Joan Rivers
Encyclopedia
Joan Rivers is an American
comedian, television personality and actress. She is known for her brash manner; her loud, raspy voice with a heavy New York accent; and her numerous cosmetic surgeries
. Rivers's comic style relies heavily on poking fun at herself and other celebrities.
, New York, the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants Beatrice (née Grushman; January 6, 1906 – October 1975) and Meyer C. Molinsky (December 7, 1900 – January 1985). She was raised in Brooklyn, New York, and her family later moved to Larchmont
, in Westchester County, New York
. She attended Connecticut College
between 1950 and 1952 and graduated from Barnard College
in 1954 with a bachelor-of-arts degree in English literature and anthropology
. Before entering show business, Rivers worked at various jobs such as a tour guide at Rockefeller Center
, a writer/proofreader at an advertising agency and as a fashion consultant at Bond Clothing Stores
. During this period, the agent Tony Rivers advised her to change her name, so she chose Joan Rivers as her stage name
.
with a crush on a character played by a then-unknown Barbra Streisand
. The play ran for six weeks. In 1961 Rivers briefly performed on stage in Chicago
at The Second City
comedy club. Rivers performed in numerous comedy clubs in the Greenwich Village
area of New York City in the early 1960s, including The Bitter End
and The Gaslight Cafe
, before making her first appearances as a guest on the TV program The Tonight Show
originating from New York
, and hosted at the time by Jack Paar
.)
By 1965, Rivers had a stint on Candid Camera
as a gag writer and participant; she was "the bait" to lure people into ridiculous situations for the show. She also made her first appearance on The Tonight Show
with new host Johnny Carson
, on February 17, 1965. During the same decade, Rivers made other appearances on The Tonight Show as well as The Ed Sullivan Show
, while hosting the first of several talk shows. She had a brief role in The Swimmer
(1968), starring Burt Lancaster
. A year later, she had a short-lived syndicated daytime talk show; Johnny Carson was her first guest. In the middle of the 1960s, she released at least two comedy albums, The Next to Last Joan Rivers Album and Joan Rivers Presents Mr. Phyllis & Other Funny Stories.
By the 1970s, Rivers was appearing on various television comedy and variety shows, including The Carol Burnett Show
and a semi-regular stint on Hollywood Squares
. From 1972 to 1976, she narrated The Adventures of Letterman
, an animated segment for The Electric Company
. In 1973, Rivers wrote the TV movie The Girl Most Likely to...
, a black comedy starring Stockard Channing
. In 1978, Rivers wrote and directed the film Rabbit Test, starring her friend Billy Crystal
. During the same decade, she was the opening act for singer Helen Reddy
on the Las Vegas Strip
, becoming a Strip headliner herself in the 1980s.
. In the same period, she released a best-selling comedy album on Geffen Records
, What Becomes a Semi-Legend Most? The album reached No. 22 on the U.S. Billboard 200
and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album
.
Also in 1984, Rivers published a best-selling humor book, The Life and Hard Times of Heidi Abramowitz, a mock memoir of her brassy, loose comedy character. A television special based on the character, a mock tribute called Joan Rivers and Friends Salute Heidi Abramowitz, was not successful with the public.
The decade was controversial for Rivers. She sued female impersonator
Frank Marino
for $5,000,000 in 1986, after discovering he was using her real stand-up material in the impersonation of her that he included in his popular Las Vegas
act. The two comics reconciled, even appearing together on television in later years.
Also in 1986 came the move that cost Rivers her longtime friendship with Carson, who had first hired her as a Tonight Show writer. The soon-to-launch Fox Television Network announced that it was giving her a late night talk show, The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers. The new network planned to broadcast the show 11:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time
, making her a Carson competitor. Carson claimed he learned of the show from Fox and not from Rivers herself. In 2008, during an interview with Dr. Pamela Connolly
on television's Shrink Rap, Rivers claimed she did call Carson, but he hung up on her at once and repeated the gesture when she called again.
The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers turned out to be flecked by tragedy. When Rivers challenged Fox executives, who wanted to fire her husband Edgar Rosenberg
as the show's producer, the network fired them both. On May 15, 1987, three months later, Rosenberg committed suicide in Philadelphia; Rivers blamed the tragedy on his "humiliation" by Fox. Fox attempted to continue the show with a new name (The Late Show
) and rotating guest hosts.
A year after the Late Show debacle, Rivers was a guest on TV's Pee-Wee's Playhouse
Christmas Special. By 1989, she tried another daytime TV talk show, The Joan Rivers Show, which ran for five years and won her an Emmy in 1990 for outstanding talk show host.
In 1994, Rivers and daughter Melissa
first hosted the E! Entertainment Television
pre-awards show for the Golden Globe Awards. Beginning in 1995, they hosted the annual E! Entertainment Television
pre-awards show for the Academy Awards
. Beginning in 1997, Rivers hosted her own radio show on WOR
in New York City
.
Rivers also appeared as one of the center squares on the 1986-89 version of The Hollywood Squares
, hosted by John Davidson.
.
Rivers appeared in three episodes of the TV show Nip/Tuck
during its second
, third
and seventh season playing herself. Rivers appears regularly on television's The Shopping Channel
(in Canada) and QVC
(in both the United States and the UK), promoting her own line of jewelry under brand name "The Joan Rivers Collection". She was also a guest speaker at the opening of the American Operating Room Nurses' 2000 San Francisco Conference. Both Joan and Melissa Rivers are frequent guests on Howard Stern
's radio show, and Joan Rivers often appears as a guest on UK panel show 8 out of 10 Cats
.
Rivers was one of only four Americans invited to the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles on April 9, 2005.
In 2006, Rivers was featured on the adult animated show, Drawn Together
as Princess Clara's vagina that had received too much plastic surgery. Clara's 'vajoana' often repeated the phrase "who are you wearing, who are you wearing?".
