Once again, it’s like he’s just a kid on daddy’s knee
THANKSGIVING IS A perfect time for reuniting old family and friends – or, in Matthew Perry‘s case, old “Friends” with family. Perry, absent from TV since “Friends” went off the air in May, co-stars in tonight’s “Scrubs” with his father, actor John Bennett Perry.
“That was just a wonderful gift that they gave me,” says Perry, who also directs the episode. “The story was (about) a father and a son and my father’s a wonderful actor. And my uncle’s actually in the episode, so it’s kinda a family affair.”
Papa Perry plays a patient in need of a kidney transplant, while the younger Perry plays his estranged son who must choose whether or not to donate the organ.
Perry says he has no immediate plans to visit Matt LeBlanc on “Joey,” though he expects to at some point.
As for the rest of the “Friends” gang, he says, “We don’t get to see each other every day anymore, which is unfortunate. We do our best to see each other socially. … I see David Schwimmer a lot across the poker table.”
Assuming he can find the proper parka
TV fashion maven Steven Cojocaru said Monday that a genetic condition will require him to undergo a kidney transplant operation.
“I feel great, the prognosis is excellent,” Cojocaru, a correspondent for “Entertainment Tonight” and “The Insider,” told “ET” host Mary Hart.
He added that his doctor has assured him that after the operation, “I can climb a mountain in Nepal.”
D’Onofrio temporarily out of ‘Order’
“Law & Order: Criminal Intent” star Vincent D’Onofrio has been released from a New York hospital following a diagnosis of exhaustion.
D’Onofrio, 45, who stars in the NBC drama as police Detective Robert Goren, had fainted on two occasions this month. He was resting at home in New York and was expected to return to work this week.
Brighter days for cleaned-up Carrey
Jim Carrey says he is better able to deal with depression now that he lives a life free of Prozac and alcohol.
In an interview Sunday on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” the “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” star said he took Prozac for a long time but the drug didn’t cure his depression.
“I had to get off at a certain point because I realized that … everything is just OK,” he said. “I rarely drink coffee. I am very serious about no alcohol, no drugs. Life is too beautiful.”
Someone needs to watch their mouth
“Sopranos” star Jamie-Lynn DiScala, who signed with an offshore casino to raise awareness about eating disorders like the anorexia and bulimia she’s battled, abruptly ended the relationship over the weekend after an executive’s crass comments.
“Why did we hire her? Mainly because she was fat, then scrawny, and finally found a way to control her eating disorder,” Dennis Rose of the Trinidad-based Casino Fortune said in announcing the deal.
He added: “Many of our female players experience the same. Sitting on the couch night after night watching ‘The Sopranos’ and other shows takes a toll on the human body. We’re offering our players a little guidance and inspiration.”
The birthday bunch
Actor Michael Gough (Alfred in the “Batman” movies) is 87. Actor Steve Landesberg (“Barney Miller”) is 59. Singer Bruce Hornsby is 50. Rapper Kurupt (Tha Dogg Pound) is 32. Actress Kelly Brook (“Smallville”) is 25. Actor Austin Majors (“NYPD Blue”) is 9.