Comedian Cory Kahaney’s tribute to Joan Rivers

When the news ‘Joan Rivers Hospitalized’ broke, I hoped it was a publicity stunt. I couldn’t imagine a world without her. I was so sure she’d be making jokes about the whole ordeal.

“I was in a medically induced coma — you know how they put me under — they made me watch Jay Leno’s last monologue.” 

When I was a kid I saw Joan Rivers guest host the Tonight Show, and suddenly “I” made sense.

I will never be able to tell her how grateful I am for that. The only thing that cheers me up is knowing that she worked the night before. She never wanted to retire and she never had to.

Why is she so relevant? She was supposed to marry a doctor and move to the suburbs, she didn’t. She was supposed to know her place and let the male comics take the spotlight, she didn’t. She was supposed to quietly go off and have her baby, she didn’t (she did stand up pregnant on the Ed Sullivan show). She was supposed to wait in the wings to see what Johnny Carson had in mind for her, she didn’t. She was supposed to disappear after her husband’s suicide, she didn’t. She was bankrupt and supposed to lose everything, she didn’t. She was supposed to age gracefully and she did, oh yes she did!

Cory Kahaney:

Backstage Magazine voted Cory Kahaney the best comedian in New York City. She competed in the first season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing making it all the way to the finale. Cory has also appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Comedy Central Presents: Cory Kahaney. She continues to tour the country with her off-Broadway hit show, now titled “The Princess of Comedy.” To learn more about this talented comedian’s career, go to www.corykahaney.com