On August 16, 2007, Rivers began a two-week workshop of her new play, with the working title "The Joan Rivers Theatre Project," at The Magic Theatre in San Francisco. On December 3, 2007, Rivers was featured before Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II
and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh in the Royal Variety Show 2007 at the Liverpool Empire Theatre
.
In January 2008, Rivers became one of 20 hijackers to take control of the Big Brother house in the UK for one day in spin-off TV show Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack
. On June 24, 2008, Rivers appeared on NBC-TV’s show Celebrity Family Feud and competed with her daughter, Melissa against Ice-T
and Coco
.
Rivers and daughter Melissa were contestants in 2009 on the second Celebrity Apprentice
. Throughout the season, each celebrity raised money for a charity of his or her choice; Rivers selected God's Love We Deliver. After a falling out with poker player Annie Duke
, following Melissa's on-air firing (elimination) by Donald Trump, Rivers left the green room
telling Clint Black
and Jesse James
that she would not be in the next morning. Rivers later returned to the show and on May 3, 2009, she became a finalist in the series. The other finalist was Duke. On the season finale, which aired live on May 10, Joan was announced the winner and hired to be the 2009 Celebrity Apprentice.
Rivers was featured on the show Z Rock
as herself and was also a special so-called pink-carpet presenter for the 2009 broadcast of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
parade. She was also roasted
in a Comedy Central special, taped on July 26, 2009, and aired on August 9, 2009. From August 2009, Joan began starring in the new reality TV series How'd You Get So Rich?
on TV Land
.
A documentary film
about Rivers, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
, premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival
at the Castro Theatre
on May 6, 2010.
In 2011, Rivers appeared in a commercial for Go Daddy
, which debuted during the broadcast of Super Bowl XLV
.
Joan and her daughter Melissa Rivers premiered the new show Joan & Melissa: Joan knows best on WE TV January 25, 2011. The series follows Joan moving to California to be closer to her family. She moves in with daughter Melissa while searching for a home of her own. It was recently revealed that WE TV has ordered a new season consisting of 10 episodes premiering in January 2012.
In 2011, Rivers was featured as herself in Season 2 of Louie C.K.'s self-entitled show 'Louie', where she performed on-stage.
, who committed suicide in 1987. Their only child, Melissa Warburg Rosenberg (now known as Melissa Rivers
), was born on January 20, 1968. She has one grandson, Melissa's son Cooper (born Edgar Cooper Endicott) who is featured with his mother and grandmother in the WE tv
series Joan & Melissa: Joan Knows Best?
In her book, Bouncing Back (1997), she described how she developed bulimia and contemplated suicide. Eventually she recovered with counseling and the support of her family.
In 2002, Rivers told the Montreal Mirror
that she is a Republican
.
Rivers is open about her multiple cosmetic surgeries and has been a client of plastic surgeon Steven Hoefflin
since 1983. Her first procedure, an eye lift
, was performed in 1965 as an attempt to further her career.
People of the United States
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
comedian, television personality and actress. She is known for her brash manner; her loud, raspy voice with a heavy New York accent; and her numerous cosmetic surgeries
Plastic surgery
Plastic surgery is a medical specialty concerned with the correction or restoration of form and function. Though cosmetic or aesthetic surgery is the best-known kind of plastic surgery, most plastic surgery is not cosmetic: plastic surgery includes many types of reconstructive surgery, hand...
. Rivers's comic style relies heavily on poking fun at herself and other celebrities.
Early life
Joan Rivers was born Joan Alexandra Molinsky in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York, the daughter of Russian Jewish immigrants Beatrice (née Grushman; January 6, 1906 – October 1975) and Meyer C. Molinsky (December 7, 1900 – January 1985). She was raised in Brooklyn, New York, and her family later moved to Larchmont
Larchmont, New York
Larchmont is a village in Westchester County, New York. The population was 5,864 at the 2010 census. It is located within the town of Mamaroneck, on the shore of Long Island Sound, northeast of Midtown Manhattan...
, in Westchester County, New York
Westchester County, New York
Westchester County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Westchester covers an area of and has a population of 949,113 according to the 2010 Census, residing in 45 municipalities...
. She attended Connecticut College
Connecticut College
Connecticut College is a private liberal arts college located in New London, Connecticut.The college was founded in 1911, as Connecticut College for Women, in response to Wesleyan University closing its doors to women...
between 1950 and 1952 and graduated from Barnard College
Barnard College
Barnard College is a private women's liberal arts college and a member of the Seven Sisters. Founded in 1889, Barnard has been affiliated with Columbia University since 1900. The campus stretches along Broadway between 116th and 120th Streets in the Morningside Heights neighborhood in the borough...
in 1954 with a bachelor-of-arts degree in English literature and anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
. Before entering show business, Rivers worked at various jobs such as a tour guide at Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center
Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th and 51st streets in New York City, United States. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan, spanning the area between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. It was declared a National...
, a writer/proofreader at an advertising agency and as a fashion consultant at Bond Clothing Stores
Bond Clothing Stores
Bond Clothing Stores, Bond Clothes, Bond Clothiers, or Bond Stores, was a men's clothing manufacturing company and retailer. The company catered to the middle-class consumer.-History:...
. During this period, the agent Tony Rivers advised her to change her name, so she chose Joan Rivers as her stage name
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
.
Early career
During the late 1950s, Rivers appeared in a short-run play, Driftwood, playing a lesbianLesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
with a crush on a character played by a then-unknown Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
. The play ran for six weeks. In 1961 Rivers briefly performed on stage in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
at The Second City
The Second City
The Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
comedy club. Rivers performed in numerous comedy clubs in the Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
area of New York City in the early 1960s, including The Bitter End
The Bitter End
The Bitter End is a nightclub in New York City's Greenwich Village. It opened its doors in 1961 at 147 Bleecker Street under the auspices of owner Fred Weintraub. The club changed its name to The Other End during the 1970s...
and The Gaslight Cafe
The Gaslight Cafe
The Gaslight Cafe was an American coffee house located in the basement of 116 MacDougal Street in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York...
