'Friends' star Matthew Perry laid to rest in Los Angeles: media

Funeral was attended by close friends and family

LOS ANGELES:

American actor Matthew Perry of the hit sitcom Friends was laid to rest at a Los Angeles cemetery on Friday during a private funeral attended by family and co-stars, US media reported. Hollywood Hills popular with celebrities, did not respond to AFP's request for confirmation.

Several other US media outlets, including celebrity news website TMZ, also reported that Perry was laid to rest at a low-key funeral attended by castmates Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow. "We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family," his five co-stars said in a statement shortly after his death.

Perry's mother, father and stepfather also attended, according to the media reports. The cause of Perry's death is not yet known. An initial post-mortem examination was inconclusive and the results of toxicology tests have not yet been released.

“Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend,” Perry’s family said in a statement published by People magazine. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother.” The statement thanked Perry’s fans for their “tremendous outpouring of love.” 

“It still seems impossible,” the show’s principle creative team, Marta Kauffman, David Crane and Kevin Bright, said in a joint statement on Sunday. “All we can say is that we feel blessed to have had him as part of our lives.”

Word of Perry’s death emerged late on Saturday in a flurry of news media reports, followed by statements from NBC, the broadcast network that aired Friends for 10 years, and Warner Bros Television Group, which produced the show. No official details were immediately released.

TMZ cited sources saying that no illicit drugs were found at his home, although several medications were discovered including antidepressants and anxiety medication. Perry had battled addiction and serious health problems for years.

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