TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ on Joey’s Value as ‘Ministertainer’)

Joey Tribbiani [played by Matt LeBlanc]: [explaining why he’d be particularly great in performing the Chandler-Monica wedding] “...'Cause in Joey Tribbiani, you get a minister, and you get an entertainer. I'm a ‘ministainer!’ There's no one better, there's no one greater!”—Friends, Season 7, Episode 20, “The One with Rachel's Big Kiss,” original air date Apr. 26, 2001, teleplay by Shana Goldberg-Meehan and Scott Silveri, directed by Gary Halvorson 

TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ on a Thanksgiving Necessity)

Joey Tribbiani [played by Matt LeBlanc]: “You can't have Thanksgiving without turkey. That's like Fourth of July without apple pie, or Friday with no two pizzas.”—Friends, Season 8, Episode 9, “The One with the Rumor,” teleplay by Shana Goldberg-Meehan, directed by Gary Halvorson

TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ on a Complication of Joey Dating Phoebe’s Sister)

[Joey has decided to date Phoebe’s twin sister Ursula.]

Joey [played by Matt LeBlanc]: “Hey, you guys ever been to the Rainbow Room? Is it expensive?

Chandler [played by Matthew Perry]: “Only if you order stuff...”

Joey: “I'm takin’ Ursula there; it's her birthday.”

Ross [played by David Schwimmer]: “Whoa, whoa, whoa! What about Phoebe's birthday?”:

Joey: “When's that?”

Ross: “Tonight!”

Joey: “Oh, man... what are the odds of that happening?”

Ross: “You take your time.”—Friends, Season 1, Episode 16, “The One with Two Parts: Part 1,” original air date Feb. 23, 1995, teleplay by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, directed by Michael Lembeck

TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ As Joey Acts 19)

[Joey comes out from his room wearing ridiculous clothes. He has to look nineteen for an audition].

Joey [played by Matt LeBlanc]: “'Sup? 'Sup, dude?”

Chandler [played by Matthew Perry] [putting his hands up]: “Take whatever you want, just please don't hurt me.”

Joey: “So, you're playing a little Playstation, huh? That's whack. Playstation is whack. 'Sup with the whack Playstation, 'sup? Huh? Come on, am I nineteen or what?”

Chandler: “Yes, on a scale from one to ten, ten being the dumbest a person can look, you are definitely nineteen.” —Friends, Season 7, Episode 1, “The One With Monica's Thunder,” original air date Oct. 12, 2000, teleplay by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, directed by Wil Calhoun

Song Lyric of the Day (Elvis Costello, on Friends’ Attitudes)

“Some of my friends sit around every evening
And they worry about the times ahead

But everybody else is overwhelmed by indifference
And the promise of an early bed.” —"Radio, Radio,” written by rock-and-roller Elvis Costello, performed by Elvis Costello and the Attractions on the LP This Year's Model (1978)

Quote of the Day (Edith Wharton, on a Special Kind of Friend)

“There is one friend in the life of each of us who seems not a separate person, however dear and beloved, but an expansion, an interpretation, of one's self, the very meaning of one's soul.” —American fiction writer Edith Wharton (1862-1937), A Backward Glance (1934)

Quote of the Day (Willa Cather, on Forgiveness)

“It’s all very well to tell us to forgive our enemies; our enemies can never hurt us very much. But oh, what about forgiving our friends?” — Willa Cather, My Mortal Enemy (1926)

TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ In Which Joey Weighs Ross’ Chances With Rachel)

Joey Tribbiani (played by Matt LeBlanc): “It's never gonna happen.”

Ross Geller (played by David Schwimmer): “What?”

Joey: “You and Rachel.”

Ross: “Wha... whatta... What? Why not?”

Joey: “Because you waited too long to make your move, and now you're in the friend zone.”

Ross: “No, no, no. I'm not in the zone.”

Joey: “Ross, you're mayor of the zone.”—Friends, Season 1, Episode 7, “The One With the 

Blackout,” air date Nov. 3, 1994, teleplay by Jeff Astrof and Mike Sikowitz, directed by James Burrows

TV Quote of the Day (‘Friends,’ In Which Chandler Channels Melissa Manchester)

Ross Geller (played by David Schwimmer): “She's having lunch with him. She's having lunch with him! And you should of seen the hug she gave him when she got the job. And, and, and, he's really good looking. What am I gonna do?”

Chandler Bing (played by Matthew Perry): “Don't do anything. Keep it inside. Learn how to hide your feelings! Don't cry out loud.” —Friends, Season 3, Episode 12, “The One With All the Jealousy,” original air date Jan 16, 1997, teleplay by Doty Abrams, directed by Robby Benson

Happy birthday to Matthew Perry, born on this day 45 years ago in Williamstown, Mass. As wiseguy Chandler, he was my favorite of the male “Friends.”