, before making her first appearances as a guest on the TV program The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
originating from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and hosted at the time by Jack Paar
Jack Paar
Jack Harold Paar was an author, American radio and television comedian and talk show host, best known for his stint as host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962...
.)
By 1965, Rivers had a stint on Candid Camera
Candid Camera
Candid Camera is a hidden camera/practical joke reality television series created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as Candid Microphone June 28, 1947...
as a gag writer and participant; she was "the bait" to lure people into ridiculous situations for the show. She also made her first appearance on The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson is a talk show hosted by Johnny Carson under the Tonight Show franchise from 1962 to 1992. It originally aired during late-night....
with new host Johnny Carson
Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson was an American television host and comedian, known as host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for 30 years . Carson received six Emmy Awards including the Governor Award and a 1985 Peabody Award; he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1987...
, on February 17, 1965. During the same decade, Rivers made other appearances on The Tonight Show as well as The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
, while hosting the first of several talk shows. She had a brief role in The Swimmer
The Swimmer (film)
The Swimmer is a 1968 American film directed by Frank Perry and starring Burt Lancaster. The surreal, allegorical tale is based on the 1964 short story by John Cheever, adapted by Eleanor Perry, the director's wife...
(1968), starring Burt Lancaster
Burt Lancaster
Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster was an American film actor noted for his athletic physique and distinctive smile...
. A year later, she had a short-lived syndicated daytime talk show; Johnny Carson was her first guest. In the middle of the 1960s, she released at least two comedy albums, The Next to Last Joan Rivers Album and Joan Rivers Presents Mr. Phyllis & Other Funny Stories.
By the 1970s, Rivers was appearing on various television comedy and variety shows, including The Carol Burnett Show
The Carol Burnett Show
The Carol Burnett Show is a variety / sketch comedy television show starring Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, and Tim Conway. It originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 278 episodes and originated from CBS Television City's Studio 33...
and a semi-regular stint on Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
. From 1972 to 1976, she narrated The Adventures of Letterman
The Adventures of Letterman
The Adventures of Letterman was an animated skit that was a regular feature on the 1971–1977 PBS television series The Electric Company....
, an animated segment for The Electric Company
The Electric Company
The Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced by the Children's Television Workshop for PBS in the United States. PBS broadcast 780 episodes over the course of its six seasons from October 25, 1971 to April 15, 1977...
. In 1973, Rivers wrote the TV movie The Girl Most Likely to...
The Girl Most Likely to...
The Girl Most Likely to... is a black comedy with slight psychological thriller elements written by Joan Rivers and starring Stockard Channing and Edward Asner. The film was released on November 6, 1973 as a made-for-television movie broadcast on the ABC Movie of the Week...
, a black comedy starring Stockard Channing
Stockard Channing
Stockard Channing is an American stage, film and television actress. She is known for her portrayal of First Lady Abbey Bartlet in the NBC television series The West Wing; for playing Betty Rizzo in the film Grease; and for her role as Ouisa Kittredge in the play Six Degrees of Separation and its...
. In 1978, Rivers wrote and directed the film Rabbit Test, starring her friend Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal
William Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
. During the same decade, she was the opening act for singer Helen Reddy
Helen Reddy
Helen Reddy , often referred to as "The Queen of 70s Pop", is an Australian-American singer and actress. In the 1970s, she enjoyed international success, especially in the United States, where she placed fifteen singles in the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. Six of those 15 songs made the Top 10...
on the Las Vegas Strip
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
, becoming a Strip headliner herself in the 1980s.
1980s–1990s
Rivers has spoken of her primary Tonight Show life as having been Johnny Carson's daughter, a reference to his longtime mentoring of her and, during the 1980s, establishing her as his regular guest host by August 1983. It was not her only work, however. On April 9, 1983, she hosted Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
. In the same period, she released a best-selling comedy album on Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
, What Becomes a Semi-Legend Most? The album reached No. 22 on the U.S. Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album
Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album
The Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album was awarded from yearly 1959 to 1993 and then from 2004 to present day. There have been several minor changes to the name of the award over this time:*From 1959 to 1967 it was Best Comedy Performance...
.
Also in 1984, Rivers published a best-selling humor book, The Life and Hard Times of Heidi Abramowitz, a mock memoir of her brassy, loose comedy character. A television special based on the character, a mock tribute called Joan Rivers and Friends Salute Heidi Abramowitz, was not successful with the public.
The decade was controversial for Rivers. She sued female impersonator
Drag queen
A drag queen is a man who dresses, and usually acts, like a caricature woman often for the purpose of entertaining. There are many kinds of drag artists and they vary greatly, from professionals who have starred in films to people who just try it once. Drag queens also vary by class and culture and...
Frank Marino
Frank Marino (female impersonator)
Frank Marino is a female impersonator dubbed Ms. Las Vegas for his longtime starring role as Joan Rivers in the Las Vegas drag revue Frank Marino's Divas Las Vegas, playing at the Imperial Palace Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip...
for $5,000,000 in 1986, after discovering he was using her real stand-up material in the impersonation of her that he included in his popular Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
act. The two comics reconciled, even appearing together on television in later years.
Also in 1986 came the move that cost Rivers her longtime friendship with Carson, who had first hired her as a Tonight Show writer. The soon-to-launch Fox Television Network announced that it was giving her a late night talk show, The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers. The new network planned to broadcast the show 11:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. Eastern Time
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, making her a Carson competitor. Carson claimed he learned of the show from Fox and not from Rivers herself. In 2008, during an interview with Dr. Pamela Connolly
Pamela Stephenson
Pamela Helen Stephenson Connolly is a New Zealand-born Australian clinical psychologist and writer now resident in the United Kingdom. She is best known for her work as an actress and comedian during the 1980s...
on television's Shrink Rap, Rivers claimed she did call Carson, but he hung up on her at once and repeated the gesture when she called again.
