Friends | |
---|---|
Genre | Sitcom |
Created by |
David Crane Marta Kauffman |
Starring |
Jennifer Aniston Courteney Cox Lisa Kudrow Matt LeBlanc Matthew Perry David Schwimmer |
Theme music composer | Michael Skloff Allee Willis |
Opening theme | "I'll Be There for You" by The Rembrandts |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 10 |
No. of episodes | 236 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | David Crane Marta Kauffman Kevin S. Bright Michael Borkow (season 4) Michael Curtis (season 5) Adam Chase (seasons 5–6) Greg Malins (seasons 5–7) Wil Calhoun (season 7) Scott Silveri (season 8–10) Shana Goldberg-Meehan (season 8–10) Andrew Reich (seasons 8–10) Ted Cohen (seasons 8–10) |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 20–22 minutes (per episode) 22–65 minutes (extended international TV & DVD episodes) |
Production company(s) |
Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions Warner Bros. Television |
Distributor | Warner Bros. Television Distribution |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Picture format |
480i (4:3 SDTV) (original broadcast) 1080p (16:9 HDTV) (2012 remaster) |
Audio format |
Dolby Surround 2.0 (original broadcast) Dolby Digital 5.1 (2012 remaster) |
Original release | September 22, 1994 | – May 6, 2004
Chronology | |
Followed by | Joey (2004–06) |
External links | |
Website | warnervideo |
Friends (stylized as F•R•I•E•N•D•S) is an American television sitcom, created by David Crane and Marta Kauffman, which aired on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004, lasting ten seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer, the show revolves around six 20-30 something friends living in Manhattan. The series was produced by Bright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television. The original executive producers were Kevin S. Bright, Marta Kauffman, and David Crane.
Kauffman and Crane began developing Friends under the title Insomnia Cafe between November and December 1993. They presented the idea to Bright, and together they pitched a seven-page treatment of the show to NBC. After several script rewrites and changes, including a title change to Six of One and Friends Like Us, the series was finally named Friends.
Filming took place at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. All ten seasons of Friends ranked within the top ten of the final television season ratings; ultimately reaching the No. 1 spot with its eighth season. The series finale on May 6, 2004, was watched by around 52.5 million American viewers, making it the fifth most watched series finale in television history, and the most watched television episode of the 2000s decade.