Matthew may refer to:

• Matthew (name), the given name
• Matthew (surname)
• Matthew (ship), the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 from Bristol to North America
• Matthew (album), an album by rapper Kool Keith

In Christianity:

• Saint Matthew the Evangelist, one of the apostles of Jesus
• Gospel of Matthew, a book of the Bible

See also[link]

• Matt (given name), the diminutive form of Matthew
• Matthews (surname)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Matthew Perry
Perry at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards in 2010.
Born	Matthew Langford Perry (1969-08-19) August 19, 1969 (age 42) Williamstown, Massachusetts, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, director, writer, producer
Years active	1988–present

Matthew Langford Perry (born August 19, 1969) is a Canadian-American actor and comedian, best known for his Emmy-nominated role as Chandler Bing on the popular, long-running NBC television sitcom Friends. He also received acclaim for his portrayal of Ron Clark in the television movie The Ron Clark Story, accompanied by another Emmy nomination as well as a Golden Globe nomination.^[1][2] Perry also starred in the short-lived series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and has appeared in a number of films, including Fools Rush In (1997), The Whole Nine Yards (2000), and 17 Again (2009).^[3] In 2010 he expanded his resume to include both video games and voiceover work when he voiced Benny in the role-playing game Fallout: New Vegas.^[4]

Perry was the co-creator, co-writer, executive producer and star of the short-lived ABC sitcom Mr. Sunshine, which ran from February to April 2011.^[5]

Early life[link]

Perry was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. His mother, Suzanne Jane Louise Morrison (née Langford), is a Canadian journalist and former press secretary to Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, and his father, John Bennett Perry, is an American actor and former model.^[6][7] His parents divorced before his first birthday and his mother subsequently married Keith Morrison, a broadcast journalist.^[7] Perry was raised by his mother in Ottawa, Ontario, and was enrolled at Rockcliffe Park Public School and Ashbury College.^[7] While growing up, he took a keen interest in tennis and became a top-ranked junior player.^[7]

Career[link]

1980s[link]

Matthew Perry moved from Ottawa to Los Angeles to pursue acting. For high school, he attended The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks. While at Buckley, Perry was featured as George Gibbs in Our Town and appeared as a junior in a production of The Miracle Worker. Patty Duke attended and praised the young Perry's convincing role as Helen's brother Jimmy. He was also featured in The Sound of Music as a junior. In his senior year, director Tim Hillman had planned a production of "The Elephant Man" specifically to feature Perry as John Merrick along with Vanessa Smith, and future Les Misérables star Lisa Capps. He then got his professional break at age 18. On being cast in A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon with River Phoenix, Perry withdrew from Elephant Man and ended his high school acting career. Perry also pursued improv comedy at the LA Connection in Sherman Oaks while still in high school, quickly becoming a featured performer.^[8]

After some guest appearances in late 1980s television, it was his intention to enroll at the University of Southern California, but when he was offered the lead role of Chazz Russell in Second Chance he became noticed on the acting scene. Perry originally starred alongside Kiel Martin when the series premiered in 1987, but after 13 episodes the format changed: Second Chance became Boys Will Be Boys, Perry was elevated to top-billing status, and the plots re-focused on the adventures of Chazz and his teenage friends. Despite the shift, the show ran for only one season. When it concluded, Perry stayed in Los Angeles and made guest appearance on the television program Growing Pains in which he portrayed Carol's boyfriend who dies from injuries in the hospital sustained in a drunk driving accident.^[8]

1990s[link]

Perry departing rehearsal for the 1995 Emmy Awards.

