Actor Hank Azaria has shared new details of his late friend Matthew Perry’s funeral, saying the “sad” service had no shortage of tears and laughter.
Azaria, who boasted a close friendship with the “Friends” star, attended the November 3rd ceremony in the Forest Lawn cemetery in Hollywood Hills.
“I was at the funeral last weekend,” the “Simpsons” actor told The Messenger. “You know, sad. He was a hilarious man, so we would sort of [be] alternately laughing and crying remembering him.”
“We’ve all had people we’ve lost. The world really lost him. In a way it’s nice to have the world sort of sharing with you,” Azaria added.
Azaria and Perry reunited several times during the hit sitcom’s 10-year run.
Perry famously starred in the iconic role of Chandler Bing for all 10 seasons of the show from 1994 to 2004.
Azaria, for his part, would often guest star as Phoebe Buffay’s (Lisa Kudrow) on-and-off-again scientist boyfriend David. He made his final appearance in Season 7.
Prior to “Friends,” Azaria and Perry were inseparable buddies, along with actor Craig Bierko — as noted by the late actor in his memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.”
Perry was laid to rest last Friday in an intimate ceremony attended by his dad John Bennett Perry, mom Suzanne Perry, and stepfather Keith Morrison, as well as his sisters and loved ones.
Perry’s five “Friends” co-stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, David Schwimmer, and Matt Le Blanc also paid their respects at the service.
A slew of other big name celebs are buried there, including Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds, Michael Clarke Duncan, and Black Sabbath’s Ronnie James Dio.
The “17 Again” actor was found dead at age 54 at his California home on Oct. 28. He was unresponsive at the scene and found by a bystander submerged in his hot tub.
Perry’s cause of death has been “deferred,” so it’s unknown if he had a relapse after openly talking about his lifelong struggles with addiction, including detailing it in his 2022 memoir, “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.”
However, authorities believe no foul play was involved and no drugs were found at the scene.
After news of Perry’s death came to light, Azaria, 59, posted a heartfelt video on social media in which he recalled spending many nights drinking and laughing together.
“Matthew was the first friend I made in Los Angeles, when I moved there. I was 21, he was 16,” Azaria began in his lengthy tribute, adding that the pair met while filming a TV pilot for a show called “Morning Maggie.”
“Matthew and I became really good friends,” Azaria continued. “And we were really more like brothers for a long time. We drank a lot together, we laughed a lot together, we were there for each other in the early days of our career.”
According to “The Birdcage” star, Perry’s comedic chops not only served him well on “Friends” and all his other projects, but also in the real world.
“As funny as he was on ‘Friends’ — and he was — and other things, too. He was just the funniest man ever. He lived to laugh,” he noted.
“He was like a genius,” the “Simpsons” actor praised. “He would start to weave comedy threads. A joke here, a joke there, a joke here and then by the end of the night, he would weave them together in this, like, crescendo of hilarity.”
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