all media shown in the country “vigorously promote excellent Chinese traditional culture, revolutionary culture, and advanced socialist culture.” According to The New York Times, this has led to changes that range from abrupt to bizarre. Ross still begins the series newly single, but it’s no longer because his wife has just come out as a lesbian and left him for another woman. There’s a sudden cut during the scene where Ross explains what happened to his par...
James Michael Tyler, Gunther from Friends, Dead at 59
James Michael Tyler, who played Gunther on Friends, has died at the age fo 59 following a battle with prostate cancer. According to TMZ, Tyler passed away Sunday (October 24th) at his home in Los Angeles. “The world knew him as Gunther (the seventh “Friend”), from the hit series Friends, but Michael’s loved ones knew him as an actor, musician, cancer-awareness advocate, and loving husband,” his family said in a statement. Advertisement Related Video Tyler appeared on over one hundred episodes of Friends as well as on the recent reunion special. On the show he played Gunther, the manager of the coffee shop Central Perk. His character famously has a crush on Jennifer Aniston’s Rachel, who works as a waitress at Central Perk, but his feelings are not reciprocated. As such, Gunther freque...
Fuji legend Wasiu Ayinde undergoes surgery
Nigeria’s Fuji legend, Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, popularly known as K1 De Ultimate, has undergone minor surgery for an undisclosed illness. Canada-based show promoter, Bolaji Saheed Basia who is also a close friend of the singer shared his pictures on a hospital bed on Saturday night. “Minor surgery though but I still give thanks to almighty God for the success,” the entertainment and hospitality businessman wrote on Instagram. Bolaji and K1 have been friends for four decades from their days in Agarawu, Lagos Island. The Fuji king had joined others for an exclusive birthday celebration for his friend on June 25. Last year, Basia stated in a Facebook and Instagram post that the singer surprised him when he paid for a land he bought. “I called the agent when I didn’t hear from the owner again. H...
Friends Actor James Michael Tyler Says He Has Stage 4 Cancer
James Michael Tyler, who played Central Perk’s Gunther on Friends, has unveiled a Stage 4 cancer diagnosis. In a new video shared through the Prostate Cancer Foundation, he said, “I was first diagnosed with prostate cancer in September of 2018.” He added, “My specific cancer went to the bones before it could be stopped — before I realized I had it.” He spoke movingly about his time in intensive care, explaining that he “nearly died this past October,” and “the fear of not coming back to see my wife.” He also talked about his mission of saving lives. Related Video “I accept this,” he said. “I know this is what’s happened to me. I’m not sitting here crying all the time. I want to save lives. I want to help.” According to Tyler, “If there’s one piece of advice I could...
Police arrest 16-year-old girl who ‘faked’ own kidnap
A 16-year-old girl, Abimbola Suluka, has been arrested alongside her boyfriend, Oluwaseun Olajide, by the Ekiti State Police command for allegedly kidnapping herself to raise money to pursue her career in acting as against study of medicine demanded by her mother. The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Sunday Abutu in a statement on Saturday said the duo were arrested on Thursday in a hotel in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital where they lodged and demanded N500,000 ransom. Abimbola is alleged to have conspired with her 25-year-old boyfriend and two of his friends to stage the abduction so as to raise money and relocate from the state following her mother’s insistence for her to study medicine. Abutu explained that Abimbola’s sister had gone to the police station to report that her sis...
Ekiti 2022: Governor Fayemi’s performance‘ll make the job easier for APC – party chairman
A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, Akinlayo Kolawole, has disclosed that the performances of the Governor Kayode Fayemi-led administration would make next year’s governorship election easier for the party to win in the state. Kolawole, a former House of Representatives aspirant for the Ekiti North Federal Constituency Two in the 2019 general elections, made the disclosure in a chat with newsmen in Ado-Ekiti, urging the party leadership not to take anything for granted ahead of the all important election. He enjoined every member of APC in Ekiti and beyond to show more interest in sharing the good news to the public. The APC stalwart reiterated commitment to his political aspiration, stressing that ” it is alive and kicking.” He said : ” You are all around an...
White House considering talks between Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping
The White House will consider arranging talks between President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, as the two countries spar over issues including human rights, a top U.S. official said on Thursday. Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the two leaders are due to “take stock of where we are in the relationship.” Beijing fumed over a communique issued at Biden’s urging by the Group of Seven leaders on Sunday. It scolded the country over human rights in its Xinjiang region and Hong Kong while also demanding a full and thorough investigation of the origins of the coronavirus in China. “Soon enough we will sit down to work out the right modality for the two presidents to engage,” Sullivan told reporters on a conference call. “It could be a phone call, it cou...
Caroline Danjuma: I regret dragging Davido over Tagbo’s death
Nigerian actress, Caroline Danjuma, says she wished her rift with popular music star Davido never occurred. The movie star disclosed this on her Instagram page on Saturday as she reminisced on her past as she clocks 34. “Concerning David, I wish such never happened between us he is really a cool guy, I wish him nothing short of favor and undiluted success always ( I equally love the song fia ),” she wrote. She also talked about facing cyberbullies for years saying that she has devised a means to deal with and handle bullies on social media. “I was bullied all through my marriage by social media (12 years of bullying) .. why did I marry my grandfather (my choice not yours), I stole someone’s husband (no one came out to claim him),” she wrote. “Now I am immune to your bullying and harsh word...
Ex-soldiers: We trained 4,400 IPOB militias after Nnamdi Kanu promised us rank of General in Biafra Republic
Operatives of the Force Intelligence Response Team have arrested three dismissed soldiers, who allegedly partook in the training of 4,400 members of the Eastern Security Network for the Indigenous People of Biafra. The suspects have been identified as Linus Owalo, Godswill Steven and Chinasa Orji. They were arrested recently after operatives of the IRT, while following a tip-off from some members of IPOB, raided the group’s hideouts in Imo, Anambra and Delta States and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. ESN is the armed wing of the POB. IPOB and ESN have been accused by the police of being responsible for the attacks and killings of security operatives as well as burning of police stations and government infrastructure across the South East and South South regions of the country. IPOB a...