In the midst of his many continuing guest roles on TV, Perry was cast as a regular on the 1990 CBS sitcom Sydney, playing the younger brother of Valerie Bertinelli's title character. In 1991, he made a guest appearance on Beverly Hills, 90210 as Roger Azarian. Perry landed his next TV starring role on the ABC sitcom Home Free, which aired only 11 episodes in the spring 1993. By then, Perry was making his mark, and was instantly cast in a new dramatic pilot titled LAX 2194. The project was slow to take off, so as a backup option, he attempted to secure an audition for the pilot Six of One, later to be known as Friends, by Marta Kauffman and David Crane, both of whom he had worked with on Dream On. However, due to previous commitments to the pilot LAX 2194, he was not initially considered for an audition. When he did eventually get a reading, he landed the part he is best known for, the role of Chandler Bing.^[8]

The program was hugely successful and Perry, along with his co-stars, gained wide renown among television viewers. The program also earned him Emmy^[9] nominations in 2002 for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series along with Matt LeBlanc, but he lost to Ray Romano. As well as his successful career on Friends, Perry has appeared in films such as Fools Rush In (alongside father John Bennett Perry and Salma Hayek), Almost Heroes, Three to Tango, The Whole Nine Yards (alongside Bruce Willis) and its sequel The Whole Ten Yards, and Serving Sara.^[8]

2000s[link]

While known primarily for his comic roles, Perry has carved out a career in drama as well, particularly in his portrayal of Associate White House Counsel Joe Quincy in Aaron Sorkin's The West Wing. His three appearances in that series (twice in the fourth season and once in the fifth) earned him two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2003 and 2004. Perry is referred to in the show prior to his guest appearance - Donna Moss seeks him out (off screen) in the episode "20 Hours in LA." He also appeared as attorney Todd Merrick in two episodes near the end of Ally McBeals five season run, including a 2-hour special intended to revive the legal comedy-drama.^[8]

After Friends wrapped up, Perry made his directorial debut in an episode of the 4th season of the American comedy-drama Scrubs, in which he also guest starred as "Murray Marks", an operator of a small airport's traffic control team. Murray is asked to donate a kidney to his father Gregory (played by Perry's real father).^[8]

He starred in the TNT movie, The Ron Clark Story which premiered August 13, 2006. Perry played small town teacher Ron Clark who relocates to the toughest class in the country. Perry received a Golden Globe nomination as well as an Emmy nomination for his performance.

Perry at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival.

In 2006-2007, Perry appeared in Aaron Sorkin's drama Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Perry played Matt Albie alongside Bradley Whitford's Danny Tripp, a writer-director duo brought in to help save a failing sketch show. Perry's character was considered to be substantially based on Sorkin's own personal experiences, particularly in television.^[10]

In 2006 he began filming Numb, a film based on a man suffering from depersonalization disorder. The film's tentative release date was pushed back several times, but was finally released to DVD on May 13, 2008. He also appeared in David Mamet's Sexual Perversity in Chicago in London.^[11] In 2009 he starred in the film 17 Again playing the older Mike O'Donnell.

In 2008, Perry starred in the offbeat film Birds of America as Morrie Tanager, an uptight man who has to deal with his siblings.

Showtime passed on a pilot called The End of Steve, a dark comedy starring, written and produced by Perry and Peter Tolan.^[12]

2010s[link]

Perry's new comedy pilot ended up in the hands of ABC, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The deal for the untitled comedy is said to include penalties if the pilot doesn't make it to series, almost guaranteeing that the project will get a green light, THR reports. It is based on an original idea by Perry, and will be written by Perry as well as Alex Barnow and Marc Firek, who have both signed as executive producers. Thomas Schlamme is in talks to direct.^[13] The new pilot is called Mr. Sunshine.^[14] In January 2010, it was announced that ABC has greenlit Mr. Sunshine. It was also revealed that the project is a single-camera sitcom starring Perry as a man who has a minor identity crisis on his 40th birthday. The venture comes from Sony TV and Jamie Tarses' Fanfare Productions.^[15] The series was canceled by ABC after nine episodes.^[16][17]

In March 2012, it was announced that Perry had been cast in the lead role in NBC’s single-camera-style pilot Go On, written and produced by former Friends producer Scott Silveri. Perry will play a charming sportscaster who tries to move on after a personal tragedy, through the help of mandatory therapy sessions. The series will premiere in fall 2012.^[18]

Personal life[link]

Perry reportedly dated Julia Roberts and Yasmine Bleeth.^[19][20] He has been in a relationship with Lizzy Caplan since 2006.^[21][22]

Perry holds dual Canadian-American citizenship.^[23] He is a fan of the Ottawa Senators, the New England Patriots and the Boston Red Sox.^[24][25]

