Ray Romano Reveals He Took the Couch from ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ Set (Exclusive)

Twenty years ago, Ray Romano snuck a large piece of furniture home from the Everybody Loves Raymond set.

Romano, 67, and the sitcom series co-creator Phil Rosenthal spoke exclusively with PEOPLE following the taping of the Everybody Loves Raymond 30th Anniversary Reunion.

Romano and Rosenthal, 65, explained that the production crew had to rebuild the original set completely for the reunion, so Romano had to return one key piece of furniture: the floral couch.

“That’s the first thing I took. That’s the only thing I wanted to take was the couch,” Romano tells PEOPLE.

“I took the couch and it’s in my home theater,” he adds, noting, “I hate saying that I have a home theater, but yeah, it’s in the theater.” 

As for where the couch is now, he says, “They came and got it and they brought it back.”

He shares that “not many people sit on it,” because “it’s not gigantic,” and he already has 12 theater seats in the space.

“The couch is kind of on the side there upfront,” the No Good Deed actor says, adding that when his sons, Joseph, 27, and twins, Matthew and Gregory, 32, are there with their friends, he catches “some of their crew members lying on it” — prompting Rosenthal to joke that he should “put some plastic on it!”

Romano wasn’t the only one to grab an unexpected set piece, as Rosenthal admits he took home Marie (Doris Roberts) and Frank Barone’s (Peter Boyle) kitchen table and chairs after the series finale.

The pieces live in Rosenthal’s guest house, acting as “the kitchen table and chairs,” which he confesses don’t get a lot of use.

“It’s in the same disrepair that it was when we had it 30 years ago,” he jokes.

The pair also talked to PEOPLE about reuniting with the cast and crew for the 30th anniversary milestone. Rosenthal, who describes the taping as “a total high note,” says, “It was exactly what I could have hoped it would be.”

“It wasn’t sadness, but it was a little bit of nostalgia and missing and reminiscing. And it was emotional being on the set again,” Romano chimes in, adding that he had “definitely missed those days” of being on set.

Rosenthal says that they “appreciated” the show “when it was happening, which is very lucky to be able to do.” 

The producer notes that they were in their 30s while filming the sitcom, and had already “lived some life,” which helped them recognize the show’s impact.

“So when the success came, it was really sweet. It wasn’t expected. It wasn’t taken for granted ever,” he says. “It just has increased in my heart over all the years.”

The beloved sitcom — which also starred Brad Garrett, Patricia Heaton, Monica Horan, Madylin Sweeten, Sawyer Sweeten and Sullivan Sweeten — premiered in September 1996 and ran for nine seasons before its finale in May 2005.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The Everybody Loves Raymond 30th Anniversary Reunion will air on CBS on Monday, Nov. 24, at 8 p.m. ET.