The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers turned out to be flecked by tragedy. When Rivers challenged Fox executives, who wanted to fire her husband Edgar Rosenberg
Edgar Rosenberg
Edgar Rosenberg was an American television producer. Born in Fürth, Bavaria, Germany, to German Jewish parents, Otto & Lilli, the Rosenberg family migrated to America in 1940, due to the Outbreak of World War II. Rosenberg married comedian and commentator Joan Rivers and was the father of Melissa...
as the show's producer, the network fired them both. On May 15, 1987, three months later, Rosenberg committed suicide in Philadelphia; Rivers blamed the tragedy on his "humiliation" by Fox. Fox attempted to continue the show with a new name (The Late Show
The Late Show (1986 TV series)
The Late Show is an American late-night talk show and the first series broadcast on the then-new Fox Network. Originally hosted by comic actress Joan Rivers, it first aired on October 9, 1986 under the title The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers...
) and rotating guest hosts.
A year after the Late Show debacle, Rivers was a guest on TV's Pee-Wee's Playhouse
Pee-wee's Playhouse
Pee-wee's Playhouse is an American children's television program starring Paul Reubens as the child-like Pee-wee Herman. The show was developed from Reubens' popular stage show and the one-off TV special The Pee-wee Herman Show, produced for HBO, which was similar in style but featured much more...
Christmas Special. By 1989, she tried another daytime TV talk show, The Joan Rivers Show, which ran for five years and won her an Emmy in 1990 for outstanding talk show host.
In 1994, Rivers and daughter Melissa
Melissa Rivers
Melissa Joan Rivers is an American television host, producer and the daughter of Joan Rivers.-Early life:Rivers was born Melissa Warburg Rosenberg in Manhattan on January 20, 1968; the only child of Joan Rivers and Edgar Rosenberg...
first hosted the E! Entertainment Television
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
pre-awards show for the Golden Globe Awards. Beginning in 1995, they hosted the annual E! Entertainment Television
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
pre-awards show for the Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
. Beginning in 1997, Rivers hosted her own radio show on WOR
WOR (AM)
WOR is a class A , AM radio station located in New York, New York, U.S., operating on 710 kHz. The station has a talk format and has been owned by Buckley Broadcasting since 1987, after the station was sold by RKO. The station has conservative, or right-of-center hosts.Its call letters have no...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Rivers also appeared as one of the center squares on the 1986-89 version of The Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares
Hollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
, hosted by John Davidson.
2000–present
By 2003, Rivers had left her E! red-carpet show for a three-year contract (valued between $6–8 million) to cover award-show red-carpet shows for the TV Guide ChannelTV Guide Channel
TV Guide Network is an American cable network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation....
.
Nip/Tuck
Nip/Tuck is an American drama series created by Ryan Murphy, which aired on FX in the United States. The series focuses on McNamara/Troy, a plastic surgery practice, and follows its founders, Sean McNamara and Christian Troy...
during its second
Nip/Tuck (season 2)
The second season of Nip/Tuck premiered on June 22, 2004 and concluded on October 5, 2004. It consisted of 16 episodes.- Main cast :* Dylan Walsh as Dr. Sean McNamara* Julian McMahon as Dr...
, third
Nip/Tuck (season 3)
The third season of Nip/Tuck premiered on September 20, 2005 and concluded on December 20, 2005. It consisted of 15 episodes.- Main cast :* Dylan Walsh as Dr. Sean McNamara* Julian McMahon as Dr. Christian Troy* John Hensley as Matt McNamara...
and seventh season playing herself. Rivers appears regularly on television's The Shopping Channel
The Shopping Channel
The Shopping Channel is a Canadian English language cable television home shopping channel. The Shopping Channel is a division of Rogers Media. The channel is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario. It showcases various products throughout the day of which viewers can purchase either by telephone or...
(in Canada) and QVC
QVC
QVC is a multinational corporation specializing in televised home shopping. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, United States, QVC broadcasts in five countries as QVC US, QVC UK, QVC Germany, QVC Japan and – QVC Italy to 200 million households...
(in both the United States and the UK), promoting her own line of jewelry under brand name "The Joan Rivers Collection". She was also a guest speaker at the opening of the American Operating Room Nurses' 2000 San Francisco Conference. Both Joan and Melissa Rivers are frequent guests on Howard Stern
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
's radio show, and Joan Rivers often appears as a guest on UK panel show 8 out of 10 Cats
8 Out of 10 Cats
8 out of 10 Cats is a television comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for Channel 4. It was first broadcast on 3 June 2005. The show is based on statistics and opinion polls, and draws on polls produced by a variety of organizations and new polls commissioned for the programme, carried out by...
.
Rivers was one of only four Americans invited to the royal wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles on April 9, 2005.
In 2006, Rivers was featured on the adult animated show, Drawn Together
Drawn Together
Drawn Together is an American animated television series, which ran on Comedy Central from October 27, 2004 to November 14, 2007. The series was created by Dave Jeser and Matt Silverstein, and uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting...
as Princess Clara's vagina that had received too much plastic surgery. Clara's 'vajoana' often repeated the phrase "who are you wearing, who are you wearing?".
On August 16, 2007, Rivers began a two-week workshop of her new play, with the working title "The Joan Rivers Theatre Project," at The Magic Theatre in San Francisco. On December 3, 2007, Rivers was featured before Her Majesty
Majesty
Majesty is an English word derived ultimately from the Latin maiestas, meaning "greatness".- Origin :Originally, during the Roman republic, the word maiestas was the legal term for the supreme status and dignity of the state, to be respected above everything else...