Perry did a 28-day program in 1997 for a Vicodin addiction. Matthew Perry's weight fluctuated drastically over the next few years and once dropped down to 145 pounds (66 kg). He lost 20 pounds in 2000 due to pancreatitis.^[26] Perry again entered rehab in February 2001 to treat an addiction to opioids (specifically vicodin and methadone), amphetamines and alcohol.^[27][28][29] Perry was in Dallas filming Serving Sara with Elizabeth Hurley when he had such severe stomach pains that he called a local doctor, who advised rehab. Perry flew to Los Angeles and checked into Marina del Rey's Daniel Freeman Hospital. Perry's publicist Lisa Kasteler confirmed his rehab stay.^[27]

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Television[link]

Video games[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Matthew Perry at the Internet Movie Database
• Matthew Perry on Twitter

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Matthew Perry

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Matthew Perry

Matthew West
Matthew West playing a concert on the History 101 tour in September 2005
Background information
Birth name	Matthew Joseph West
Born	(1977-04-25) April 25, 1977 (age 35)
Origin	Downers Grove, IL, U.S.[1]
Genres	CCM, pop/rock, Adult contemporary, Indie pop[2]
Occupations	Singer/songwriter
Years active	1997–present
Labels	Universal South, Sparrow
Website	matthewwest.com

Matthew Joseph West^[3] (born April 25, 1977) is a Contemporary Christian musician from Nashville, Tennessee. He has released four studio albums and is known for his No. 1 hits "More", "You Are Everything", and "The Motions". He was nominated for five Dove Awards in 2005, two of which were for his major label debut album Happy.

First starting out as an independent musician in the late 1990s, he released three independent albums before signing with Universal South Records. With the release of his Dove Award-winning debut album Happy (2003) came the success of his first radio single "More", which stayed at No. 1 on Christian AC charts for nine weeks and received two Dove Award nominations. His second record History (2005) was followed by a 2006 re-release of the originally independent album Sellout. In 2007 he faced vocal issues which threatened his career with two months of prescribed vocal rest. His third studio album Something to Say (2008) also enjoyed chart success with No. 1 hits "You Are Everything" and "The Motions".

In addition to his main solo career, West has worked as a songwriter for many Christian musicians and groups such as Point of Grace, Mandisa, and Natalie Grant, as well as mainstream country acts Rascal Flatts and Billy Ray Cyrus.

Early life[link]

Matthew West was born on April 25, 1977 in Downers Grove, IL.^[4] As a child he was a fan of his hometown baseball team, the Chicago Cubs, and wanted to eventually have a career in baseball.^[5] He played baseball throughout high school, becoming team captain as a senior. He was hoping for a college baseball scholarship but instead ended up receiving a four-year music scholarship at Millikin University in Illinois. He graduated from Millikin in 1999.^[5]

Musical career[link]

West wrote most of his first songs in the sanctuary of his father's church while he was at home during college breaks.^[5] He was a songwriter and independent musician from 1997–2002, releasing three albums: September Sun (1997), Every Step of the Way (1998), and Sellout (2002).^[6][7] In October 1997, he went on a three-city tour to support of the release of September Sun.^[6]

Just before graduating from Millikin University in 1999, someone from the college recommended that West attend the GMA Music in the Rockies event for aspiring musicians. Although West was not interested at first, he attended after learning that other people signed him up and paid his entrance fee.^[5] He met a representative from Word Publishing at the event who took interest in him and kept in contact until he graduated. West landed in the finals of a songwriting competition and was offered a songwriting deal in July 1999, five weeks after graduating.^[5][6] After penning songs for well-known musicians like Billy Ray Cyrus and Rachael Lampa, he began touring the United States as an independent artist in 2000 and 2001.^[5][6]

On July 26, 2002,^[6] only a week or two before signing a record contract with Universal South Records, West had an injury to his left arm which threatened his musical career and guitar playing. He says, "I locked myself out of my house. But I'd done that before, and I had a way of breaking in through a window. But this time, I had a really hard time getting the window open. I started pushing up on the window really hard and my hand broke through the glass. Blood starting spewing out of my left arm everywhere and I ran down my street screaming for help. After seeing so much blood, I went into shock and just blacked out in the middle of the street. The next thing I can remember is some construction workers praying over me in Spanish and then being taken to the hospital."^[5] West was told that the chances were low of regaining the full use of his left arm, having come very close to severing a major artery.^[5] He recovered after the accident, however, and was able to continue playing guitar and record for his first studio album.^[8]

