Keith Morrison, Matthew Perry.Photo:Gilbert Flores/Variety/Penske Media via Getty Images; Santiago Felipe/Getty Images
Gilbert Flores/Variety/Penske Media via Getty Images; Santiago Felipe/Getty Images
Keith Morrisonis remembering his late stepsonMatthew Perry.
While speaking toHoda Kotbon the latest episode of herMaking Spacepodcast that aired on Wednesday, Morrison, 76, opened up about Perry and hisdeathon Oct. 28, 2023 at age 54.
TheDatelinecorrespondent, who married the late actor’s momSuzannein 1981, said of his grief, “As other people have told me hundreds of times, it doesn’t go away. It’s with you every day. It’s with you all the time, and there’s some new aspect of it that assaults your brain."
“It’s not easy, he added. “Especially for his mom.”
“Toward the end of his life, they were closer than I’ve seen them for decades,” Morrison explained of Perry’s relationship with his mother Suzanne.
Keith Morrison.Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images
Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images
Morrison continued of the lateFriendsstar, “He was happy, and he said so. And he hadn’t said that for a long time. So it’s a source of comfort, but also he didn’t get to have his third act, and that’s not fair.”
“It was the news you never want to get, but you think someday you might,” Morrison said when asked if news of his death surprised him. “Yes and no, I guess is the answer to that.”
Morrison went on to call Perry “a larger-than-life person,” saying he was “always the center of attention everywhere he went” due to his “goofy” and “funny” personality. “That’s gone, but you still feel the echo of it everywhere,” Morrison added.
“He felt like he was beating it,” Morrison said ofPerry’s journey with alcohol and drug addiction. “But you never beat it, and he knew that, too.”
Matthew Perry.Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic
Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic
“He had that kind of very fiery personality, and mine is not like that, as you can imagine,” Morrison continued while talking about their relationship.
“But we got along fine. I never tried to replace his dad … but I was there for him, and he knew it, and we were close,” he added, mentioning Perry’s biological dad John Bennett Perry.
“This is not the sort of thing I commonly do, this pitch. But this year is different. And tomorrow is Giving Tuesday. Do what you can; he would have been grateful,” Morrison wrote in apost on X(formerly Twitter) in late November alongside a link to the foundation’s website.
“Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend,” the family added.
“You all meant so much to him and we appreciate the tremendous outpouring of love,” they continued.
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source: people.com