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh in the Royal Variety Show 2007 at the Liverpool Empire Theatre
Liverpool Empire Theatre
Liverpool Empire Theatre is located on the corner of Lime Street and London Road in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The theatre is the second to be built on the site, and was opened in 1925. It has the largest two-tier auditorium in Britain and can seat 2,350 people...
.
In January 2008, Rivers became one of 20 hijackers to take control of the Big Brother house in the UK for one day in spin-off TV show Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack
Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack
Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack was an E4 temporary replacement to Celebrity Big Brother, a spin-off series of the British reality television programme Big Brother, airing on E4, with a number of closely associated programmes also airing on the same channel...
. On June 24, 2008, Rivers appeared on NBC-TV’s show Celebrity Family Feud and competed with her daughter, Melissa against Ice-T
ICE-T
* Ice-T, an American rapper and actor* ICE T , a tilting model of the German InterCityExpress series of high-speed trains...
and Coco
Nicole "Coco" Austin
-External links:*...
.
The Apprentice (U.S. Season 8)
The Celebrity Apprentice 2 is the eighth installment of the United States version of the reality television series, The Apprentice. It premiered on March 1, 2009. The Celebrity Apprentice 2 aired for two hours on Sundays at 9:00 Eastern time...
. Throughout the season, each celebrity raised money for a charity of his or her choice; Rivers selected God's Love We Deliver. After a falling out with poker player Annie Duke
Annie Duke
Annie Duke is a professional poker player and author who won a bracelet in the 2004 World Series of Poker $2,000 Omaha Hi-Low Split-8 or Better Event and was the winner of the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, where she earned the Winner-Take-All prize of $2,000,000...
, following Melissa's on-air firing (elimination) by Donald Trump, Rivers left the green room
Green room
In British English and American English show business lexicon, the green room is that space in a theatre, a studio, or a similar venue, which accommodates performers or speakers not yet required on stage...
telling Clint Black
Clint Black
Clint Patrick Black is an American country music singer-songwriter, record producer, multi-instrumentalist and occasional actor. Signed to RCA Records in 1989, Black made his debut with his Killin' Time album, which produced four straight Number One singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country...
and Jesse James
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
that she would not be in the next morning. Rivers later returned to the show and on May 3, 2009, she became a finalist in the series. The other finalist was Duke. On the season finale, which aired live on May 10, Joan was announced the winner and hired to be the 2009 Celebrity Apprentice.
Rivers was featured on the show Z Rock
Z Rock (TV series)
Z Rock is an American television series, which airs on the IFC in the United States.The show is a semi-scripted comedy and is based on the double life of a Brooklyn band, ZO2. By night, they are a hard rock band but to pay the bills, they are the Z Brothers by day, playing kiddie parties...
as herself and was also a special so-called pink-carpet presenter for the 2009 broadcast of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
The Sydney Mardi Gras is an annual LGBTQI pride parade and festival in Sydney, Australia, and draws in thousands of visitors from around Australia and overseas...
parade. She was also roasted
Roast (comedy)
A roast is an event in which an individual is subjected to a public presentation of comedic insults, praise, outlandish true and untrue stories, and heartwarming tributes, the implication being that the roastee is able to take the jokes in good humor and not as serious criticism or insult, and...
in a Comedy Central special, taped on July 26, 2009, and aired on August 9, 2009. From August 2009, Joan began starring in the new reality TV series How'd You Get So Rich?
How'd You Get So Rich?
How'd You Get So Rich? is an American reality television series hosted by comedian Joan Rivers. The series premiered on TV Land on August 5, 2009, and consisted of six weekly half-hour episodes...
on TV Land
TV Land
TV Land is an American cable television network launched on April 29, 1996. It is owned by MTV Networks, a division of Viacom, which also owns Paramount Pictures, and networks such as MTV and Nickelodeon...
.
A documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
about Rivers, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work is a 2010 documentary film about the life and career of comedienne Joan Rivers. It premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival at the Castro Theatre on May 6, 2010.-Cast:* Joan Rivers* Melissa Rivers...
, premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival
San Francisco International Film Festival
San Francisco International Film Festival is the oldest continuously running film festival in the Americas. Organized by the San Francisco Film Society, the International is held each spring for two weeks, presenting an average of 150 films from over 50 countries...
at the Castro Theatre
Castro Theatre
The Castro Theatre is a popular San Francisco movie palace which became San Francisco Historic Landmark #100 in September 1976. Located at 429 Castro Street, in the Castro district, it was built in 1922 with a Spanish Colonial Baroque façade that pays homage—in its great arched central window...
on May 6, 2010.
In 2011, Rivers appeared in a commercial for Go Daddy
Go Daddy
Go Daddy is an Internet domain registrar and Web hosting company that also sells e-business related software and services. In 2010, it reached more than 45 million domain names under management. Go Daddy is currently the largest ICANN-accredited registrar in the world, and is four times the size of...
, which debuted during the broadcast of Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV
Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League champion for the 2010 season. The game was held at Cowboys Stadium in...
.
Joan and her daughter Melissa Rivers premiered the new show Joan & Melissa: Joan knows best on WE TV January 25, 2011. The series follows Joan moving to California to be closer to her family. She moves in with daughter Melissa while searching for a home of her own. It was recently revealed that WE TV has ordered a new season consisting of 10 episodes premiering in January 2012.
In 2011, Rivers was featured as herself in Season 2 of Louie C.K.'s self-entitled show 'Louie', where she performed on-stage.
Personal life
Rivers's first marriage was in 1955 to James Sanger, the son of a Bond Clothing Stores merchandise manager. The marriage lasted six months and was annulled on the basis that Sanger did not want children and had not informed Rivers before the wedding. Her second marriage was on July 15, 1965 to Edgar RosenbergEdgar Rosenberg
Edgar Rosenberg was an American television producer. Born in Fürth, Bavaria, Germany, to German Jewish parents, Otto & Lilli, the Rosenberg family migrated to America in 1940, due to the Outbreak of World War II. Rosenberg married comedian and commentator Joan Rivers and was the father of Melissa...
