18 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About ‘Friends’

Although Friends finished more than 15 years ago (feel old yet?), the iconic American sitcom still remains one of our favorites.

We just can’t seem to get enough of Chandler (Matthew Perry), Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), Ross (David Schwimmer), Monica (Courtney Cox), Joey (Matt LeBlanc), and Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) as they experience life and love in New York.

Despite being huge fans, there were some things we were surprised to learn! Scroll through for our list of surprising fun-facts you may not have known about Friends!

• Insomnia Café, Friends Like Us, Across the Hall, and Six of One were some of the names considered for the show.
• The focus was originally supposed to be on four people, with Phoebe and Chandler cast as supporting roles.
• The word “friends” is mentioned at least once in every episode.
• Although the fountain in the opening credits looks similar to Pulitzer Fountain in Central Park, it is actually located in California.
• The chemistry between David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston led to Ross and Rachel being the shows central romance.
• The role of Ross was written specifically for David Schwimmer.
• The shows famous orange couch was found in the Warner Bros. basement.
• Aside from Monica and Phoebe, all six of the main characters have kissed each other on the show.
• Joey and Monica were meant to be the main story of the show.
• The series was always filmed in front of a live audience with the exception of major cliffhangers.
• It was Matt LeBlanc’s suggestion for Joey to be a little less than intelligent, after originally appearing smarter in early episodes.
• Every three episodes, the artwork in Central Perk was changed.
• Lisa Kudrow was terrified of the duck, which first appeared in season three.
• Monica’s apartment number changed from 5 to 20 after producers realized it didn’t make sense as she had high rise views from her balcony.
• Phoebe believing her dead mother was reincarnated as a cat was pitched by co-creator Marta Kauffman following her own mother’s death. It is reported the idea shouldn’t have gone ahead, but nobody felt comfortable enough to say so.
• Upon reading the script, a lot of people thought the character of Chandler was gay.
• The fridges in the girls and boys apartments actually worked and were restocked often.
• Ellen DeGeneres was offered the role of Phoebe, but she turned down the part.

How many fun facts did you know?

This article originally appeared on our sister site, Now to Love.

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