RIP Joan Rivers

she will be missed by many, i read that it was from complications of throat surgery

 

She was long before my time but I remember her as that funny lady with way too much plastic surgery.

 

Worst/best thing I saw about her: She died doing what she loved doing best, having surgery performed on her body.

I think it would have been a joke she might have told.

 

Can someone tell me why she was such a big deal?

 

Her style of comedy wasn't my taste, but I give her credit for having a long & successful career. She wasn't afraid to make fun of her 'bread & butter,' the entertainment industry, and herself.

You need to look at her career going back to the '60s & '70s, maybe the '80s as well. Most comedians have a period of peak popularity, then they either fade away or rely on a smaller group of hardcore fans. Don Rickles, David Brenner, Louie Anderson, Paula Poundstone, Jerry Seinfeld, etc. It would be a very long list.

 

Joan Rivers was a female Don Rickles hyped up on speed. I believe she was instrumental in paving the way for some of todays more acerbic female comics, and I think she upped the ante a little, supplanting the likes of Phyllis Diller, et al. I often liked her wit and speed, but as she aged I think her humor became sorta broadly mean, both to herself and others. However, she was a personality like no other, and I admire her way of spitting in the face of a PC generation. RIP Ms. Rivers, or not. Whatever you would like to be true is fine by me.

 

She was a trailblazer and took a lot of knocks but ended up kicking ass her way.

On planning her own funeral:

When I die (and yes, Melissa, that day will come; and yes, Melissa, everything’s in your name), I want my funeral to be a huge showbiz affair with lights, cameras, action . . . . I want craft services, I want paparazzi and I want publicists making a scene! I want it to be Hollywood all the way. I don’t want some rabbi rambling on; I want Meryl Streep crying, in five different accents. I don’t want a eulogy; I want Bobby Vinton to pick up my head and sing “Mr. Lonely.” I want to look gorgeous, better dead than I do alive. I want to be buried in a Valentino gown and I want Harry Winston to make me a toe tag. And I want a wind machine so that even in the casket my hair is blowing just like Beyoncé’s.​

 

If the news report that I saw was accurate, Joan Rivers got the funeral that she wanted.

 

I heard "good f##king riddance" from one co-worker when this story broke.
I do not share that feeling but not too broken up over the loss either. She was quite a landmark figure in the business for many reasons and will definitely be missed.

 

If you just look at her output over the past 10 years or so, it's easy to see why someone might say, Good fucking riddance. Her shows were not to everyone's taste (Fashion Police, etc.). Her heavy use of plastic surgery was off-putting to say the least.

That said, do some homework. Have a look at her appearances and guest hosting stints on Carson. Have a look at her stand up routines. Look at them in the context of the era.

She was an awesome force. Don Rickles wishes he was Joan Rivers.

 

Oh yes I definitely agree with you. Don Rickles is one of my favourite comedians ever but you can't judge his work by what he has done the 10-15 years while ignoring his years on the Dean Martin Roasts, CPO Sharky, etc, where he was younger and much more active.

 

If that news report is accurate, Dr. Gwen Korovin is in some deep shit.

I see quite a difference between this Rivers & Jackson. While I certainly don't support Dr. Conrad Murray enabling MJ the drug addict, he didn't take a scalpel to MJ.