, who committed suicide in 1987. Their only child, Melissa Warburg Rosenberg (now known as Melissa Rivers
Melissa Rivers
Melissa Joan Rivers is an American television host, producer and the daughter of Joan Rivers.-Early life:Rivers was born Melissa Warburg Rosenberg in Manhattan on January 20, 1968; the only child of Joan Rivers and Edgar Rosenberg...
), was born on January 20, 1968. She has one grandson, Melissa's son Cooper (born Edgar Cooper Endicott) who is featured with his mother and grandmother in the WE tv
WE TV
We TV is the third TV channel from Malayalam Communications Ltd, in Kerala and based at Trivandrum. The other two channels of this company are Kairali TV and People TV. WE TV is mainly aimed at the youth and was officially launched on April 14, 2007. Mr...
series Joan & Melissa: Joan Knows Best?
In her book, Bouncing Back (1997), she described how she developed bulimia and contemplated suicide. Eventually she recovered with counseling and the support of her family.
In 2002, Rivers told the Montreal Mirror
Montreal Mirror
Montreal Mirror is a free English language alternative newsweekly based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada with a circulation of 70,000, and reaches a quarter of a million readers per week. It is published by Communications Gratte-Ciel Ltée....
that she is a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
.
Rivers is open about her multiple cosmetic surgeries and has been a client of plastic surgeon Steven Hoefflin
Steven Hoefflin
Steven M. Hoefflin, MD, FICS, FACS is a plastic surgeon, recognized for his procedures to celebrities such as Michael Jackson and Elizabeth Taylor...
since 1983. Her first procedure, an eye lift
Blepharoplasty
Blepharoplasty is surgical modification of the eyelid. Excess tissue such as skin and fat are removed or repositioned, and surrounding muscles and tendons may be reinforced. It can be both a functional and cosmetic surgery.-Indications:...
, was performed in 1965 as an attempt to further her career.
Awards
- In 1990, Rivers won the Daytime Emmy AwardDaytime Emmy AwardThe Daytime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Los Angeles-based Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American daytime television programming...
(a TV citation) for Outstanding Talk Show Host. The same year, a "star" in her name was placed on the Hollywood Walk of FameHollywood Walk of FameThe Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
. - In 1994, she was nominated for both Tony and Drama Desk Awards for Best Leading Actress in a Play for Sally Marr and Her Escorts, which she wrote with Erin Ladd Sanders and Lonny Price.
- In a 2005 Channel 4Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
poll to select The Comedian's Comedian, she was voted 40th among the "Top 50" comedy acts ever, by fellow comedians and comedy insiders.
Books
- Having a Baby Can Be a Scream (1974, self-help/humor book)
- The Life and Hard Times of Heidi Abromowitz (1984, humor book)
- Enter Talking (1986, autobiography)
- Still Talking (1991, autobiography)
- Jewelry by Joan Rivers (1995)
- Bouncing Back: I've Survived Everything ... and I Mean Everything ... and You Can Too! (1997, autobiography/self-help)
- From Mother to Daughter: Thoughts and Advice on Life, Love and Marriage (1998)
- Don’t Count the Candles: Just keep the Fire Lit! (1999)
- Men Are Stupid . . . And They Like Big Boobs: A Woman's Guide to Beauty Through Plastic Surgery (2008)
- Murder at the Academy Awards (R): A Red Carpet Murder Mystery (2009)
Filmography
- Once Upon a Coffee House (1965)
- The SwimmerThe Swimmer (film)The Swimmer is a 1968 American film directed by Frank Perry and starring Burt Lancaster. The surreal, allegorical tale is based on the 1964 short story by John Cheever, adapted by Eleanor Perry, the director's wife...
(1968) - Rabbit TestRabbit Test (film)Rabbit Test is a 1978 comedy motion picture about the world's first pregnant man, directed by Joan Rivers and starring Billy Crystal.Its title is derived from the rabbit test previously used to determine pregnancy.-Plot:...
(1978) (also director and writer) - Uncle Scam (1981)
- The Muppets Take ManhattanThe Muppets Take ManhattanThe Muppets Take Manhattan is the third of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Henson's Muppets, and also the final film before Henson's death. This film was produced by Henson Associates and TriStar Pictures, and was filmed on location in New York City during the summer of...
(1984) - Les Patterson Saves the WorldLes Patterson Saves the WorldLes Patterson Saves the World is a 1987 Australian comedy film. The plot involves the uncouth Sir Les Patterson, played by Barry Humphries, teaming up with Dame Edna Everage to save the world from a virulent bioterror attack ordered by Colonel Richard Godowni of the Gulf State of Abu Niveah.The...
(1987) - SpaceballsSpaceballsSpaceballs is a 1987 American science fiction comedy parody film co-written by, directed by, Mel Brooks and starring Bill Pullman, John Candy, Mel Brooks & Rick Moranis. It also features, Daphne Zuniga, Dick Van Patten, and the voice of Joan Rivers. The film was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer on...
(1987) (voice) - Pee-Wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988)
- Look Who's TalkingLook Who's TalkingLook Who's Talking is a 1989 romantic comedy film written and directed by Amy Heckerling and stars John Travolta and Kirstie Alley. Bruce Willis plays the voice of Mollie's son, Mikey. The film features George Segal as Albert, the illegitimate father of Mikey.-Plot:Mollie Jensen is an accountant...
(1989) (voice) - Public Enemy # 2 (1993)
- Serial MomSerial MomSerial Mom is a 1994 American dark satire written and directed by John Waters, starring Kathleen Turner as the title character, Sam Waterston as her husband, and Ricki Lake and Matthew Lillard as her children. Despite statements to the contrary in the movie, the story is completely fictional...
