Phoebe Buffay
Phoebe Buffay | |
---|---|
Telemarketer | |
Family | Frank Buffay, Sr. (father) Phoebe Abbott (biological mother) Lily Buffay (adoptive mother) Ursula Buffay (twin sister) Frank Buffay, Jr. (paternal half-brother) Alice Knight-Buffay (sister-in-law) |
Spouses | Duncan Sullivan
(m. 1989; div. 1995)Mike Hannigan (m. 2004) |
Relatives | Frances (adoptive maternal grandmother) Frank Buffay, Jr., Jr. (nephew) Leslie Buffay (niece) Chandler Buffay (niece) |
Religion | New Age |
Nationality | American |
Phoebe Buffay (born 1967/1968)[1] is one of the six main characters from the American television sitcom, Friends. She was created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman and portrayed by actress Lisa Kudrow.
In the series' universe, Phoebe was born on February 16 and is the daughter of Frank and Lily Buffay. Her biological mother's name was Phoebe Abbott, whom she was named after. Phoebe has a twin sister, Ursula, a waitress who is also portrayed by Kudrow. Phoebe can speak several languages, including
Critical reception towards Phoebe has remained consistently positive throughout Friends' decade-long run. Kudrow received critical acclaim for playing her character, including a
Phoebe is considered to be Kudrow's breakout role, credited with making her the show's second most famous cast member, after Jennifer Aniston, and for spawning her successful film career.
Role
In the pilot episode, Phoebe is introduced as one of the six original friends, including her
Phoebe's crass, identical twin sister, Ursula Buffay (also portrayed by Kudrow), a character originally created for and appearing in the American
In the second season episode, "The One with Phoebe's Husband", it is revealed that Phoebe was legally married to a "hoping to be gay" Canadian
Although the facets of Phoebe's character are manifold and extremely complex, Phoebe can generally be classified as kind-hearted, but ditzy and whimsical. Due in no small part to her extremely traumatic childhood, Phoebe has developed a child-like naïveté in an attempt to shield herself from the world's evils. In addition to being a
Much to the dismay of her friends (especially paleontologist Ross), Phoebe dabbles in trendy
Similar to the short-lived Monica/Chandler/Richard love triangle, Phoebe had two serious romantic interests that overlapped with each other at one point during the series. Physicist David (Hank Azaria), has a romance with Phoebe in the first season of the series, but breaks her heart when he decides to leave for Minsk on a three-year research trip. He makes a few more appearances throughout the series, most notably shortly before her engagement to Mike (Paul Rudd). Mike was introduced early in the ninth season of the show, during a double blind date with Joey, who finds Mike randomly at Central Perk. After a whirlwind romance, Phoebe and Mike break up after he says he never wants to marry again, and she briefly reunites with David. While on a trip to Barbados, both men propose to her, but she rejects David, realizing she is in love with Mike. She temporarily rejects Mike's proposal also, merely wanting an indication that their relationship is progressing. She ends up marrying Mike.
Jokes and sarcasm
"Smelly Cat"
One of the show's running gags are Phoebe's absurd, folksy songs with awkward titles like "Pervert Parade", "Ode to A Pubic Hair", "You Suck", "Shut Up & Go Home", "Ballad of the Circumcized Man", "The Food Here Will Kill You", however Phoebe's magnum opus is undoubtedly "
Age
Her age seemed to have differed throughout the series. In "The One with the Mugging", it is implied that Phoebe is older than Ross, seeing as she was fourteen when he was 12. This episode made her possibly the oldest in the group. In "The One with the Jellyfish" (Season 4), Phoebe states that she is twenty-nine, placing her birth in approximately 1968. However, in "The One Where They're Going to Party" (Season 4), Ross states he is also 29, which does not work with the previously mentioned two-year age gap. According to "The One with Frank Jr.", Phoebe was born on February 16; however, in Season 9 ("The One with Phoebe's Birthday Dinner") Phoebe's birthday is sometime in early November, since they could not make the reservations and the dinner had to be moved back to October 31. In "The One Where They All Turn Thirty" (Season 7), it is revealed that Phoebe was born a year earlier than she thought, believing she was 30 but was truly 31, which further adds to the inconsistency of her age throughout the show's run. Phoebe also tries on at least one occasion to manipulate the other friends into celebrating her birthday again within months of a previous birthday party.
"Regina Phalange"
Phoebe occasionally uses the
Production
Phoebe's pregnancy during Season 4 was to account for Lisa Kudrow's actual pregnancy.
Casting
Ellen DeGeneres, Kathy Griffin, Jane Lynch, and Megan Mullally all auditioned for the role of Phoebe. Lisa Kudrow won the role because the producers liked her recurring role as Ursula, the waitress in Mad About You.[9][10] The characters were connected to make them twin sisters. The producers said they liked the elements of Lisa in Ursula, but they needed Phoebe to be a lot more humorous.
Reception
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Kudrow received critical acclaim for playing her character, including a
Entertainment Weekly voted Phoebe Buffay on Friends as Lisa Kudrow's best performance.[11]
See also
References
- ^ ”https://screenrant.com/friends-character-ages-change-wrong-explained/” Screenrant, Friends: The Characters' Ages (& How They Get It Wrong)
- The One with the East German Laundry Detergent". Friends. Season 1. Episode 5. NBC.
- ^ Crane, David; Kauffman, Marta. "The One with the Monkey". Friends. Season 1. Episode 10. NBC.
- The One with the Boobies". Friends. Season 1. Episode 13. NBC.
- .
- The One Where Eddie Moves In". Friends. Season 2. Episode 17. NBC.
- ISBN 978-1-4422-4274-6.
- ^ "Taylor Swift sang Smelly Cat with Lisa Kudrow on stage". BBC. August 27, 2015. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
- ^ Bright, Kevin S. (November 15, 2005). Friends: Final Thoughts. New Wave Entertainment.
- ISBN 0-7553-1321-6.
- ^ "Lisa Kudrow Dishes It Out". Entertainment Weekly. No. 1026. December 19, 2008. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved November 25, 2011.