Just when you thought this year couldn't get heartbreaking enough, we've lost another legend: today, Joan Rivers died.
The 81-year-old comedian was pulled off life support as per the decision of her daughter, Melissa, following complications from a surgery last week. Melissa released the following statement today:
"It is with great sadness that I announce the death of my mother, Joan Rivers. She passed peacefully a 1:17 p.m. surrounded by family and close friends. My son and I would like to thank the doctors, nurses, and staff of Mount Sinai Hospital for the amazing care they provided my mother."
"[My son Cooper] and I have found ourselves humbled by the outpouring of love, support, and prayers we have received from around the world," she continued. "They have been heard and appreciated. My mother's greatest joy in life was to make people laugh. Although that is difficult to do right now, I know her final wish would be that we return to laughing soon."
But I CAN'T. Joan Rivers was in-fucking-credible. She kicked the shit out of that glass ceiling in comedy at a time when a "funny woman" was even more controversial than it is today. Then she flew threw it, becoming a staple of the late night circuit before going on to conquer the fashion world.
So listen to her comedy albums. Watch Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (which is on Netflix). Read her books. And remember that even if you weren't a fan, what she did for women trying to speak their minds was a wonderful, heroic thing. She was a true broad.
