Courtney Cox surprises superfan with canceled 'Friends'-themed bar mitzvah
Thirteen-year-old Naftali Arden of Borehamwood, England, is a super-fan of the popular TV series Friends, and has seen it in its entirety no less than seven times.
By AARON REICHCourtney Cox(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
A young boy from the United Kingdom got the shock of his life when he was paid a visit by one of his idols on an episode of The Late, Late Show with James Corden.Thirteen-year-old Naftali Arden of Borehamwood, England, is a super-fan of the popular TV series Friends, and has seen it in its entirety no less than seven times. He originally planned to have a Friends-themed bar mitzvah, complete with a foosball table resembling the iconic table characters Chandler and Joey had in their apartment."I'm a big fan of the TV show Friends, which is why my invite has a big Friends theme," Arden said in a video. "I've come to a bit of a realization that the lyrics of the Friends theme tune starts with the words 'So no one told you life was gonna be this way,' but the chorus of that song has the much more uplifting line 'I'll be there for you, like you're there for me too.'"Corden explained that the March 19 virtual bar mitzvah – which the rabbi officiating it, Rabbi Alex Chapper, called "the first ever online bar mitzvah" – was seen by thousands of other people, which Arden was shocked about.Feeling sympathy for a fellow Friends fanatic, Corden invited Arden on the show – virtually, as the show is still filmed at home due to the coronavirus outbreak – and gave him the chance to speak to one of the stars of the popular series, Courtney Cox.Cox, who played Monica on the series, greeted her star-stuck fan over video chat and gave him a foosball table.And, to really make his day, she gave Arden one of Monica's signature "I know!" lines.Despite the series ending years before he was born, Arden loves the series due to the relatable characters. Indeed, despite the show ending in 2004 after 10 seasons, its popularity has endured and remains watched worldwide with a significant impact on global culture.Its popularity has even spread to Israel, with dozens of Israelis even gathering in Tel Aviv in 2017 to protest the events in an episode of Friends, standing up for the rights of Ross Geller, who they claimed was treated badly by his girlfriend Rachel Green in the iconic episode “The One with the Morning After,” which spawned the famous line of "we were on a break."
