Phoebe Buffay

Phoebe Buffay-Hannigan is a fictional character in the television series Friends (1994-2004), played by Lisa Kudrow. The actress received an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe nomination for her performances. Her character's first appearance is in a spin-off of Mad About You, alongside her twin sister, Ursula.

Background

Early Years

Buffay is a typical New York girl, tough and tough both physically and mentally. She is the younger of the twins of Phoebe Abbott (Teri Garr) and Frank Buffay (Bob Balaban), born October 16, 1968. Frank at the time was married to Phoebe Abbott's best friend, Lily, who adopted the twins. The sisters did not learn until adulthood that Lily was not her biological mother; Ursula found out about this from a letter her mother left her before she committed suicide, but she did not tell Phoebe. Not much is known about Phoebe's early life, other than that she was from New York, that her father abandoned the family when she was very young, and that Lily committed suicide. Occasionally, Phoebe mentions Lily's curious ways and the methods she used to raise her daughters.

Phoebe's life changed dramatically when she was fourteen and Lily committed suicide just before Christmas, putting her head in the oven. Phoebe's stepfather was in prison at the time. At 15, Phoebe was living on the streets of New York. She never mentions what happened to Úrsula after her mother died, but she does mention that they didn't stay together. Phoebe lived in many places, including in a burned-out car. She didn't go to high school or college, but she says she used to gather behind a small container to learn French, which she speaks fluently, plus a little Italian.

Phoebe turned to crime several times to survive. At one point, when she was fourteen, she mugged the teenage Ross near a comic book store, stealing the only copy of his comic, Science Boy. She also mentions that she once lived in Prague, Czechoslovakia, but she refuses to tell her friends about it. Likewise, she lived with an albino man, who cleaned windows at a bus station, and with & # 34; the man named Sidney who spoke with her hand & # 34; . Phoebe claims that she got hepatitis when a pimp spat in her mouth. She claims to have been stabbed by a police officer whom she also stabbed.

Phoebe learned to box at the YMCA, claims to have been tortured, and worked making Mexican hats (her boss called her a "bad white girl" for not making them big enough). Her references to her past show that her life is very different from that of her friends.

Mónica took her in as a roommate, beginning their friendship. While living with Monica, she married Duncan, a gay Canadian professional ice skater, to help him obtain a green card. Later he reveals that he actually likes women and that he was only gay to "fit in"; with his fellow professionals, resulting in a divorce, despite the fact that Phoebe has feelings for him. He moved in with her grandmother's house when he got fed up with Monica and her obsession with cleaning her. After her grandmother's death, Phoebe inherited her yellow cab and her New York apartment.

Personality

Not having a normal childhood, Phoebe is naive and innocent. She sometimes seems to be a child at heart but she also shows wisdom. She doesn't learn to ride a bike until Ross buys her one of hers and teaches her how to do it. She believes that Santa Claus exists, until Joey tells her otherwise. Her naiveté is a running joke throughout the series. Phoebe also stands out in the group for having street smarts; having grown up homeless, she knows how to get by. In one episode of the series, she and Ross are mugged, and she ends up having a happy reunion with an old friend from her shoplifting days. In another episode, she shows that she carries a knife in her bag and another in her right sock.

Phoebe often uses her chaotic childhood and traumatic past as a sympathy ploy with her friends. She routinely uses references to her mother's death to get her way. Also, Phoebe doesn't seem to care that her friends know that she's a ploy. In one episode, Rachel says, "Wait a minute, you can't use that to get the cute boy's phone and the last blueberry muffin!" to which Phoebe replies, "Did I wear that yet today? I'm sorry.

