In his memoir “Friends, Lovers and the Big, Terrible Thing,” Matthew Perry spoke about the thought process that went into Chandler Bing’s speech pattern on “Friends” (via Deadline).
Perry wrote that, from an early age, he would read sentences in unusual ways, putting the emphasis on words and in places that others didn’t. He realized this was a successful way to get laughs, even in situations where he was facing a tough crowd who hadn’t laughed for anyone else.
Perry continued that when he was cast in “Friends,” he was the last main cast member to get signed. So he decided to use this tried and true method on the show as well. He added that he was confident in the show’s writing but knew his delivery could add something extra that would take the jokes to the next level.
He noted that this set him apart from other sitcom characters at the time, especially as his emphasis was coming on words that weren’t traditionally the beat of the joke. The show’s writers, however, quickly came on board with his delivery style, and Perry learned that writers would sometimes underline certain words, curious to see how Perry would deliver the joke if he put the emphasis there.
