Joan Rivers first came into the limelight in 1965 as a guest on the popular talk show "The Tonight Show" which was hosted by her mentor, Johnny Carson. The show helped Joan to established her comedic style.
Joan Rivers was an American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and television host. She is considered a pioneer of women in comedy by many critics and journalists.
In 1986, with her own rival program, The Late Show with Joan Rivers, Rivers became the first woman to host a late-night network television talk show. She subsequently hosted The Joan Rivers Show (1989–1993), winning a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Talk Show Host.
From the mid-1990s, she became known for her comedic red carpet awards to show celebrity interviews. She was nominated in 1984 for a Grammy Award for her album What Becomes a Semi-Legend Most?; and was nominated in 1994 for the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play for her performance of the title role in Sally Marr ... and Her Escorts.
In 2017, Rolling Stone magazine ranked her sixth on its list of the 50 best stand-up comics of all time, and in October the same year, she was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
Joan Rivers was born on June 8, 1933, in Brooklyn, New York City, the USA. Her birth name was Joan Alexandra Molinsky. Her nationality was American and belonged to the Russian-Jewish ethnicity. Gemini was her star sign. She was raised up in Jewish heritage. Throughout her life, Rivers cracked jokes about her Jewish faith.
Joan was born to a middle-class Russian-Jewish family. Her father Meyer C. Molinsky and mother Beatrice Molinsky migrated to the United States from their native land Russia. After their full settlement, they gave birth to Joan's elder sister named Barbara Cushman Waxler and later Joan herself.
Rivers spent her childhood in Prospect Heights and Crown Heights in Brooklyn, where she attended Brooklyn Ethical Culture School and Adelphi Academy of Brooklyn. She graduated from the Adelphi Academy of Brooklyn, in 1951, at 18. Then she enrolled at Connecticut College for two years before transferring to Barnard College where she graduated in 1954 with a B.A. in English literature and anthropology.
Rivers' 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.
Rivers married Edgar Rosenberg on July 15, 1965. Their only child, Melissa Rivers, was born on January 20, 1968. Joan Rivers had one grandson, Cooper, born Edgar Cooper Endicott in 2000. Rivers was married to Rosenberg until his suicide in 1987, four days after she asked him for a separation. Joan stated that Roseberg mistreated her considerably over the course of their 22-year marriage.
In a 2012 interview with Howard Stern, Rivers said she had several extramarital affairs when married to Rosenberg, including a one-night stand with actor Robert Mitchum in the 1960s and an affair with actor Gabriel Dell. In the 1990s, she was in an eight-year relationship with the commissioner of the New York State Office of Parks and Recreation, disabled World War II veteran Orin Lehman of the Lehman family.
At the time of her death in 2014, Joan Rivers's net worth was estimated to be $150 million. She was enlisted as one of the wealthiest actresses multiple times in her life. This Centimillionaire showbiz mogul accumulated her vast fortune through an acting career, as a successful comedian, writer, producer, and television host.
Joan Rivers began her career in the late 50s with a number of Broadway performances. She also started to appear at comedy clubs in New York City. In the 60s, she appeared in the film "Once Upon a Coffee House," and made her breakthrough when she appeared on "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. This led to appearances on a number of other television shows throughout the rest of the 60s.
Throughout the 70s, Rivers continued to consolidate her presence on television with a number of high-profile roles and appearances. During the 80s, she continued her successful run, although she also focused more on stand-up comedy. Towards the end of the decade, she got her own show: "The Joan Rivers Show."
In the 2000s, she started covering red carpet events for the TV Guide Channel after being offered a three-year contract reportedly worth between $6-$8 million. She continued to appear in various television shows over the next few years, and she also established herself as a voice actor with a number of roles in animated films and television shows.
After Joan Rivers passed away, she left behind a lavish condo in New York City. Valued at $28 million, the apartment features decor that looks like it's taken straight out of the Palace of Versailles. The four-bedroom property also features terraces that offer beautiful views of the city. For a long period after Joan's passing the apartment remained unsold. Finally, it was sold for the full asking price in 2020.
Joan Rivers was 5 ft 2 inches tall and her body weight was 50 Kg. She had an hourglass-shaped body. Her curvaceous body measured 36-27-34 inches (Bust – Waist – Hips).
She had a pair of beautiful dark brown eyes. Her hair color was Blonde. She used to wear 7.5 (US) size shoes, a dress size of 8 (US), and a 34B(US) bra size.
Joan underwent cosmetic surgeries so many times in her life. She had her nose thinned while still at college. Her next surgery, an eye lift, was performed in 1965 when she was in her 30s.
On August 28, 2014, Rivers experienced serious complications and stopped breathing while undergoing what was scheduled to be a minor throat procedure at an outpatient clinic in Yorkville, Manhattan. Resuscitated an hour later, Rivers was transferred to Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and later put on life support.
She died on September 4, 2014, at the age of 81 at Mount Sinai, never having awakened from a medically induced coma. The New York City Medical Examiner's Office said that she died from brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen.
After three days of Joan's death, her funeral service took place where she was buried at Garden State Crematory in North Bergen, New Jersey. a private memorial service took place at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan. The service was attended by an estimated 1,500 people.
The guest list included Rivers' many celebrity friends, and public figures such as Howard Stern, Louis C.K., Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, Joy Behar, Michael Kors, Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker, Rosie O'Donnell, Kathy Griffin, and Donald Trump.