(1994) - NapoleonNapoleon (1995 film)Napoleon is a 1995 Australian film directed by Mario Andreacchio, and written by Mark Saltzman about a golden retriever puppy who runs away from his city home to the wild dogs.- Plot :...
(1995) (voice) - Goosed (1999)
- The InternThe InternThe Intern is a 2000 comedy satire film directed by Michael Lange about the shallow world of fashion magazines. It stars Dominique Swain, Joan Rivers, Peggy Lipton and Kathy Griffin...
(2000) - Whispers: An Elephant's Tale (2000) (voice)
- The Making and Meaning of 'We Are Family (2002) (documentary)
- Hip! Edgy! Quirky! (2002)
- Shrek 2Shrek 2Shrek 2 is a 2004 American computer-animated fantasy comedy film, produced by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon. It is the second installment in the Shrek film series and the sequel to 2001's Shrek...
(2004) (voice) - First DaughterFirst Daughter (2004 film)First Daughter is a 2004 American romantic comedy released by 20th Century Fox. It stars Katie Holmes as Samantha MacKenzie, daughter of the President of the United States, who enrolls at a college and develops a relationship with another student at the college played by Marc Blucas...
(2004) - The Last Guy on Earth (2007)
- Joan Rivers: A Piece of WorkJoan Rivers: A Piece of WorkJoan Rivers: A Piece of Work is a 2010 documentary film about the life and career of comedienne Joan Rivers. It premiered at the San Francisco International Film Festival at the Castro Theatre on May 6, 2010.-Cast:* Joan Rivers* Melissa Rivers...
(2010) (documentary) - Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010) (uncredited)
- (2011) (uncredited)
- "Tower HeistTower HeistTower Heist is a 2011 crime comedy film directed by Brett Ratner and written by Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson based on a story by Bill Collage, Adam Cooper, and Griffin. It was released on November 2, 2011 in the United Kingdom, with a United States release following two days later...
(2011) (uncredited)
Television work
- That Show starring Joan Rivers (1968-69) (syndicated daytime talk show)
- The Electric CompanyThe Electric CompanyThe Electric Company is an educational American children's television series that was produced by the Children's Television Workshop for PBS in the United States. PBS broadcast 780 episodes over the course of its six seasons from October 25, 1971 to April 15, 1977...
(cast member from 1972–1977) (voice) - Here's LucyHere's LucyHere's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
(1973) - An Audience with Joan RiversAn Audience with...An Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by ITV Studios, in which a host, usually a singer or comedian, performs for an invited audience of celebrity guests, interspersed with questions from the audience, in a light hearted revue/tribute style.The show began as An...
(1984) - Joan Rivers: Can We Talk? (1986)
- The Late Show Starring Joan RiversThe Late Show (1986 TV series)The Late Show is an American late-night talk show and the first series broadcast on the then-new Fox Network. Originally hosted by comic actress Joan Rivers, it first aired on October 9, 1986 under the title The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers...
(host from 1986–1987) - The New Hollywood SquaresHollywood SquaresHollywood Squares is an American panel game show in which two contestants play tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The "board" for the game is a 3 × 3 vertical stack of open-faced cubes, each occupied by a celebrity seated at a desk and facing the contestants...
hosted by John DavidsonJohn Davidson (entertainer)John Hamilton Davidson, Sr. is an American singer, actor and game show host known for hosting That's Incredible!, Time Machine, and Hollywood Squares in the 1980s, and a revival of The $100,000 Pyramid in 1991....
(center square from 1988–1989) - Joan Rivers (TV) show (1989–1993)
- How to Murder a Millionaire (1990)
- Lady BossLady BossLady Boss is a 1990 novel written by Jackie Collins and is the third in The Santangelo Novels series.The novel was adapted as a TV movie miniseries in 1992, starring Kim Delaney in the title role of Lucky Santangelo...
(1992) - Tears and Laughter: The Joan and Melissa Rivers Story (1994)
- Can We Shop? (1995–present)
- Another WorldAnother World (TV series)Another World is an American television soap opera that ran on NBC from May 4, 1964 to June 25, 1999. It ran for a total of 35 years. It was created by Irna Phillips along with William J...
(cast member in 1997) - E! True Hollywood Story: Joan RiversE! True Hollywood StoryE! True Hollywood Story is an American documentary series on E! that deals with famous Hollywood celebrities, movies, TV shows and well-known public figures...
(parodyParodyA parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
episode of show aired April 1, 2001) - Jack Dee Live at the Apollo (cast member in 2004, guest host in 2007)
- Nip/TuckNip/TuckNip/Tuck is an American drama series created by Ryan Murphy, which aired on FX in the United States. The series focuses on McNamara/Troy, a plastic surgery practice, and follows its founders, Sean McNamara and Christian Troy...
(2004-2005-2010) - The Joan Rivers Position (2004–2006)
- An Audience with Joan RiversAn Audience with...An Audience with... is a British entertainment television show produced by ITV Studios, in which a host, usually a singer or comedian, performs for an invited audience of celebrity guests, interspersed with questions from the audience, in a light hearted revue/tribute style.The show began as An...
(2006) - 8 out of 10 Cats8 Out of 10 Cats8 out of 10 Cats is a television comedy panel game made by Zeppotron for Channel 4. It was first broadcast on 3 June 2005. The show is based on statistics and opinion polls, and draws on polls produced by a variety of organizations and new polls commissioned for the programme, carried out by...
(2006–2007) - Joan Rivers: Before Melissa Pulls the Plug (2006)
- Dawn French's Girls Who Do ComedyDawn French's Girls Who Do ComedyDawn French's Girls Who Do Comedy is an interview series shown on BBC Four. In the series, Dawn French interviewed some of the most prolific comedians of the century from Phyllis Diller to Catherine Tate and asked about life, love, family and comedy...
