Morgan Bittle

Introduction
Up until 1994, sitcoms were known for corny families and cheesy humor. This was until the show
Friends aired, little did we know they would change the world of sitcoms. Instead of a sitcom revolving
around a family, this show looks at the lives of six close friends that go through life together. This was a
groundbreaking idea, because people in their twenties and thirties could actually relate to their content.
The show takes these six friends and over ten seasons captures the audience with their relatable
life situations. With a hectic life in New York City, these young adults are just trying to find themselves
and their life path. But just like real life, that does not come easy. This is what made the show so
relatable and revolutionary. They would show situations that young adults were going through; for
example, trying to find the right career path or just trying to find their soul mate. They do all of this with
a witty humor and a cast that you want to be a part of. I personally have watched all ten seasons all the
way through. It is my favorite show, due to the fact that it is so relatable but at the same time very light
hearted.
In this paper I hope to demonstrate the ways Friends has influenced sitcoms today. I would
like to portray not only the unique qualities of the storyline but also the behind the scenes of the show.
The show was revolutionary in the salaries they were paying the actors and the way they almost ignored
the suggestions from NBC and did their own thing. I hope to use my personal observation and knowledge
of the show to improve and add to the other evidence I have found.
Literature Review
In an interview with Matt Lauer, the cast and creators of Friends discuss making of the show Friends for
the ten years it was on air. Matt Lauer goes in depth with Marta Kauffman and David Crane, the creators
of the show, and they discuss the different pitches and ideas that brought them to the final product. We
can conclude from the interview that the show was a lot of trial and error, the producers were given a lot
of ideas from NBC to create almost an entirely different show. Both Kauffman and Crane stuck with
most their original ideas, which is what made Friends such a unique and influential show in pop culture.

However, this wasnt the only struggle the show had. Bill Carter goes in depth about a point in the show
struggling. To get out of this rut, the producers used clever plot twists to keep viewers wanting to come
back every week. Carter goes into detail on the plot twists and how they were influential in the seasons.
A Big Hug Goodbye to Friends and Maybe to the Sitcom, this summary of the last episode of
Friends, Shales compares Friends to other sitcoms and discusses the changes over the past ten years of the
show. Shales makes valid points that Friends may not have been the first sitcom, but that it held its own
in a new world of reality television. This is a good way for the reader to get an almost non-bias sense of
where television was when the show originally aired. Dellacontrada portrays some of the same ideas in
his article, "Friends" Reflected Change in American Society, Among First TV Shows to Portray "Youth
on Their Own"" and Holmes also describe how Friends was the first sitcom to actually depict young
adults in the real world, instead of having a family as the stars in his article, "You've Got to Have
Friends: How Curated Families Shook Up TV Comedy." This was new in the realm of sitcoms and led to
many more copycat shows after their premier. The audience will then get an idea of the time frame that
Friends came out to when the rest of the sitcoms about young adult friends in a city trying to make a name
for themselves. Both articles perfectly points to my topic that Friends was revolutionary in the world of
sitcoms. The uses of previous sitcoms in this article as a comparison to Friends will help the reader
understand the unique qualities of this sitcom.
Another article I found shows a timeline from the Hollywood reporter shows major events over the ten
years of the show (Hollywood Reporter). The timeline shows influential episodes and major events that
happened for the show; for example, nominations for the show or the actors and important influences they
had on sitcoms. This is an effective piece of evidence to give the audience an idea of how the show
transformed over ten seasons and its effect on pop culture. Dellacontrada also goes in depth and agrees
on their impact on pop culture.
Both Rice and Carter go into detail on how the Friends salaries were influential in the realm of sitcoms.
Rice gives a timeline in his article, 'Friends'' Demand a Raise" to show the dramatic jumps in the actors
salary and the negotiations it took to get there. The actors of Friends had strict deals that could have

made or broken the show, which was another new idea in sitcoms. This article will be helpful to the
audience to understand the financial standing of the show to help the audience see how different it was to
previous shows.
This assignment will give the reader necessary background information on the show, especially if the
reader has never watched Friends. Within the assignment there are three observations that will give the
reader an idea of how the characters are together and and idea of the dynamics of the show. By using this
resource, the audience has a reference for the characters, how the characters interact with each other, and
other necessary basic information.
Entering the Conversation
During its time, the show Friends was very revolutionary. The show was on for ten seasons over
a course of ten years. Over these ten seasons the show made records and took risks that no other show
has taken. In an interview with Matt Lauer, the creators of the show Marta Kauffman and David Crane
discuss suggestions from the network that they decided to ignore. For example, NBC thought that the
idea of having the friends in a coffee shop was too hip and they should think of putting them in a diner
(Lauer, 2004). Ignoring this suggestion made Friends that much more unique, unlike previous sitcoms
like Seinfeld, or sitcoms to come like Rules of Engagement.
All sitcoms have a cookie cutter feel that some can say Friends inspired. Since Friends there have been
many copy cat sitcoms that follow the same premise; there is a group tight group of friends, that live in
a city, and usually have a central spot were we find them conversing. For example, How I Met Your
Mother, Rules of Engagement, and many more shows that followed Friends. But before Friends, this was
not the mold for sitcoms. The basic sitcom before Friends included an average family, living in a
suburban area, going through life situations and always being a happy family at the end of each episode.
For example, Full House, Family Matters, and any other sitcom during the the late 1980s to the 1990s.
If it wasnt for the risks these producers took, than Friends would be like the rest of the cookie cutter
sitcoms. The creators of the show were very adamant on sticking to their original idea for the show
because they knew it was something special (Lauer). This risk gave great reward to the world of sitcoms.

