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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Tension Building At ‘Friends’

Gail Shister Philadelphia Inquir

In “Friends” news, Ross (David Shwimmer) and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) will hit rough waters when she leaves the womb of Central Perk for an assistant buyer’s job at Bloomie’s.

“Suddenly, she has a career and is out in the real world. It creates a lot of pressure on the relationship,” says “Friends” exec producer David Crane. Not to mention a hunky new colleague (Steven Eckholdt, star of CBS’ short-lived ‘92 sitcom, “Grapevine”). “Certainly, it’s more fun when there’s conflict in a relationship,” Crane explains. “There’s juicier stuff to play.”

‘Naked Truth’ back next month

“The Naked Truth” will launch on NBC in the cushy post”Seinfeld” 9:30 p.m. Thursday slot, beginning Jan. 16.

The retooled ABC sitcom stars Tea Leoni as a tabloid photographer. Current occupant of the timeslot, Brooke Shields’ megahyped “Suddenly Susan,” hits the bricks until Feb. 27. It will take over at 8:30, bumping “The Single Guy” off the schedule for a while.

‘Coach’ returns Wednesday

Over at ABC, “Coach” will return from Hiatusville on Wednesday in the 8:30 slot, swapping zip codes with Molly Ringwald’s freshman “Townies.”

“Townies” will return in a new time period. (Proof: The network recently ordered five more episodes, for a total of 18.) After 10 airings, “Townies” ranks 60th among 134 series this season. In its ninth season, Craig T. Nelson’s “Coach” is 97th after six outings.

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