Morgan Fairchild on Starring Alongside Matthew Perry as Chandler’s Mom on 'Frien

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00:00 >> Hollywood is grieving Matthews

00:03 while Matthews passing when did you first hear about his

00:07 past.

00:08 >> Well I first heard I'm doing a play in Kansas City and I was

00:13 just getting ready to go on stage Saturday night and I saw

00:16 pop up on my phone when I was in the dressing room.

00:19 And I tried to hide it from the other cast members because I

00:23 knew that be upset. I was upset, but you know have to

00:27 cut into a comedy hello. And I'm sure Matthew felt that

00:30 same way many times. So yes, it was it was a very depressing to

00:36 see I was hoping that it was wrong, you know how sometimes

00:39 these things can come out and they're not right.

00:41 So that's how I found out.

00:44 >> I thanks for wearing something.

00:50 >> What was it like working with him playing his mother.

00:56 >> Well it was very interesting playing his mother because it

01:00 was such a fraught relationship. I know the first

01:05 time we were working together just trying to work through you

01:08 know who are these people. Why are they so messed up.

01:14 But I think the mother's and go ongoing anxiety and anger at

01:20 the father for leaving them had spilled over a lot into a

01:24 Chandler's life and so we would talk about that you know the

01:28 reaction to that and his quirky reaction to his weird mother

01:32 who all of his friends had learned about 6 by reading her

01:35 novels. Always a embarrassing for a young man.

01:40 >> Also what was it like for you to be on that set with

01:43 Matthew and the others because I mean let's be honest,

01:46 you're Morgan Fairchild when you popped up on the screen

01:48 or buzz like oh my God is not as Morgan Fairchild wow.

01:51 >> Well, I think that's kind of what they were thinking of when

01:55 they cast me. But it was a lot of fun, I you know that first

01:58 day on the set. Matthew as was his one came bounding over and

02:03 said oh you won't remember me. But I used to visit you on

02:07 Flamingo Road and Falcon Crest with my dad and I said oh who's

02:11 your dad and he said John Bennett Perry, I said oh my

02:13 God you're you're that little kid that I used to see on the

02:16 set and so right away we kind of had that familial kind of

02:21 bond right away I felt like I knew him better than I actually

02:25 did at the time. But also just he was so interesting to work

02:30 with because he would always come up with the weird off the

02:33 way of phrasing something that made it even funnier than it

02:37 was on the page the script are always really funny but then he

02:40 would come up with ways to make it even funnier with his

02:44 double takes and his his little tweak of the word here and

02:48 there. It was always fun watching him try to deal with

02:51 Nora in and just trying to work through everything trying to

02:55 deal with his mother.

02:57 >> It's kind of embarrassing but

02:59 occasionally after I've been intimate with the man.

03:03 >> Now why would you say that's embarrassing.

03:05 >> I just get this craving for compound chicken.

03:10 >> That's too much information.

03:12 >> There was this explosion that happened with that show

03:16 that all of a sudden it went crazy was everywhere. What do

03:21 you remember about that and what was it like for you and

03:24 that.

03:25 >> It was interesting, you know when they offered me the show

03:30 it wasn't a huge hit yet. But I've seen it and I liked it,

03:34 I thought that I thought the young actors all were very good

03:37 individually and that they were really good at ensemble work

03:41 which is kind of 2 different talents and I thought the show

03:44 had a lot of potential that was I right and so I I was excited

03:49 to be part of it. But then when it really took off.

03:53 It was it was kind of amazing, I mean in this business,

03:58 you never know the ones that are going to be hit you know

04:00 you do you do work and then and then when something takes off

04:04 and becomes kind of a cult classic or whatever like I did

04:07 with like he was big adventure who knew that would take off

04:10 and

04:12 and and you just you do things and then you see what happens

04:17 and but I do remember after it's been on the show because

04:20 they did promote it very heavily with me and and I ran

04:23 into the 2 Matthews Matt and and Matthew Perry in a

04:27 blockbuster oddly enough on Ventura Boulevard, I guess

04:29 their lunch hour and then they keep running up to me and did

04:32 this big like sandwich of me and said you can send the top

04:35 5 you guys 5 we're like jumping up and down like a bunch of

04:39 kids. Buster.

04:41 >> And they were so they were always so dear, you know,

04:45 I remember one time just driving up a bar Boulevard and

04:48 I guess metal block it got out of the work and pulled up

04:53 alongside of me and I kind of hopped out of the river like

04:55 waving each other like mad people on the freeway. But it

04:59 just just the fun of the whole cast the way they cared about

05:04 each other which is not something sometimes you see

05:06 happen on shows when they become hits people get can get

05:10 snippy and jealous and and all of that and they really bonded

05:14 together I think it was a a nice thing for that cast that

05:18 the same in the sudden

05:20 kind of launch into the stratosphere instead of

05:24 splitting them apart it it bonded them together that they

05:29 were all in it together and I think that helped all of them

05:34 individually to to weather the storm as it were.

05:39 >> I agree with you it was quite a storm. What do you

05:41 remember about the little boy that you saw on set one

05:44 Falcon Crest and when he was visiting is that what you

05:48 remember about that kid.

05:49 >> Well, I mean he he was friendly, but he also seemed

05:53 kind of shy and you know little did I know that he would go up

05:56 to be you know that I got to work with him. Mainly I'm so

06:00 fond of his father John Bennett Perry who had a recurring part

06:04 on Falcon Crest and let me go road so I we saw him often and

06:09 and you know when he would bring his son it was always

06:11 kind of a treat yet I like having kids on the set,

06:14 you know they were always kind of fun at a little little juice

06:17 to the day so it's not all the same old same old. It kind of

06:20 trying to show him around and talk to him and find out what

06:23 he was doing in any city wanted to be an actor but but who

06:26 knew what was your relationship with

06:28 with Matthew today, what was it like you ever have a chance to

06:32 speak to him.

06:33 Well I hadn't talked to him in a long time at this point.

06:37 You know once the show and it is as often happens people kind

06:40 of go their separate ways and have separate interests and

06:42 things I ran into him once in a while out about town and he he

06:47 was he was just such a lovely person, you know he was he was

06:51 a kind person and I was so proud of them for how they come

06:54 through some of these hard times and and turn to trying to

06:58 help other people which I think is kind of the legacy that he

07:01 would like to be known by that not only was he a friend but

07:06 that he would be there for you is the song goes I'll be there

07:10 for you know that he was there for other people and I think

07:14 that was one of the great things about him not only his

07:16 great talent. His great talent as an actor, but especially as

07:20 a comedian his incredible timing. What a joy it always

07:24 was to work with him, but also his giving nature, the fact

07:29 that he was always trying to give to other people I think

07:33 part of his big legacy will be the fact that he did seem to

07:37 help so many people on the road to recovery even since I just

07:41 been online this morning. I've been having people DM me and

07:47 social media saying you know he inspired me to get never met

07:50 him, but he inspired me to get sober and he leaves that legacy

07:55 as well as the great legacy of his work as an actor and as a

07:59 comedian.

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