Lisa Valerie Kudrow (/ˈkuːdroʊ/ KOO-droh; born July 30, 1963) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Phoebe Buffay in the American television sitcom Friends, which aired from 1994 to 2004. The series earned her Primetime Emmy, Screen Actors Guild, Satellite, American Comedy and TV Guide awards. Phoebe has since been named one of the most significant television characters of all time and is considered Kudrow's breakout role, spawning her successful film career. Kudrow initially appeared in a 1989 episode of the hit sitcom Cheers, playing a character named Emily. She also starred in several episodes of the show Mad About You(1993) as Ursula before auditioning and earning the role of Phoebe on Friends; her character on Mad About You was written into the Friends storyline as Phoebe's twin. In the late 1990s, ...