[edit] Happy (2003)

After signing with Universal South Records on August 23, 2002,^[6] West released his first non-independent studio album, Happy on December 26, 2003.^[9] The album's producers Kenny Greenberg and Jason Houser co-wrote the song "More" with West.^[10][11] The track was his first and most successful radio single to date, staying at No. 1 on R&R's Christian Adult Contemporary chart for a record-breaking nine weeks.^[12] It was the most played Christian AC song of 2004^[13] and went on to be labelled as the Christian Song of the Year by ASCAP.^[14] Two additional songs, "The End" and "You Know Where to Find Me", were also released as singles off the album.^[15] Beginning in late September 2004, West joined Avalon and Mark Schultz on a 40-city fall tour, which concluded at the end of November.^[16] In 2005, he was nominated for five Dove Awards, including "New Artist of the Year" and "Song of the Year".^[17] He won the "Recorded Music Packaging of the Year" Dove Award for his debut album Happy.^[18]

In early 2005, he was on the WinterJam 2005 tour, hosted by NewSong, with tobyMac, Building 429, Tait, and Rachael Lampa.^[19]

[edit] History (2005)

Matthew West at a concert on tobyMac's Winter Wonder Slam tour in December 2005

With Kenny Greenberg and Jason Houser once again as producers,^[20] Matthew West began recording for his second studio album in early 2005.^[15] History, co-produced by West, was released on June 21, 2005 on Universal South Records.^[21] The first single off the album, "Next Thing You Know", was released June 20, a day before the album's release.^[22] The theme of the title track "History" was inspired by a R&R music news headline "Matthew West Makes History", in reference to his first album, Happy. "It's not every day you read a headline like that with your name in it that calls you a history maker," he said.^[23] Beginning on September 14, 2005, he kicked off the 30-city History 101 tour, his first headlining tour, which included guest musicians Shawn McDonald and Paul Wright.^[24] He then joined tobyMac's Winter Wonder Slam tour, beginning on December 1, 2005, along with John Reuben, BarlowGirl, GRITS, and DJ Maj.^[25] Two additional songs were released off History as singles: "Only Grace" and the title track "History".^[26][27]

His independent album Sellout was re-released in 2006 on Universal South Records.^[28]

Vocal problems[link]

West said that he began to experience "some vocal fatigue" in April 2007. He said "I had lost some of my vocal range, staying on higher notes and lower notes. I even began having a hard time speaking."^[29] At a vocal check-up in response to the issue, West's doctors at the Nashville Vanderbilt Voice Center discovered "hemorrhaging caused by some polyps".^[29] He was told by his doctors that vocal surgery was the only option, since a few weeks had passed.^[29] The surgery took place on May 17, 2007, a process that he said was "career threatening."^[30] Afterward, he was prescribed a two-month period of silence for vocal rest.^[29]

A video documentary titled Nothing to Say, directed and produced by Benjamin Eisner, was released in early 2008, highlighting Matthew West's time of silence and vocal recovery in 2007.^[31] In February 2008, the documentary was available exclusively in Family Christian Stores as a CD/DVD combo pack with West's album Something to Say.^[31]

[edit] Something to Say (2008–2010)

His next single "You Are Everything" was released in late 2007. The song was available as a free download from West's website.^[32] He also recorded a duet("Christmas Makes Me Cry") with American Idol finalist Mandisa which was released as a Christmas radio single in November 2007, from Mandisa's Christmas Joy EP.^[32]

Matthew West's album, Something to Say, was released on January 15, 2008.^[33] It reached No. 8 on Billboard's Top Christian albums chart, and peaked at No. 159 on the Billboard 200 chart,^[34] making it his first Billboard 200 album .^[35] It was produced by Brown Bannister, Ed Cash, and Christopher Stevens.^[36] West said in an interview that all of the album's songs had already been written and the title "Something to Say" had already been decided "months before I found out that I was going to have nothing to say."^[29][37] The first radio single released from the album was "You Are Everything". In March 2008, the song reached No. 1 on R&R's Christian AC chart.^[38] "Something to Say", the album's title track, was also released to radio, receiving airplay in June 2008.^[39]

