First published 2017
Melissa Rivers opens her mother's personal archives to reveal Joan Rivers behind the spotlight. The comedian saved everything during her career that started in the late 1950s. Hotel napkins hold hastily written jokes. Boarding passes carry comedy sketches. Letters from celebrity friends fill boxes alongside fan correspondence. Scripts from The Tonight Show appearances sit next to Las Vegas performance notes. Photographs capture moments the public never saw. The collection spans Joan's entire working life, from early club performances to Fashion Police segments. Melissa assembled these materials with Scott Currie to create an intimate portrait. The book reveals how Joan crafted her humor and maintained relationships across Hollywood. Readers discover the woman who built comedy gold from everyday observations scribbled on whatever paper she could find.
Genres: biography, 20th-century, autobiography, comedy, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: behind-the-scenes, family-legacy, personal-archives
Setting: Hollywood, Las Vegas
Period: 1950s, Late 20th Century, Early 21st Century
336 pages · Hardcover · Abrams Books