Because the creators took such great risks, the actors were also greatly rewarded. Friends was
one of the first to have such high salaries, setting the standards for sitcoms stars to come. Once the show
began to take off the actors began to negotiate new salaries. The actors were some of the first to get one
million dollars an episode (Dellacontrada). Even today the actors are making plenty off of the show that
ended more than ten years ago. This opened up a whole new ball game in the television industry. Friends
was able to do this because the show was such a success because of the risks they took and the new ideas
they brought to television.
They were pioneers in the risks that they took, giving producers after them the bravery to take
more chances. With television today there is a lot that would have not been socially acceptable. We all
know of the reality television, such as Jersey Shore or Teen Mom, that exposes more than we need to
see of some people. But, we seem to forget that sitcoms never used to be as risqu as they are today.
Before Friends aired, shows like Full House only showed the actors kissing. But today we see the
characters going way past just kissing. Leading us to the question of; is there anything that is off limits to
the audience?
As a culture we are always evolving, women can now show their ankles and men dont wear suits
and ties everyday. This is obviously an exaggeration but the truth is as a society we have become a lot
more revealing. But, television was still a very reserved outlet until the shows like Friends came along.
Families would sit down and watch Full House together, but Friends was meant as a relatable comedy for
young adults. Because of this they introduced some more racy ideas to primetime shows. But because of
this, what risks are left to take? With shows today what else is left for producers to take? Maybe this is a
phase, maybe our society is going through its rebellious teen years and eventually will calm down and go
back to its modest self. I am uncertain the what is left for sitcoms to talk about, nothing is off limits
anymore.
Conclusion
Throughout my research I was able to determine the effect that Friends had on not only sitcoms, but
television as a whole. Friends took risks that producers before that time were too scared to take, this

opened up a new world of television to come. From this, I looked into what risks are left. This
introduced a new idea, that maybe the risks that Friends took had a negative effect on sitcoms; that
nothing is private anymore. However, these risks also paid off in a way, giving young adults a show they
can actually relate to. This idea of risk and reward was a way for the audience to look at the risks from
both points of view. By introducing the risks to the audience as positive and negative, I was able to put
my own input on the research.
As previously stated throughout my paper, Friends was a very influential in television. The audience of
the show can learn to appreciate it more if we are aware of the influences it had on other sitcoms. Until
the first episode of Friends, every other sitcom was the same. I find it to be extremely fascinating the
comparison of the family sitcoms before Friends, compared to the copy cat sitcoms that followed. As
an audience it is important that we see this transition in our society. It is important that we ask our selves;
is there anything we wont broadcast? Whilst we are an ever growing society where is the stopping point?
When will we run out of these risks? Maybe we will go back to our olden ways, having very modest
television? Unlikely, but this leads us to further research, to look at where the world of television is going.

Works Cited
Bittle, Morgan. University Writing 1104. University of North Carolina Charlotte. 9 Oct. 2015

Carter, Bill. "Plot Twists Paid Off For 'Friends'" The New York Times. The New York Times, 17 Feb.
2002. Web. 14 Oct. 2015.
Dellacontrada, John. ""Friends" Reflected Change in American Society, Among First TV Shows to
Portray "Youth on Their Own"" University at Buffalo. UB News Center, 16 Apr. 2004. Web. 19 Oct. 2015.
Holmes, Linda. "You've Got To Have Friends: How Curated Families Shook Up TV Comedy." NPR.
NPR, 15 Oct. 2012. Web. 19 Oct. 2015.
Lauer, Matt. "'Friends' Creators Share Show's Beginnings." Msnbc.com. Dateline, 06 May 2004.

Web.

14 Oct. 2015.
Reporter, Hollywood. "'Friends' Timeline." Web.archive.org. The Hollywood Reporter, 6 May 2004. Web.
14 Oct. 2015.
Rice, Lynette. "''Friends'' Demand a Raise." Ew.com. Entertainment Weekly, 21 Apr. 2000. Web. 14 Oct.
2015.
Shales, Tom. "A Big Hug Goodbye to 'Friends' and Maybe to the Sitcom." Washington Post. The
Washington Post, 7 May 2004. Web. 14 Oct. 2015.