(in-depth interview BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
2006) - The Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009...
(2007) - Straight TalkStraight TalkStraight Talk is an 1992 American comedy-film distributed by Hollywood Pictures, directed by Barnet Kellman and starring Dolly Parton and James Woods. Parton did not receive star-billing in any other theatrically-released films until the 2012 film Joyful Noise, alongside Queen Latifah...
(2007) - Shrink Rap (2008) - With Dr. Pamela ConnollyPamela StephensonPamela Helen Stephenson Connolly is a New Zealand-born Australian clinical psychologist and writer now resident in the United Kingdom. She is best known for her work as an actress and comedian during the 1980s...
- More4 - Celebrity Family FeudCelebrity Family FeudCelebrity Family Feud is a spin-off game show created by NBC, and hosted by television weather anchor Al Roker. The announcer was Burton Richardson. Celebrity Family Feud pitted two families against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey-type question posed to 100...
(2008) - Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack (Celebrity Hijacker) (2008)
- Loose WomenLoose WomenLoose Women is a British lunchtime television programme, first broadcast in 1999 on ITV. It consists of a panel of four women who interview celebrities and discuss topical issues, ranging from daily politics and current affairs, to celebrity gossip...
(2008) - The Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009...
(2008) - Celebrity Apprentice 2 (2008)
- Z RockZ Rock (TV series)Z Rock is an American television series, which airs on the IFC in the United States.The show is a semi-scripted comedy and is based on the double life of a Brooklyn band, ZO2. By night, they are a hard rock band but to pay the bills, they are the Z Brothers by day, playing kiddie parties...
(2008) - Aunt Joan - Spaceballs: The Animated SeriesSpaceballs: The Animated SeriesSpaceballs: The Animated Series, also known as Spaceballs: The Series, is an animated television series that premiered in 2008 on G4 and Canada's Super Channel, and is loosely based on the parody science fiction film Spaceballs...
(2008) (voice) - ArthurArthur (TV series)Arthur is an American/Canadian animated educational television series for children, created by Cookie Jar Group and WGBH for the Public Broadcasting Service...
(2008, 2010) (voice) - Bubby (Francine's Grandmother) - Celebrity ApprenticeThe Apprentice (U.S. Season 8)The Celebrity Apprentice 2 is the eighth installment of the United States version of the reality television series, The Apprentice. It premiered on March 1, 2009. The Celebrity Apprentice 2 aired for two hours on Sundays at 9:00 Eastern time...
(2009) - Herself - How'd You Get So Rich?How'd You Get So Rich?How'd You Get So Rich? is an American reality television series hosted by comedian Joan Rivers. The series premiered on TV Land on August 5, 2009, and consisted of six weekly half-hour episodes...
(2009) - Herself - The Comedy Central Roast of Joan RiversComedy Central RoastThe Comedy Central Roasts are a series of celebrity roast specials which air on the Comedy Central cable network.-History:Between 1998 and 2001, Comedy Central produced and televised the annual roasts of the New York Friars' Club. After the original five-year agreement expired, the network began...
(2009) - Herself - Celebrity Ghost StoriesCelebrity Ghost StoriesCelebrity Ghost Stories is a television show on BIO & A&E Network. It is a reality show that interviews various celebrities who have witnessed paranormal events at certain points in their lives.-Season 1 - ::...
(2009) - Herself - The Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009...
(December 31, 2009) - Celebrity Apprentice 3 (March 14, 2010)
- Fashion Police (September 10, 2010 – present)
- The Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton ShowThe Graham Norton Show is a British comedy chat show that is broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom. It was originally shown on BBC Two from February 2007 to May 2009 until it moved to BBC One from October 2009...
(November 5, 2010) - Joan and Melissa: Joan Knows Best (January 25, 2011 – present)
- LouieLouie (TV series)Louie is an American comedy television series on the FX network that began airing in 2010. It is written, directed, edited and produced by the show's creator, stand-up comedian Louis C.K., who stars as a fictionalized version of himself, a comedian and newly divorced father raising his two...
S02E04 - "Joan"' (July 14, 2011) - Herself
Theater work
The following is a selected list of theater work performed by Rivers.- Broadway BoundBroadway BoundBroadway Bound is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon. It is the last chapter in his Eugene trilogy, following Brighton Beach Memoirs and Biloxi Blues....
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
(replacement for Kate, 1988, Broadhurst TheatreBroadhurst TheatreThe Broadhurst Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 235 West 44th Street in midtown Manhattan.It was designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, a well-known theatre designer who had been working directly with the Shubert brothers; the Broadhurst opened 27 September 1917...
) - Sally Marr and Her Escorts, a play suggested by the life of Lenny BruceLenny BruceLeonard Alfred Schneider , better known by the stage name Lenny Bruce, was a Jewish-American comedian, social critic and satirist...
's mother (co-written with Erin Ladd Sanders and Lonny PriceLonny PriceLonny Price is an American actor, writer, and director, primarily in theatre. He is known for making statements on current events in versions of his musicals. His acclaimed May 2008 New York Philharmonic production of Camelot was making a statement about the current war including having different...
), May 1994, Helen Hayes TheatreHelen Hayes TheatreHelen Hayes Theatre with 597 seats is the smallest Broadway theatre and is located at 240 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan....
, BroadwayBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. - Joan Rivers: A Work In Progress By A Life In Progress (February 2008, Geffen PlayhouseGeffen PlayhouseThe Geffen Playhouse is a not for profit performing arts theater in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Originally named the Westwood Playhouse, UCLA purchased the property in 1993. UCLA's then chancellor, Charles E. Young, appointed Gil Cates Producing Director...
) - Joan Rivers: A Work In Progress By A Life In Progress (August 2008, Edinburgh Festival Fringe)
- Joan Rivers: A Work In Progress By A Life In Progress (September 2008, Leicester Square Theatre, London)