Brooke Shields: ‘Petulant’ Andre Agassi stormed out of a ‘Friends’ taping

Whenever I hear stories about Andre Agassi – even when those stories are coming from people who like him – I always think “wow, he sounds like such an a–hole.” While he was an all-time tennis great and he’s kept his nose clean for years in his marriage to Steffi Graff, you can’t escape the feeling that he was always a f–king douchebag and he treated most people poorly. Speaking of, Brooke Shields was Agassi’s first wife and she’s always got stories about how he was a giant suckbaby for the entire two years of their marriage. She was recently interviewed in the New Yorker, and People has those comments plus some background:

According to Brooke Shields, her guest appearance on a 1996 episode of Friends triggered a destructive moment by her then-husband Andre Agassi. Shields guest-starred as Erika, an off-kilter super fan of Joey (Matt LeBlanc) who believed Joey was actually Dr. Drake Ramoray, the fictional character he played in Days of Our Lives. The actress’s multi-episode arc included a scene where she licked Joey’s hand — a setup that apparently angered her tennis champ spouse.

“He said I made him look like a fool by licking Joey’s fingers and he got in his car and drove all the way to Vegas. Once there, he smashed all of his tennis trophies, destroying them in a rage,” Shields, now 57, first shared in her 2014 memoir There Was a Little Girl.

In a recent conversation with the New Yorker, Shields revisited the marital fallout she experience while filming her Friends role.

“Andre was in the audience supporting me,” she recalled, “and he stormed out. He said, ‘Everybody’s making fun of me. You made a fool of me by that behavior.’ I’m like, ‘It’s comedy! What is the matter with you?'”

Despite the scene’s negative impact on Shields’ and Agassi’s marriage, it ultimately helped Shields land her starring role in the NBC sitcom Suddenly Susan, which aired from 1996 to 2000. Still, the joy was dampered by her ex-husband’s behavior.

“It was petulant behavior,” Shields told the New Yorker. “It co-opted it for me emotionally, because all of a sudden then my focus went to him.”

Shields delves into her tumultuous relationship with Agassi, now 52, in her two-part Hulu documentary Pretty Baby. While speaking about the project, Shields recently told PEOPLE she and Agassi have not been in touch in the 14 years since the release of Open — though she does give her ex credit for helping her separate from her mother and manager Teri Shields, who was also a lifelong alcoholic before she died in 2012. Shields says that, “to this day,” her therapist tells her, “I will always be thankful to Andre because he helped you separate from your mother lovingly.”

[From People]

Imagine being mad at Brooke Shields for licking Matt LeBlanc on a popular TV show. Imagine storming out of a FRIENDS TAPING and rage-driving all the way to Las Vegas. My God. Granted, Agassi was methed out of his mind during this era, but still. And Brooke is using the correct word here: petulant. Childish. Narcissistic, even. It makes me wonder what Graff has put up with in all of the years they’ve been married. Anyway, I would love to see this kind of randomness and fun, stupid gossip come back into style. I desperately need a famous actor to marry a tennis player and we could have tons of fun gossip about tennis and celebrity douchebags.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

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22 Responses to “Brooke Shields: ‘Petulant’ Andre Agassi stormed out of a ‘Friends’ taping”

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  1. C says:

    Kind of reminds me of Joe DiMaggio being completely infuriated by Marilyn Monroe’s famous skirt scene in The Seven Year Itch….

  2. Kate says:

    I read his book Open and loved it. Would recommend to everyone. Same ghostwriter as Harry’s memoir. I have sympathy for him and for Brooke having been in a relationship when he was so unhealthy. That must have sucked having to tend to him instead of being supported.

    • Toots says:

      I also read Open. I’d also recommend it and I don’t even watch tennis. I did learn about tennis from Open though. In fact, Andre Agassi covers his freak out on the Friends set in the book. He also talks about the meth use. I did not find that he was unkind and cruel in his recollection of Brooke, which I respected. What stood out to me the most was that he despised tennis but played and excelled in it for years.

      • PutnamPrincess says:

        I also loved Open. Charter schools are not all and. My child goes to a charter school and is the happiest they have ever been at school. It really depends on the school.