Phoebe believes in reincarnation and refers to many gods; however, not all of her beliefs seem to be internally connected. She is very open to the existence of paranormal phenomena and is willing to entertain the most outlandish scientific theories, much to Ross's confusion and despair. However, she does not believe in the theory of evolution or in gravity, stating that she does not feel a constant force pulling her down; on the other hand, however, she uses her disbelief in evolution to play games with Ross. After managing to make Ross doubt her beliefs, she says: "That was fun! ", and claims that he threw her entire belief system overboard for a simple argument. In another episode, Phoebe finds herself possessed by the spirit of an 82-year-old woman who had unfinished business. Phoebe also claims that she hears voices in her head, and even, at one point, she hears what Joey is singing in her head. In another episode, she states that she believes that the spirit of her friend is in a piece of pencil. In the episode 'The One with All Thanksgivings', Phoebe reveals her belief that she possessed the same appearance in at least two previous lives—during the American Civil War and World War I—in both of which she was a battlefield nurse who lost her arm on Thanksgiving. She says that Joey has no memories of a past life because he "is new." In a season four episode, she believes that her mother's spirit has been reincarnated as a cat. Ross says that she thinks this because she has been spending time with her birth mother and feels guilty about it. This is demonstrated when Phoebe is with the cat and receives a phone call from her biological mother, to which she says that she will go to another room to talk, so her "mother" is in the room. she won't listen. Finally, the cat is revealed to be a stray cat named Julio belonging to a Soho girl. In the same episode, and due to her unusual beliefs, Ross says, exposing the situation: & # 34; A girl who misses her cat, a crazy woman who believes that her mother is inside a cat & # 34;.

Phoebe has agreed to be a surrogate mother to her brother Frank Jr. and his wife Alice Knight. In the fifth season, in the episode "The 100th Chapter" (& # 34; The one with the triplets & # 34;), she gives birth to her three children: Chandler (whose name had been assigned before birth in honor of Chandler Bing, since they thought it would be a boy), Frank Jr. Jr. and Leslie. While she was pregnant, she had fun watching people's reactions after saying, "I'm having my brother's babies."

His opposition to big business is part of several episodes. Phoebe hates chain stores and the idea of corporate greed, such as Pottery Barn (although she ends up liking it). In the ninth season, in the episode "The One with the Fertility Test", she tries to convince Rachel not to redeem a gift certificate for a massage spa because she lists independent massage therapists as Phoebe out of business. However, when Rachel clandestinely visits the spa to redeem her gift certificate, it is revealed that Phoebe is working at the spa as a massage therapist. Even when Rachel says that she should quit since she hates him so much, she apparently keeps the job. Phoebe expresses her hatred for big companies in a chapter where she calls to make a product guarantee effective, and they put her on hold for more than a day, to which she refuses to hang up the phone, at the plea of her friends.

Phoebe is sometimes referred to as a heavy drinker, though she never shows any dependency. In season seven, when she describes her feelings for a man she's seeing, Phoebe tells Monica, "I feel like I've had ten drinks...and I've only had six..." # 3. 4;. She also had more than twenty drinks at a charity event, saying, "The more I drink, the less there is for the kids to drink." At Monica's 30th birthday party, when Monica is very drunk, Phoebe decides to "get twice as drunk so no one will notice about Monica." Chandler bristles at her suggestion, saying that "drunken Phoebe" is the only thing she's ever heard of. she is "bad". The next morning after Rachel and Ross get married in Las Vegas, Phoebe and the rest of the friends eat breakfast at a buffet, where Phoebe drinks with the food. Saying, "I'm drunk right now" and when her friends pout at her, she replies "I'm on vacation, can't I have a mimosa for breakfast?"

Phoebe is also the only member of the group who is left-handed, but she does a lot of work with her right hand. She is also noted for being different from the rest of the group. In the chapter 'The One with the Robbery', she mentions that the other members of the group have connections that go 'backwards': Ross and Monica are siblings, Rachel is Monica's old friend, and Chandler was Ross's college roommate. She is also geographically isolated from the group, as she is the only one who lives far away. When it comes to who might be "eliminated" After Ross and Rachel break up, Rachel tells him, "I always thought you'd be the one to go first, you live far away and you're not related." In the sixth season, it was learned that her sister Ursula is a porn star who goes by the name "Phoebe Buffay".

