Joan Rivers

The obituary doesn't open with any cute ledes about parts of her body being younger than her. There is a quick reference to a penchant for nip-and-tuck procedures, but nothing that could be fodder for other comedians. Even armchair ones.

Joan made it to being a stand-up comedic Jewish Zsa Zsa Gabor, who I first remember seeing appear on the Johnny Carson show in the 1960s as she came on to the guest seat carrying her purse. She appeared on Carson often in those days, and always had her purse with her.

Why she was afraid to leave it backstage is unknown. Maybe she kept it close by because it had all her charge cards. She was the Mrs. Miller in the audience who made it to the guest chair, then the host's chair. Eventually, she stopped hauling her purse in front of everyone.

I mentioned the purse to someone who was applying to a job we had for being a database administrator, a highly specialized IT job. A young woman made it through the gauntlet of pre-selection interviews and somewhat proudly told me she achieved building a database for the Comedy Club over a period of several years. I professed admiration, but wasn't impressed that it took someone years to build a database, Comedy Club, or not.

She told me about some of the acts that would appear and I jumped the track and told her about Joan and Johnny and Joan's purse. The applicant was way too young to have seen the Tonight shows when they were first aired, but said she could get me an audition. I declined, thanked her for her time, and  hired someone else.

If Joan Rivers always seemed to be hold age at bay, the NYT helped her a bit yesterday when their online home page carried the story of her death and told all who looked closely at the heading that Joan lived from 1933-1914. (It was corrected.) One surely wonders what they'll do when Ol' Shirl, Shirley MacLaine passes away. Ms. MacLaine so believes in reincarnation that the Times might have to print some of their text in ancient Arabic.

I'd like to think I lived in the same apartment building as Joan and was already in the elevator when she was quickly locking her door and yelling toward the elevator, "HOLD THAT ELEVATOR."

Who wouldn't have wanted to be in an elevator with Joan Rivers?

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