Of all the great things about television, the greatest is that it’s on every single day. TV history is being made, day in and day out, in ways big and small. In an effort to better appreciate this history, we’re taking a look back, every day, at one particular TV milestone.
IMPORTANT DATE IN TV HISTORY: September 3, 1965
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT: Charlie Sheen‘s Ryan pops in during season two of Friends. Ryan, Phoebe Buffay’s (Lisa Kudrow) sometimes boy-toy, is on leave from the Navy and the only person he wants to see is Phoebe herself. Phoebe plans an entire two weeks worth of activities for the pair, but she contracts chicken pox before any of the fun can start.
When Ryan arrives, Phoebe has covered herself in a pink veil to hide her face from her sailor. When she informs Ryan that she has contracted the pox — to which he queries, “chicken or small” — he admits that he’s never had the disease, making him susceptible to it. But poor Ryan has been on a ship with all men for eight months and all he wants to do is, uh, Phoebe.
Ryan basically says “screw it” and kisses Phoebe fiercely. That’s true love if I’ve ever heard it. His loving gesture causes Phoebe to blurt out, “This is the most romantic disease I’ve ever had.”
And romantic it is when the two try to tamp down the itching with first Monopoly pieces, then each other’s bodies, and finally with oven mitts as a barrier. The other friends, Ross and Rachel specifically, try their best to prevent the scratching, but Ryan and Phoebe are just not having it. They don’t care about scarring, dammit!
Happy birthday Charlie Sheen. Thank you for showing us that #TrueLove transcends chicken pox.