On one occasion, Phoebe was about to get a Fleur de Lis tattooed on her right shoulder, in honor of her mother named Lisa, although she is only called Lisa in that chapter, in the others Phoebe always mentions her as Lily.

Music

Phoebe's somewhat dubious musical abilities are a popular source of entertainment. His variety of rhyming songs includes, "The Double-Double-Double-Jointed Boy", "Bisexuals", "Sue, Sue, Suicide", "Sticky Shoes", "Holiday Song", "Ode to a Pubic Hair (Little Black Curly Hair)", and most notably: "Smelly Cat". In the series, "Smelly Cat" (stinky cat) becomes the music for a cat litter ad (sung by another singer) as well as a major commercial release (also not sung by her). Other popular tracks include "The Grandma Song" (a song about the death of her grandmother), and "The Cow in the Meadow goes Moo"; (a song about meat production and packaging). She sang in a program for a public library, earning her the name "The Woman Who Sings About the Truth" among children, who seek her out after being fired from the library. In "The One with Rachel's Dream" in season nine, Phoebe sings outside Monica's restaurant, much to Monica's dismay, because Phoebe's songs are not fit for a fancy restaurant. Customers yell at him, "You stink!" and "Shut up and go home!". Phoebe misinterprets this as requests for two of her songs. She also sings a song called 'Happy Birthday Emma'. in the tenth series, on the occasion of the birthday of Ross and Rachel's daughter, Emma.

The musical influences of Phoebe and her favorite bands are mixed. She seems to know some Lionel Richie songs perfectly, as well as some rock, heavy metal and hard rock that can be clearly stated. To cite a few examples:

• In the fourth season Phoebe and his mother say they like The Beatles. At his wedding with Mike in the last season, the Beatles song "Here, There and Everywhere" sounds as he walks through the altar.
• In the seventh she expresses her love for the grindcore Carcass band.
• In the eighth he tries to meet Sting and asks Ross to get him tickets for the concert, singing a song he invented in which he said: "Ross can", referring to the song of The Police "Roxanne".
• In the ninth she says she's "working on a couple of Iron Maiden covers."
• On one occasion he says he went to a Grateful Dead concert.
• Also in the ninth sings Queen's "We Are The Champions" song on a piano.

In one chapter he mentions that he thinks the most romantic love song is "Hold me closer, young Tony Danza" (confusion with "Tiny Dancer" by Elton John). She describes her musical style as “acoustic and folky stuff.” Early in the series, she plays in an open tuning, requiring only one finger to play major chords. As she tries to teach Joey to play the guitar, she professes to be "self-taught"; and not knowing the actual names of the chords. She refers to the sharp sun as & # 34;Iceberg & # 34; and the like "bear claw" by the formations of her finger as she touches them.

"Smelly Cat" It first appears in the season two episode, "The One with the Baby on the Bus", where it is revealed to be Phoebe's least popular song, but Rachel's favorite. At the end of the episode, Phoebe teaches a character played by guest artist Chrissie Hynde to play the song. She also hosts & # 34;Smelly Cat & # 34; with guest star Chriss Isaak at the end of 'The One After the Superbowl', mocking the character's improvisation at the end of the song. In the chapter & # 34; The one where Eddie moves & # 34;, Phoebe makes a professional recording of the song for a possible release of an advertisement, although finally her voice is replaced by Elizabeth Daily. A short video appears in this episode and is included in its entirety as a bonus on the second season DVD. In "The One with Phoebe's Ex-Boyfriend," Leslie, played by guest star Elizabeth Daily, uses the song as the melody for a kitty litter ad. In the season five episode 'The One with Joey's Bag', Phoebe meets her father, who reveals that he sang a lullaby when she was a baby, called 'Sleep Girl'., which has the same melody as "Smelly Cat." The song "Smelly Cat Medley" on the Friends Again soundtrack, credited by Phoebe Buffay and The Hairballs (with The Pretenders), features a recording of the duet between Hynde and Phoebe. Hynde then releases a hard rock version with new lyrics. The song became so famous that a group of Portuguese comedians chose Gato Fedorento ('Smelly Cat' in Portuguese) for the name of their show, claiming they were Friends fans. When Phoebe meets Mike's parents in 'The One with Ross's Inappropriate Song', she sings it to him at dinner because no one has spoken for seventeen minutes.

