Keith Morrison is celebrating Giving Tuesday by honoring his late stepson, Matthew Perry.
“This is not the sort of thing I commonly do, this pitch. But this year is different,” Morrison, 76, wrote via X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, November 27. “And tomorrow is Giving Tuesday. Do what you can; he would have been grateful,” he continued, adding a link to the Matthew Perry Foundation’s website.
Established earlier this month, the Matthew Perry Foundation’s mission is to help those struggling with addiction. “In the spirit of Matthew Perry’s enduring commitment to helping others struggling with the disease of addiction, we embark on a journey to honor his legacy by establishing the Matthew Perry Foundation, guided by his own words and experiences, and driven by his passion for making a difference in as many lives as possible,” the organization said in a statement.
The charity was founded days after Perry died at the age of 54 on October 28. Police responded to a call of cardiac arrest at the Friends alum’s Los Angeles home, where he was found unresponsive in his jacuzzi. While his official cause of death has yet to be determined, it was reported that Perry was deceased by the time first responders arrived at the scene.
“We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother,” Perry’s family said of his passing in an October 29 statement to People. “Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend. You all meant so much to him and we appreciate the tremendous outpouring of love.”
Perry is survived by Keith, mother Suzanne Morrison, father John Bennett Perry and siblings Caitlin, Emily, Maria, Will and Madeline. He was laid to rest during a private funeral on November 3.
Throughout his life, Perry was open with fans about his addiction struggles. “If you watch season three of Friends, I hope you’ll be horrified at how thin I am by the end of the season (opioids f—k with your appetite, plus they make you vomit constantly),” he wrote in his 2022 memoir, Friends, Lovers & The Big Terrible Thing. He added: “In the final episode, you’ll see that I’m wearing a white shirt, and tan slacks, and both look at least three sizes too big for me. … My weight varied between 128 pounds and 225 pounds during the years of Friends.)”
The Odd Couple alum also revealed that season 9 of the show was “the only year I was completely sober for a Friends season.”
In November 2022, Perry stated that he wanted to be remembered as someone who “wants to help people” on the “Q with Tom Power” podcast. His journey has gone on to inspire others as John Mulaney told Variety earlier this week that he “identified” with Perry’s memoir.
“Addiction is just a disaster. Life is like a wobbly table at a restaurant and you pile all this s–t on it, and it gets wobblier and wobblier and more unstable,” Mulaney, 41, said on Monday, November 27. “Then drugs just kick the f–king legs out from under the table.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