Matthew West guested on tobyMac's 26-city "Boomin' Beyond Measure" tour along with Jeremy Camp.^[40] The tour ran from February 6 through March 21, 2008.^[41]

He was featured on the Billy Graham television special America's Dream: Chasing Happiness, which aired in the U.S. on March 1–9, 2008.^[42] The appearance included a world premiere of his music video for "Nothing Else", a song from History.^[42] On June 29, West hosted GMA's 2008 Gospel Dream, a televised Christian music talent competition.^[43] "The Motions" was released as his next single, placing at No. 1 on R&R's Christian AC chart in April 2009.^[44]

He has a song on the upcoming album of country artist Jo Dee Messina, and another under consideration by “American Idol” finalist Danny Gokey. In December 2009, "The Motions" was Grammy-nominated for Best Gospel Song, his first Grammy nomination.^[45]

[edit] Story of Your Life (2010-present)

The first single from Matthew West's new album, "My Own Little World" was released on August 23, 2010. The album, The Story of Your Life, was released October 5, 2010, and according to West, is a response to thousands of life stories his fans shared with him. "The first day, I got 1,000 stories. All of a sudden, I was like, 'holy cow, something special is about to take place'. I rented a cabin in Tennessee, about 25 minutes from my house that felt like it was out in the middle of nowhere. And I spent two months in that cabin reading 10,000 stories," the singer/songwriter reported in an interview with CBN.com.^[46] Matthew is also starring in The Heart of Christmas.^[47]

Other songwriting[link]

In addition to his main solo career, Matthew West has also written songs for other bands and musicians, including Mark Schultz, Mandisa, Jump5, Sara Groves, Joy Williams, Salvador, Natalie Grant, PureNRG, and Point of Grace, as well as mainstream country act Billy Ray Cyrus. Rascal Flatts recorded Matthew's song "The Day Before You" on their album Feels Like Today.^{[2][11][48][49]} He co-wrote "Voice of a Savior" by Mandisa and "Thank You" by 33Miles, both of which were released as singles in early 2008.^[50]

Personal life[link]

Matthew West currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee with his wife Emily.^[13][51] He married Emily on May 10, 2003 after proposing to her in September 2002.^[6] They have a daughter Luella Jane ("Lulu") and a daughter Delaney Ruth.^[52] The Wests own a pug named Earl "The Girl".^[23]

Awards[link]

GMA Dove Awards[link]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2012)

• 1997 - September Sun
• 1998 - Every Step of the Way
• 2002 - Sellout
• 2003 - Happy
• 2005 - History
• 2008 - Something to Say
• 2010 - The Story of Your Life
• 2011 - The Heart of Christmas

Singles[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2012)

Compilation contributions[link]

• 2003: Festival Con Dios Vol. 3 – "More", from Happy (Inpop)^[4]
• 2004: WOW Hits 2005 – "More", from Happy (Sparrow)
• 2005: WOW Christmas: Green – "Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow" (Word)
• 2005: Night of Joy 2005 – "Get Away", from History (Disney)
• 2006: WOW Hits 2007 – "Only Grace", from History (EMI)^[54]
• 2007: Christmas Joy EP – "Christmas Makes Me Cry", a duet with Mandisa (Sparrow)^[55]
• 2007: WOW Hits 2008 – "History", from History (EMI)^[56]
• 2008: WOW Hits 1 - "You Are Everything," from Something to Say
• 2008: WOW Hits 2009 - "You Are Everything," from Something to Say
• 2009: WOW Hits 2010 - "The Motions," from Something to Say
• 2010: WOW Hits 2011 - "My Own Little World," from The Story of Your Life
• 2011: Music Inspired by the Story - "Good (Adam & Eve)," a duet with Leigh Nash (EMI Christian Music) ^[57]
• 2011: WOW Hits 2012 - "Strong Enough," from The Story of Your Life

References[link]