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alisarae 's review for:
Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing
by Matthew Perry
The first thing you should know about me is I cannot recognize the faces and often the names of celebrities, and this does not bother me. So it may seem weird that I read celeb memoirs at all, considering that Hollywood name dropping has zero effect on me and I couldn't match the face on the cover if it was in front of me in real life. I guess I am curious about the glamour of the lifestyle, and I like hearing about the personal side of such a manufactured industry. I want to know that humans are humans no matter the bank account.
Matthew Perry's book was kind of disappointing in that regard. He shared a few anecdotes of the high rolling lifestyle, but was sparse on the details. He did not share personal conversations and backstage memories with the cast of Friends, except to relate that Jennifer Aniston staged a mini intervention about his alcoholism. The bulk of the book was like reading a spreadsheet of what film set he was on, what he was addicted to & resulting medical issues, and who he was dating.
The book is roughly linear, but there are so many parts that are out of order, and some anecdotes were repeated literally word for word in different places, so I didn't end up with a firm grasp on the timeline of events: were the 2 years of sobriety before or after the 5 month coma? at what point did his teeth fall out? when did he meet his best friend/personal assistant and what was he working on/who was he dating while this PA worked for him? Etc.
One of the main things Perry emphasized is that he would trade his fame and money any day for a regular life without addiction. I believe him. But he also recognizes that if he had had a regular life with his same body, he likely would have ended up homeless and/or in prison. His money and fame saved him numerous times, from VIP hospital treatment and rehabs around the globe, to paying for sober monitors to live and travel with him while he worked. He often said that his addictions kept him isolated and lonely--he wanted to keep them a secret so he usually abused alone--and his fear of intimacy kept him from starting a family with anyone. It's sad that all that money couldn't save him from himself, and that is the point he is trying to make.
Matthew Perry's book was kind of disappointing in that regard. He shared a few anecdotes of the high rolling lifestyle, but was sparse on the details. He did not share personal conversations and backstage memories with the cast of Friends, except to relate that Jennifer Aniston staged a mini intervention about his alcoholism. The bulk of the book was like reading a spreadsheet of what film set he was on, what he was addicted to & resulting medical issues, and who he was dating.
The book is roughly linear, but there are so many parts that are out of order, and some anecdotes were repeated literally word for word in different places, so I didn't end up with a firm grasp on the timeline of events: were the 2 years of sobriety before or after the 5 month coma? at what point did his teeth fall out? when did he meet his best friend/personal assistant and what was he working on/who was he dating while this PA worked for him? Etc.
One of the main things Perry emphasized is that he would trade his fame and money any day for a regular life without addiction. I believe him. But he also recognizes that if he had had a regular life with his same body, he likely would have ended up homeless and/or in prison. His money and fame saved him numerous times, from VIP hospital treatment and rehabs around the globe, to paying for sober monitors to live and travel with him while he worked. He often said that his addictions kept him isolated and lonely--he wanted to keep them a secret so he usually abused alone--and his fear of intimacy kept him from starting a family with anyone. It's sad that all that money couldn't save him from himself, and that is the point he is trying to make.