Joan Rivers was a talented women: a stand up comedian, author, television host, and scriptwriter. She will be remembered for her one-liners, her plastic surgery, her controversial comments and most importantly her unique contribution to the American comedy scene.
In the sixties Joan Rivers started her career in a male dominated world with the likes of Woody Allen and Bill Cosby. Her name would soon join theirs when she became the first female to perform at New York’s Carnegie Hall in 1983. She spared no prisoners on her stage. Elizabeth Taylor and Mick Jagger became victims to her wit.
“Elizabeth Taylor was so fat that whenever she went to London in a red dress, thirty passengers would try to board her.”
She appeared on The Tonight Show and became a regular fixture alongside host Johnny Carson, forming a great working partnership which would end when Rivers became his rival. She led the way for future female comedians and was an idol to many.
“If there’s a secret to being a comedian, it’s just love what you do…It’s my drug of choice. I don’t need any real drugs.”
Throughout her career she made many comments about fellow celebrities. Her most recent and controversial was directed against British singer Adele when Rivers scoffed that she had no problem with swallowing.
“My throat, my throat! I don’t know if I can swallow. I said, ‘Oh yeah, you can swallow.’.”
But Rivers knew not only how to mock others but also herself; her plastic surgery, relationships and age all became inspiration for her rich comedy and hilarious one-liners.
“The fashion magazines are suggesting that women wear clothes that are ‘age appropriate’. For me that would be a shroud.”
“When I was born, my mother asked the doctor: ‘Will she live?’. He said, ‘Only if you take your foot off her throat.’.”
Joan Rivers has made her name in comedy and will remain one of the most successful female comedians ever. A woman who never retired, never held her tongue and will never be forgotten.
“Never be afraid to laugh at yourself, after all, you could be missing out on the joke of the century.”
Victoria Hesketh
Image Property of Karen Robinson