In 2009, a dance remix of the song became popular on the internet.

Animal and environmental law

Phoebe has many principles, although sometimes she doesn't follow them. She is a vegetarian and does not eat "food with a face", but succumbs to her desires for meat during her pregnancy, though only after Joey agrees to abstain from eating meat so that no more animals will be killed. In the first season, Monica tells him that the vegetarian pate she made had goosebumps. It is also known in the second season that, after Phoebe's husband left her, she was so angry that she ate a cheeseburger. In the episode "The One in Vegas, Part One," she points Monica to an ad for a 99-cent steak and lobster, saying that Las Vegas is better than London. When Monica reminds her that she doesn't eat animals, Phoebe replies, "For 99 cents I'd eat you." She once ate beef due to the pressure she felt visiting Mike's parents, she later became ill and vomited in her closet as a result. In 'The One With All The Lasagnas', she eats meat lasagna with Monica. She frequently uses her vegetarianism to apologize for some behaviors, especially those that make animals suffer; for example, when she punches Joey and makes him bleed, she is shocked and says, "Wow, and I'm a vegetarian." In the episode "The one with Chandler and Monica bride", it is discovered that she also has the ability to speak to animals by speaking as a judge of an argument between Joey and Chandler's duck and chicken, although Phoebe does not realize how amazing this is.

Phoebe is against wearing fur coats, though she decides she looks good in one she inherits. Later, she stops using it because she thinks a squirrel is judging her. She once got upset watching trees being cut and sold at Christmas. Phoebe makes a woman apologize to a tree after putting out a cigarette with it. She also cries when flowers die (and even arranges funerals for them), and feels bad when she stepped on a line of ants and accidentally killed them. Phoebe names the rats and mouse in her apartment (Bob and Susie, respectively) and even leaves cookies for Bob.

"Regina Falange"

Phoebe frequently uses Regina Falange's alter ego. The first reference to Regina Phalange is at the beginning of the fifth series, when Phoebe is trying to contact Mrs. Waltham in England, after Ross and Emily's wedding. She pretends to be Dr. Regina Phalange, Ross's doctor. Because Ross said Rachel's name at the wedding, she tries to justify her mistake by telling Mrs. Waltham that he hasn't been taking her medication and therefore the names are interchangeable in her mind. When her friends go to Las Vegas, Phoebe introduces herself as Regina Falange so she won't get kicked out of the casino again. When Phoebe, Rachel and Melissa go out for lunch ('The One with Rachel's Big Kiss'), Melissa asks if she was in a sorority, she says "Yeah. Tight Mega Tampon". When Melissa says 'What?' Phoebe replies, "Yeah, there were a lot of us, until it had to be closed when Regina Falange died of alcohol poisoning." She also used her fake name to show Chandler and Monica that people sometimes lie about her name. She introduces herself to them as Regina Falange. Phoebe used the name when she was practicing with Chandler for an interview about her abilities in season eight. In the tenth episode, 'The One Where Joey Speaks French', Phoebe tries to avoid Joey's humiliation by introducing herself as 'Régine Falange'; and saying that Joey does, in fact, speak in an obscure dialect of the French language of his "town"; by "Estée Lauder". Her attempt to convince the director fails and she resorts to "admitting the truth"; that Joey is, in fact, her younger brother who is "un peu retardé"; (a bit late), and subsequently has the director try to cheer Joey up about his French skills. The last reference in the series is when Phoebe tells Rachel when she is leaving for Paris, that there is a problem with the 'left phalanx'; of the plane, causing panic in all the passengers.

