Comedy lost another icon today. Joan Rivers, the first and only woman to host a non-cable late-night talk show, died today, September 4, at the age of 81. The news comes directly from her daughter Melissa.
The comedian and all-around entertainer had been receiving treatment at New York’s Mt. Sinai Hospital since last week, after going into cardiac arrest following an earlier outpatient procedure. She was later placed on life support and yesterday was taken out of the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit.
Rivers’ daytime series, The Joan Rivers Show, was host to many notable musical acts during its four-year run from 1989 to 1993, including Hüsker Dü, Beastie Boys, David Lee Roth, Duran Duran, the Bangles, and Whitney Houston. Rivers herself was nominated for a Grammy in 1984 for her comedy album What Becomes A Legend Most? Check out her daughter’s official statement as well as a roundup of Rivers’ most notable musical interactions over the years below.
