'Friends' ended 15 years ago: Do you remember its LI connections?
"Friends" in London. Clockwise from top left: Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry. Credit: Getty Images
Hard to believe, but "Friends" aired its final episode 15 years ago — on May 6, 2004. "The Last One Part 2" was a memorable episode in which, after much confusion and mixed signals, Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) and Ross (David Schwimmer) finally got together for good.
The show may have been set in Manhattan, but the long-running classic sitcom did have some ties to Long Island. Here are five:
1. Most notably, there's the 2002 episode, "The One In Massapequa." The episode centers on a 35th anniversary celebration of Monica (Courteney Cox) and Ross' parents (Christina Pickles, Elliott Gould) on Long Island.
2. In the 2001 episode "The One Where Rosita Dies," the Gellers had put their original L.I. home up for sale, causing consternation for Ross and Monica, who grew up there until they both moved to Manhattan.
3. In "The One in Massapequa," Alec Baldwin, who grew up in that village, makes a guest appearance as Parker, the too-enthusiastic boyfriend of Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow). In a meta-moment, Parker asks Ross, "Massapequa, sounds like a magical place. Tell me about Massapequa. Is it steeped in Native American history?" And Ross responds: "Well, there is an Arby's in the shape of a teepee." (Fact-check time: Not true.)
4. Rachel was also raised on Long Island, since she was always described as Monica's childhood friend. In the 2001 episode "The One With the Rumor," Chandler (Matthew Perry) asks Rachel if she was "the hermaphrodite cheerleader from Long Island," repeating a vicious rumor from Rachel's youth that she had both male and female sex organs.
5. The gang headed to Montatuk to try to find a woman (Teri Garr) who may know where Phoebe's father is in "The One at the Beach," the third-season finale (May 1997). The story continued into the fourth-season opener, "The One With the Jellyfish" (September 1997).
Andy Edelstein, Newsday's entertainment editor, supervises coverage of TV, celebrities, movies and pop music. He has written three books on popular culture, including "The Brady Bunch Book."
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