Relationships

Chandler

Chandler acts as something of a little brother to Phoebe, demanding on several occasions, "Pheebs! Play with me!". In the 'The One with the Metaphorical Tunnel' episode, Phoebe and Chandler play hide-and-seek. He goes with her the first time Phoebe visits her father's house. He also likes to create superhero names and play with the couches in Joey and Chandler's apartment. They share a duet of "Endless Love" at the end of an episode, when Chandler is sad after breaking up with Janice. They play Pac-Man. They spend Thanksgiving pretending to watch the football game together to avoid helping at dinner. They share a dislike for Monica's aggressive side, and instead of being mad at Phoebe for firing Monica, her wedding planner, in the middle of the rehearsal dinner, he laughs and raises her glass.

Chandler sees Phoebe as weird, making references to being an alien from outer space in 'The One With All Promises'. Phoebe seems to enjoy playing with him as the seasons progress. In "The One Where Everyone Finds Out About Her," he tells her in a comforting way that she can tell him anything, but she tries to trick him into thinking she's attracted to him. He falls for the bait, until Monica tells him that Phoebe finds him charming in a "sexless" way, indicating that any hints of romance are jokes. She and Chandler confront each other, in a seduction attempt that they both know is a sham, with Chandler visibly more agitated, though Phoebe is uncomfortable as well. They share an awkward kiss and Chandler almost touches her chest but awkwardly moves his hand to her shoulder. Chandler then walks away, yelling that Phoebe won, and that he's in love with Monica; to which Phoebe replies "I thought they were just having sex."

On a few occasions, Phoebe suggests that she has affection for Chandler, such as in 'The One Where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Dad', when Phoebe tells Chandler that she'll be waiting for him to do a job. movement in it. In 'The One with the Teacups', Phoebe reads her teacups and discovers that she will soon meet the man of her dreams. She says, "He's probably the guy I dreamed about last night." and then she points to Chandler and says "You." In "The One with the Soccer", Phoebe distracts Chandler by showing him her breasts, and he is visibly pleased. Chandler asks Phoebe for help choosing Monica's engagement ring. Chandler walks Phoebe down the aisle when she marries Mike, though Chandler is the only group member available; Originally, he was going to play Joey but he had to play the priest. Chandler tells her that she's "beautiful," and she seems to be happy, waving and saying, "Hello, new dad!" (because Joey was going to be her godfather and he was acting like he was her father). In Barbados, he and Monica play the role of getting Mike and Phoebe back from their breakup. They spend time together in 'The One with the East German Laundry Detergent', both trying to leave their partners; Phoebe says that they should spend more time together. However, she breaks up with Janice on her behalf, and he says that they should always break up together, to which she replies, "I'd like that!". She also decides that she should name one of her brother's sons Chandler. The baby named Chandler ends up being a girl, so Alice names her 'Channy Fanny'.

Phoebe is the initial reason Chandler quit smoking in 'The One with the Thumb', offering him $7,000 to never smoke again. Whether she does or not, she remains unspecified.

Joey

Phoebe and Joey seem to understand each other. According to a databook, technically Phoebe is stronger than Joey, but this was never known due to the great love and affection that existed between the two. They are the only members of the group who lack a college education, and are relatively new to the group. Joey is Phoebe's male best friend; they have dinner together once a month to talk about the rest of the group. Both characters show complicity for each other, even joking or when they are angry with each other. In "The One With the Ride Along", she explains that "When the revolution comes, Ill have to destroy them all...not you, Joey". Joey is upset when Ross doesn't support his idea of his "identical hand twin," and Joey says that none of the gang can live in his hand-shaped mansion, "except you, Pheebs, you you can live on the thumb". Later, she helps Joey by pretending to be Regina Phalange, a businesswoman interested in hiring identical hand twins. However, she says that she doesn't want her surrogate children to "grow up in a world where Joey is right." after an argument in which Joey insists that all good deeds are selfish.

