Maggie Wheeler has carved out a nasally-niche as Chandler’s recurring nightmare/girlfriend “Janice” in 19 episodes of Friends (including Thursday night).  Is recent Grammy winner Amy Winehouse trying to clone the actress’s look, or what?  Interestingly, Maggie auditioned for the role of “Monica” on Friends and “Debra” on Everybody Loves Raymond, later appearing as different characters on each comedy.  The Friends cast is now engaged with big-screen projects, such as Matthew Perry’s “rewind” to become Seventeen Again—and look like Zac Efron—set to premiere in August.  Zac’s gal pal Vanessa Hudgens is filming the music comedy Will with Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe) and David Bowie; while Courtney Cox (Monica) is on-set with Adam Sandler in the Christmas release, Bedtime Stories.  Busy Jennifer Aniston has two flicks in-progress and two on-deck; and moviegoers this weekend will see David Schwimmer’s (Ross) directorial film debut, Run, Fatboy, Run, a comedy shot entirely in England.  Yes, there’s life after Friends, but few sitcoms connect with an audience like that one does, so I’m glad we’ve got the nightly reruns to savor.  Janice and all.

Who doesn’t like juicy insider scoops? I keep an ear close to the web’s entertainment grapevine and have noticed provocative chatter involving our favorite WBNX shows. Here are some of the most recent scuttlebutt items: E! Online reports that if ABC cancels October Road, The CW may be interested in picking up the Bryan Greenberg drama. TV Guide says that both Michael Rosenbaum (Lex) and Kristin Kreuk (Lana) told producers they don’t want to be regulars on Season 8 of Smallville, but will make time for guest appearances. The mag also notes that one of the show’s long-running characters will die—for real—in the April 17 episode. Friends star Jennifer Aniston (Rachel), 39, is a tabloid magnet, with Star affirming she’s frozen eggs for her future role as mother; and The Daily Mail hinting that off-screen romance has bloomed between her and Traveling film co-star Aaron Eckhart. Gossip Girl, by nature, is buzz-a-licious, though Leighton Meester (Blair) flat-out denied reports of tension among the young actors. Think of the catfight possibilities if Mischa Barton (Marissa on The O.C.) had not turned down an offer from Josh Schwartz to join the series as a new foe for Serena. There was a puzzling rumor that young Eric van der Woodsen (Conner Paolo) would be revealed as the never-seen title character. But exec producer Stephanie Savage nixed that notion, saying “we’re all” Gossip Girl—everyone in the tech-culture who TMs, emails, snaps photos or shares secret info via the web. Finally, the New York Post claims the 14 girls from the current round of Top Model need to learn some house-etiquette, after food fights and assorted sloppiness over ten weeks caused thousands of dollars in damage to their posh NYC rented loft. Heard any news, yourself? Pass it along!

For ten magical seasons, Ross, Rachel, Chandler, Monica, Joey and Phoebe gave us a lot of laughs courtesy of their crazy romantic entanglements. Beginning tonight at 10pm, WBNX will count down many of our favorite Friends Hookups and Breakups each weeknight through February 15. Call it an early Valentine’s Day gift to the viewers. Expect to see classic episodes with Oh. My. Janice., Eddie Cahill, Tom Selleck, Ben Stiller…well, the choices are virtually endless. With 63 Emmy nominations over its decade-long run, Friends garnered a well-deserved reputation as one of the funniest and most-popular sitcoms in TV history. These special “theme week” highlights will bring back a lot of great memories from a timeless comedy that, among other things, gave rise to the whole “young people kibitzing at coffee houses” phenomenon—and an endless supply of hilarious bloopers. Click here to get primed with some great outtakes.

For years, the debate raged in my mind: Which one of the Friends cast is the funniest? Granted, they all have shining moments, but I had pretty much settled on Phoebe—until one episode changed my whole way of thinking. That episode airs this coming Monday at 10pm on WBNX. It’s the one in which Ross is dating fellow scientist “Charlie,” played by Aisha Tyler; but he discovers that longtime flame Rachel is now in a secret romance with pal Joey. Of course, Ross tries to in vain to act like he’s cool with it, hosting a dinner party for the foursome. And that’s where David Schwimmer (as Ross) gives a performance that is flat-out hysterical. Consider that prior to this one episode, Ross was my least favorite on the show, and now he is #1. Surprisingly, I’ve only caught this Season 10 gem once—my VCR will be rolling this time—so I hope I’m not overstating the laughs. I just know I have a newfound appreciation for Ross’s whiney fake-jubilation, truth-twisting and rubber-faced expressions. The prelude airs tonight at ten, but I urge you to watch Monday, then tell us who your favorite star on the show is.