      • Typical Virgo says:

        @Toots- say what??? Andre Agassi HATED tennis??? OMG I did not know that! That is one of the craziest things I’ve ever heard! Wow………you know I’d always assumed that prowess of that type always came from a person’s passion for or love of something……..TOO crazy…..now please don’t tell me Michael Jordon hates basketball, too………

  3. Amy Bee says:

    His school is a charter school. Nuff said.

      • Typical Virgo says:

        @Amy Bee- I think it’s hard to make generalizations about charter schools, because there’s a GIGANTIC range of quality amongst them. Because theyre run locally, and are dependent on funding from their districts as well as their states, charter schools range from totally inadequate to spectacular. funding can make or break a charter school, and obviously a charter school in NY is going to be much better funded than one in, say, ND.

        Basically, I think it’s unfair to assume that a charter school sucks right from the get. Good ones DO exist and the only fair thing to do is judge each charter school, individually, by itself.

    • mtos says:

      What does that mean? (seriously asking.)

      • Amy Bee says:

        See John Oliver’s video on charter schools. He gives a good explanation on them and why they’re bad.

    • Poppy says:

      Yeah god forbid low income parents stuck in a bad school district have an opportunity to send their kids to a better school. The horror!

      • AmyLy says:

        Yes poppy! I live in the state with the worst public schools and can’t afford a private school but we have tons of great charters and I can’t wait to send my kids to them. It’s always upper middle class white people in great public schools who sh** on charters. Sorry I live in a poor state but also want my kid to get a good education and not stuck in an overcrowded school where she would be bored. Gonna guess John Oliver is in a great school district too so that must be nice (his kids probably don’t even go to public school cuz the rich don’t play by our rules).

    • ally says:

      He sold the school and runs and academic foundation. Since he had his own money and sponsors etc, I don’t think he had to take lots of $$$$$$ from the district. Now I think its owned by a charter school company, but still. I don’t think it was awful for LV.

  4. Me single malt says:

    Hopefully he stopped using meth before Steff Graff marriage.

  5. Sandra says:

    I totally forgot that she was ever married to Agassi. Totally forgot that he married Steffi. He definitely was an A**hole in his younger years. Hopefully he learned from his mistakes.
    Now I need to watch Pretty Baby (the documentary)..

  6. girl_ninja says:

    He was so unhealthy during this time. Using meth and his play on the decline. He and Steffi Graff have been married for over 20 years now and seem to be so happy with their family. He has come a long ass way and so has Brooke.

    • kirk says:

      Yes they’ve both come a long way. Always thought Brooke and Andre was a bad match. Maybe it was all those pictures of her frowning or grimacing while watching him play.

  7. ama1977 says:

    My comment is entirely superficial, but LOOK AT HER in that black dress. GORGEOUS.

    Nothing to say about Agassi, he was a d-bag who was jealous of her. She’s talented and beautiful, funny, and smart, and by all measures, a nice person. Which is astonishing when you think of how her upbringing and decades in the business could have affected her.

    • BeanieBean says:

      That’s pretty much all I had to say, my goodness, she was/is so beautiful!! And created a life for herself without going off the rails. I always thought that Brooke, like Shirley Temple before her (probably an even more famous child) are simply remarkable women given their childhoods & what could have been (i.e., what we’ve seen with other child actors).

    • Luy says:

      I know, she is stunning there!

  8. Dee says:

    I remember that Friends episode and Brooke was hilarious in it. Also enjoyed watching Suddenly Susan and seeing her great comic timing. She’s an underrated actress.

  9. whatWHAT? says:

    Agassi used to hang around one of the MAIN bars near my campus. he liked to hook up with the co-eds. like, I knew a few fellow students that had hooked up with him. and yeah, word was he was a real jerk. I saw him once in said bar, and DAMN he was good-looking. he still had the long hair and he looked SMOKIN’ hot. but knowing what I knew, I was a little grossed out. not like he was ever hurting for female attention, though.

    Brooke went to college in my hometown. I did see her a few times in town (she was a few years old than I am) and she was stop-you-in-your-tracks gorgeous. literally stunning. pretty sure she dated Dean Cain (current MAGA-d*uche) while a student.