Plot

In addition to scoring one of the biggest surprise hits in television history, NBC generated a veritable pop culture phenomenon with its twentysomething sitcom smash FRIENDS. Set in New York City, the series chronicled the lives of six best friends as they navigated through the ups and downs of romance and career from the confines of their local coffee shop and some pretty fabulous Manhattan apartments. While the series originally rode to success on the coattails of its Thursday night predecessor SEINFELD, what differentiated FRIENDS from the rash of copycat sitcoms that followed--and made it a bona fide hit in its own right--was the unique chemistry of its fine ensemble cast: Courtney Cox as neurotic clean freak Monica; David Schwimmer as her endearingly hangdog brother Ross; Matt LeBlanc as none-too-bright actor-wannabe Joey Tribbiani; Matthew Perry as sarcastic computer programmer Chandler Bing; Lisa Kudrow as goofy new-age free spirit Phoebe Buffay; and, of course, Jennifer Aniston as reformed spoiled rich girl Rachel Green (whose highly influential fashion sense launched a thousand hairstyles).