In Season 5, after Rachel says that Phoebe has the least relationship with the rest of the group, Rachel apologizes saying that they will create a new group, just the two of them, to which Phoebe says that they will include Joey as well. Joey respects Phoebe's beliefs such as in reincarnation. Phoebe unsuccessfully tries to teach Joey to speak French because according to the resume he knows how to do it. Phoebe also tries to teach him to play the guitar, but forbids him from literally playing one, and they have a brief run-in when she discovers that he found a qualified teacher. Phoebe apparently liked Joey, and she was jealous of her relationship with her twin sister, Ursula. Phoebe and Joey's relationship never went beyond a kiss (which happens five times over the course of the show). In "The One Where Everyone Turns Thirty," Phoebe laments all the things she wanted to have done before she was 31, including having "the perfect kiss"; and meet a Portuguese person. Joey kisses her and says, "Oh, I'm 1/16 Portuguese." Phoebe tells him that they are getting married because she thinks Chandler and Monica's marriage will fail. In her prediction, Joey marries Rachel for her children and Phoebe marries Chandler for her money, then they divorce and marry each other with Chandler's money and Rachel and Joey's children..

Her affection for Joey is also shown in the season finale episode "The One with Phoebe's Wedding" in which Phoebe marries Mike Hannigan. Phoebe's stepfather is still in prison so he has no one to deliver her at the ceremony so he asks Joey to do it, finally the priest cannot carry out the ceremony so it is Joey who marries the couple, while which Chandler hands over to the bride.

Kudrow later revealed in an interview that she and LeBlanc had pitched an idea to the writers about Joey and Phoebe having casual sex, but the idea was shot. David Crane and Marta Kauffman also said they "always assumed Joey and Phoebe were having a secret affair."

Ross

Phoebe and Ross are the best of friends. They debate the theories of evolution and gravity, and whether Phoebe's mother has been reincarnated as a cat. Phoebe suggests that, at some point in the future, she and Ross will have a disagreement that ends with her killing him. In 'The One With Joey's Big Break', Phoebe claims to be mad at Ross but 'she can't remember'. because. She remembers that he called her boring, but this ended up being a dream. When she is getting ready to celebrate her birthday during the ninth season, Ross and Rachel say that only one of them can go to dinner with her, she quickly chooses Rachel, leaving Ross with a sarcastic comment, "Gee.", thank you. I'll be sure to put a lot of thought into your gift". Phoebe finds it fun to argue with Ross and get on his nerves. Despite their differences, both turn to each other for advice and help.

When they were teenagers, Phoebe mugged Ross, stealing his backpack and the only extant copy of his 'Science Boy' comic. She returns it to him after years, she had kept it in a box labeled "Street junk". She claims that she has kept it only because she was too good at selling or smoking. Apparently, Phoebe learned a lot from "Science Boy" while she was growing up on the streets. She also thinks the story is "clean," because it gives her and Ross a bond from her childhood that she doesn't share with others.

When Ross discovers that Phoebe has never ridden a bike, he buys her an exact copy of a neighbor's bike she used to envy. She doesn't know how to ride, so Ross gets mad at her and convinces her that the bike will die if she doesn't ride it. She scoffs at this, but as he leaves, she whispers to the bike, "Please don't die!". When Ross realizes that he is in love with Rachel, Phoebe forces him to tell Rachel how she feels. She is the one who decides not to say that Ross did not annul his marriage to Rachel in season six, and Phoebe remains true to her trust. Ross and Phoebe sometimes turn to each other when they need emotional or sexual advice. Ross asks Phoebe for advice on how to tell Monica to move Rachel, and Phoebe turns to Ross for advice on Mike. Ross angers Phoebe for telling him that he thought the marriage was "too normal"; to her, though he was fine for "a man like him." He annoys her when they discuss the fact that she was never in a long-term relationship, and then makes matters worse by revealing this fact to Mike.

