--- title: Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Friends With Benefits description: Before Bradley Cooper got his big break as an actor, he apparently had dreams of becoming a journalist. Here's one of his articles. canonical: https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-01-23T22:25:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T08:47:26.799Z og:title: Young Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Dating a Friend og:description: The story is definitely one for the books og:url: https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fa11432a074122c/6988f93fe76ad25f86630ba8/bradley-cooper-intern.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Bradley-Cooper-American-Cinematheque-Awards og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Young Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Dating a Friend twitter:description: The story is definitely one for the books twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fa11432a074122c/6988f93fe76ad25f86630ba8/bradley-cooper-intern.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Young Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Friends With Benefits and It's Really Something > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=86f50571-379d-4ee5-b984-9921af89c536&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Daily | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Richard Hall, Editor | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The informed consumer. A scaled audience of readers who turn to TIME to stay informed and make sense of the world, with meaningful reach across education and research, nonprofits and civic life, media and communications, government and public institutions, and business and professional services. ### TIME The Brief: key statements * The Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * The Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=86f50571-379d-4ee5-b984-9921af89c536&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/subscribe?i=86f50571-379d-4ee5-b984-9921af89c536&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's daily news newsletter? The Brief is TIME's daily newsletter, edited by Richard Hall. It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=86f50571-379d-4ee5-b984-9921af89c536&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Bradley Cooper on the Films that Shaped His Childhood [Watch (HLS stream): Bradley Cooper on the Films that Shaped His Childhood](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/sxLupXWQ.m3u8) (2:20)  _Published 2015-04-16. “Ultimately you want to tell a story so that it can help heal and make people feel that they’re not alone,” says Cooper, who has been nominated for an Oscar three times._  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Jan 23, 2018 10:25 PM UTC  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Jan 23, 2018 10:25 PM UTC Before [Bradley Cooper](http://motto.time.com/4732379/bradley-cooper-irina-shayk-baby/) got his big break as an actor, he apparently had dreams of becoming a [journalist](http://time.com/5100337/reuters-journalists-press-freedom-myanmar/). And one of the subjects he was interested in reporting on? [Friends with benefits](http://motto.time.com/4754452/best-friends-resilience-study/). Thanks to a [clip](https://twitter.com/tommyrowan/status/955806753299582976) shared by [_Philadelphia Daily News_](http://www.philly.com)writer [Tommy Rowan](https://twitter.com/tommyrowan), we now know that Cooper spent some of his final high school days penning articles about his own personal love life for the newspaper. In a May 1993 piece titled, “When best friends cross the line,” an 18-year-old Cooper spins a long tale about how he took his relationship with longtime BFF Deborah Landes to the next level during their senior year. “Can best friends who are of the opposite sex hook up with each other without destroying their friendship? In my case, yes . . . so far,” Cooper cryptically begins. From there, the story abounds with twists and turns, including the revelation that Landes was previously dating one of their other friends. “There has always been an underlying attraction between the two of us; however, it was never confronted until this year,” Cooper explains. “Before, we could never fathom the idea of being more than just friends, especially because she was involved in a relationship with a friend of mine. After they broke up, things began to change.” We hope we can expect more of this from Bradley in the future. Read the full article below. > [](https://twitter.com/tommyrowan/status/955806753299582976) ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] It's sur, a surreal thing to be included in the, an, anything that has to do with Time Magazine let alone the, the 100 list. So it's it's a huge privilege for me. And that if it does anything at all it helps spread awareness for veterans. Issues. Cuz that's obviously, I think, what it has to do with it is American Sniper and the impact that it's had. American Sniper, it felt like an experience of a lifetime for me, personally, just as an actor, as a storyteller. And I had no idea the impact that the movie would have. And you know, I just see this as a huge opportunity for me to, to have another, I'd say, weapon or tool in my toolbox to be able to go. Around and, and, and spread the word of, necessity for our country to deal with veteran issues. The terrible [ MUSIC ] Elephant [ MUSIC ] Mad. When I was a kid, Comcast came through our neighborhood. And we got these little boxes on TVs. And then they would just show movies like almost in a loop. And there were about four movies. They showed Raging Bull, The Elephant Man, Popeye, and like something else. I watched The Elephant Man like ten times when I was 12 years old. And I was always a huge fan of movies and my father was a big cinephile. I lived next door to a movie theater that was literally my back yard with train tracks and then a movie theater. By the time I saw Elephant Man, there was the crystallizing moment for me. And just the way that that, that, that was shot, and the way he acted and the music, Adagio for Strings, and the carnie music and the black and white and the gas lamps. Everything just sort of created a world that was so infectious for me. And I thought, I, I wanna be a part of this storytelling and then, yeah, lo and behold, I, I, I just finished it. We just did it on Broadway. Crazy. 15 years later. Ultimately, you wanna tell a story so that it can help heal and make people feel like they're not alone. That's what movies did for me when I was a kid. So the fact that American Sniper has done this for vets in some way, if it has at all is incredible for me personally. [ MUSIC ] All I hope to do is be as truthful to myself as possible for the next however long I get a chance to do this. [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/"},"headline":"Young Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Friends With Benefits and It's Really Something","datePublished":"2018-01-23T22:25:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T08:47:26.799Z","description":"The story is definitely one for the books","url":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/","keywords":["Newsfeed","celebrities","bradley cooper"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fa11432a074122c/6988f93fe76ad25f86630ba8/bradley-cooper-intern.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Megan McCluskey","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fa11432a074122c/6988f93fe76ad25f86630ba8/bradley-cooper-intern.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Bradley-Cooper-American-Cinematheque-Awards","caption":"Bradley Cooper attends the 30th annual American Cinematheque Awards gala at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on October 14, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California.","creditText":"Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/","name":"Young Bradley Cooper Wrote an Article About Friends With Benefits and It's Really Something"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Bradley Cooper on the Films that Shaped His Childhood","description":"“Ultimately you want to tell a story so that it can help heal and make people feel that they’re not alone,” says Cooper, who has been nominated for an Oscar three times.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/sxLupXWQ/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-04-16T01:25:56.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/sxLupXWQ.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/","duration":"PT2M20S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5115438/bradley-cooper-friends-with-benefits-article/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```