Joan Rivers: A Dead Funny All-Star Tribute

Matt Roush says...

Could she talk! The pioneering female stand-up superstar Joan Rivers died more than a decade ago, but the memory of her barbed humor lives on — and not just in the filing cabinets that store her treasury of 70,000 jokes. Contemporary comics including Nikki Glaser, Chelsea Handler, and Tiffany Haddish are among the admirers gathering at Harlem’s iconic Apollo Theater for a special tribute, with Patton Oswalt reminding us her jokes were “all meat — no filler,” including 218 jokes about death alone: “She’s dead, but she’s still here.” Highlights include Rachel Brosnahan (whose The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was inspired by Joan) reciting a lightning-round set of gynecological quips and Aubrey Plaza solemnly reciting “next level tasteless” jokes that might deserve to be put to rest. As if. Joan’s daughter Melissa appears at the end to reinforce her mom’s belief that “When you make people laugh, you give them a mini vacation.” (If you’re left wanting more, Peacock drops an extended, uncensored version with more material and guest stars on Wednesday.)

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