In a 'flashback' episode, it is revealed that after Ross and Carol's relationship ended, she and Ross almost had sex. Phoebe flirts with him a few times, sometimes playfully, sometimes to get what she wants, like when she and Rachel compete to be a bridesmaid. Ross sometimes flirts back, as it boosts his ego, but she usually makes him feel uncomfortable with his sexuality, such as when she told him "daddy" when she told him. and she asks him if he will spank her, in the episode of "The One with the Lottery". In "The One with George Stephanopoulos," she says that she thinks Ross is "very cute." They kiss in 'The One with All the Resolutions', and when Joey lies and says Ross wanted to kiss her, she smiles and says it's obvious. They also date a divorced couple in one episode and end up fighting.

She is the only one of the friends who, since the second season, is sure that Rachel and Ross are right for each other, arguing that "it is her lobster" since these live together clinging to their pincers and swim in the pond until they are old.

In the last episode of Friends, Phoebe drives Ross to the airport in her taxi, and delays Rachel's flight so Ross can declare his love to Rachel. When they realize they've gone to the wrong airport, Phoebe calls Rachel and causes a commotion that delays their flight. Rachel initially rejects him, and Phoebe hugs him as he cries.

Monica

Although Phoebe and Monica are very close, Phoebe often finds Monica competitive and annoying. During one of Monica's outbursts, Phoebe jokes about how she "woke the beast." When she explains why she's moving out of Monica's apartment, Phoebe says, "I need to live in a world where people can spill their drinks!" She moves deceitfully. Once she is found out, she says that she still wants to be Monica's friend.

Monica is upset and embarrassed when Phoebe sings outside her restaurant; Phoebe responds by insulting Monica's food and her establishment. They also clash when Monica takes control of Phoebe's wedding as planner and she is upset by her demanding behavior, Phoebe tells Monica that she is tired of her bossiness and fires her although finally finding herself terrified by the outrage she had become accepts. that only Mónica can control him and asks her to please go back to being "a controlling hysteric". Flattered Monica accepts and everything is a success.

During Monica and Chandler's engagement, Monica tells Rachel and Phoebe that she can't decide who to choose to be her bridesmaid at the wedding, so she leaves the decision up to them. Initially, it is decided that Phoebe can be Monica's bridesmaid, as Phoebe says that she has never been a bridesmaid. When Rachel discovers that this is not true, Joey and Ross hold a competition in which Rachel and Phoebe must act out their potential as a bridesmaid in different scenarios at the wedding. Phoebe wins, but later tells Rachel that she can be Monica's bridesmaid since the wedding means more to her. Phoebe then becomes happy, as she shouldn't be dealing with Monica's controlling nature during the planning.

Before the first episode, Phoebe tried to "take Monica out" of her life. This is revealed in "The One With Ross's Tan" (season ten) and causes a brief rift between them. Although Phoebe later explains to Monica that no matter how much she wanted, she could not take her out of her life because Monica was very "brave"; and she came back, which he ended up liking and she confesses that she wouldn't know that she would be in her life without Monica, they both hug and become friends again.

Rachel

Phoebe and Rachel are roommates for a time in season six, though this leads to some fighting. Rachel is embarrassed by Phoebe's running, but then runs with her realizing that she hurt her feelings. Phoebe admits that if she had to choose which of her two female friends she would have a lesbian relationship with, she would pick Rachel because she's not as good a treat as Monica. At the end of the episode, as Rachel tells Phoebe that she would choose her over Monica for a relationship, she and Monica end up laughing behind Phoebe, saying that they would definitely choose each other. At one point, Phoebe insults Rachel as a waitress, telling her, "Yeah, otherwise someone might get what she ordered." This triggers fights between some of the friends.

