What Is TV Legend Marlo Thomas' Favorite Friends Memory? (SPOILER: It's A Kiss)

Marlo Thomas has been acting on television before "Friends" was even a twinkle in David Crane and Marta Kaufmann's eyes. She rose to fame starring in the sitcom "That Girl" from 1966 to 1971, though younger audiences may know her from her philanthropic efforts as the face of St. Jude Children's Hospital's commercials, as well as the creator of "Free to Be...You and Me."

Thomas had a recurring role on "Friends" as Rachel's (Jennifer Aniston) mother, Sandra Green, and appeared in three episodes from 1996 to 2002. "It was a lot of fun," Thomas recalled to Variety in 2022. "That cast was wonderful." For the veteran actress, the best memory came from the Season 2 episode "The One with the Two Parties." When both of Rachel's parents show up for her surprise birthday party, the rest of the friends split the party in two to keep the bickering divorcees apart.

After a night full of fibbing and physical comedy, Sandra and Leonard (Ron Leibman) nearly come face-to-face in the hallway -– until Joey (Matt LeBlanc) comes through in the clutch as a master distractor. "We're about to run into each other, and Joey grabs me and kisses me," Thomas said. "I went limp in his arms like I hadn't been kissed like that in 100 years. It was very funny."

Thanks to Joey's swoon-worthy smooch, Sandra didn't even notice her ex-husband leaving the party. Marlo Thomas also got to deliver her funniest "Friends" performance to date, fanning herself in the aftermath of the kiss. "Oh you kids," says Sandra, pawing Joey's face. "Well, this is the best party I've been to in years."

In the same interview with Variety, Thomas recalled preparing for the scene. According to the actress, Matt LeBlanc was a true professional, and the pair didn't kiss in rehearsals. "Matt was so cute because when we were going to shoot it, he said, 'I'm really sorry, Marlo, but I am going to have to kiss you now for real,'" Thomas said. "I said, 'Okay, I'll try to live through it.'"

Thomas joined an impressive roster of star talent who played the titular friends' parents, including Elliott Gould as Jack Geller, Teri Garr as Phoebe's (Lisa Kudrow) biological mother, and Kathleen Turner in the problematic role of Chandler's "father." Notably, she wasn't the only parent to kiss one of the friends. In the Season 1 episode "The One with Mrs. Bing," Ross (David Schwimmer) makes out with Chandler's mother, Nora (Morgan Fairchild), only to get caught in the act by Joey. "You broke the code," Joey says. "You don't kiss your friend's mom." It looks like Joey would be eating his own words by Season 2.