Topics: Film and TV, Friends, Matthew Perry, Celebrity, Health, Mental Health, Sport, US News
Fans of the sitcom Friends were left heartbroken yesterday, after it was announced that actor Matthew Perry had tragically died, aged 54.
The Chandler Bing star was found dead following an apparent drowning at his Los Angeles home on Saturday 28 October.
It was reported by TMZ that the widely-adored comedy star was found unresponsive in his hot tub by his assistant, after playing a two-hour pickleball game earlier in the day.
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And yesterday, Matthew's pickleball coach, Matt Manasse, shared an insight with fans into the late actor’s adoration for the popular sport.
In an interview published by People on Sunday 29 October, he said of Matthew: "He thought it was something that could help with his recovery and he was doing an awesome job.
"He loved it. He came out five times a week, would always talk about it. [He] got so much better, always made everyone laugh. He was competitive, just a genuine, good guy — caring for everybody."
Matthew had been very open about his lifelong struggle with addiction to alcohol and opioids, most prominently in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing: A Memoir, which released last year.
"Not only do I have the disease, but I also have it bad,” he wrote in the book. “I have it as bad as you can have it, in fact. It’s back-to-the-wall time all the time. It’s going to kill me…”
With foul play not suspected to have had a role in Matthew's untimely death, pickleball coach Matt says the 90s star had often in fact used the sport to retrieve him during difficult periods of his life.
“He had so much that he was doing with his rehab facility and trying to get people clean,” he said. “He would bring them to teach them pickleball. He was just always trying to help people.”
Matt added that Perry had even played a match with another coach at the Riviera Country Club near his Pacific Palisades home the morning of his death.
Claiming the actor was 'doing really well' on the court, Matt continued: "Pickleball was his outlet. He really looked forward to it. He was a competitive guy, not in a bad way at all.
Being one of the hundreds of stars to have remembered Matthew with an emotional tribute, he added: "He loved it. He wanted to come out. He wanted to win. He loved it. When he hit an unbelievable shot, he would tell you about it for days."