In another early episode, Phoebe and Rachel go to get tattoos together. Rachel gets a heart on her hip, but Phoebe doesn't get the tattoo, since she "didn't know they did it with needles."

The couple grow closer as the show continues, but Rachel is forced to move when a fire destroys her home. When it is rebuilt, Phoebe thinks that Rachel would rather live with Joey. She tries to make Rachel's life miserable at Joey's apartment so Rachel would move in with her. When Ross gets into a fight with Rachel, she tells Phoebe that they should go off and make their own group because they're "the best." Phoebe agrees and says, "Okay, but let's try to get Joey."

In season seven, Phoebe doesn't believe Rachel when she says she's made out with a girl, so Rachel takes Phoebe to dinner with the girl she says she kissed. The girl denies this at first, but later says that she is a lesbian and that she has never forgotten the kiss. As Rachel's friend leaves, Phoebe kisses Rachel and asks what's all the fuss about? Rachel, looking at her in shock, says, "So?" Phoebe shrugs and says, "I've had better."

Marriage

In season nine, Joey introduces Phoebe to Mike Hannigan. Phoebe and Mike begin a long relationship, which temporarily ends after learning that Mike, having been through a failed marriage, does not want to remarry. Mike then learns that Phoebe's first boyfriend, David, is planning to propose; he changes his mind about the marriage and proposes to Phoebe before David does. Phoebe turns down the proposal because she just wanted to know if marriage was a possibility; she and Mike are a couple again. They are officially engaged in 'The One Where Rachel's Sister Baby-Sits'. In 'The One with Phoebe's Wedding', during the season finale, Phoebe is around 35-36 years old when they get married on the street outside Central Perk, with Monica as bridesmaid, Rachel as bridesmaid, Joey officiating, Chandler delivering Phoebe, and Ross holding Mike's childhood dog as best man.

When she changes her name after the wedding, Phoebe discovers that she can change it to whatever she wants. She becomes "Princess Consuela Bananahammock", but asks her friends to call her "Valerie". To show Phoebe how ridiculous she sounded, Mike suggests changing her name to 'Crap Bag'. Phoebe relents, but she wants to drop her name 'Bananahammock', until learning that she is Speedo slang. She changes her name to Phoebe Buffay-Hannigan.

Phoebe has been married before. Her previous husband, Duncan, was an ice dancer and homosexual, an old friend, and someone Phoebe was in love with. They got married and so he could get a Green Card; he later admits that he likes women, but divorces Phoebe anyway. It is also possible that Phoebe was previously married in Las Vegas at some point in the past. She indicates her belief that people married in Las Vegas are only married within the city limits, and is surprised when Monica informs her that her union is legal worldwide. After a moment of brief anguish, she shrugs off the revelation.

Phoebe was also briefly engaged to Joey. In 'The One With The Red Sweater', Joey thinks Phoebe is pregnant and proposes to her. Phoebe agrees and accepts the ring from her, but Joey takes the ring back and proposes to Rachel when she finds out that it is her friend who is pregnant.

Production

Phoebe's pregnancy during season four paralleled Lisa Kudrow's actual pregnancy. Kudrow gave birth to a boy after production wrapped for the season.

Phoebe's first line in the series was: "Wait, does she usually chew chalk?" (everyone looks, as Phoebe explains): "I don't want her to go through what I went through with Carl." Phoebe's last line is, "I guess she's over," before everyone leaves Chandler and Monica's apartment for good.

Casting

Lisa Kudrow got the role because the producers liked her recurring role as Ursula, a waitress on Mad About You. The characters were flashbacks to be twin sisters. The producers said they liked the Lisa elements in Ursula, but needed Phoebe to be sweeter.

Reception

TV Guide ranked her number 11 on their list of "Top 100 Personalities on TV". Entertainment Weekly voted Phoebe Buffay in Friends Lisa Kudrow's Best Performance.