On November 16, 2006, Joan Rivers spoke about her experience as a female comic in the early 60s and finding her comedic voice. Interview conducted by director Michael Kantor for the six-hour PBS comedy series, “Make ‘Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America” (2009).
Chapters:
00:00 Working and breaking through the limitations placed on female comics in the early 1960s
02:34 A bit of cheeky irreverence to survive the condescension of the Borscht Belt
03:46 Finding her voice with the infamous smartasses of the Second City improv group
06:40 Johnny Carson and Ed Sullivan lend some helping hands in an uphill battle for establishing a female comic’s legitimacy
08:45 Television launches a New Wave in homegrown American comedy
The American Masters Digital Archive includes over 1,000 hours of never-before-seen, raw interviews: a treasure trove of the movers and shakers of American culture, including Maya Angelou, Gloria Steinem, Patti Smith, Mel Brooks, Carol Burnett, Matthew Broderick, Carl Reiner, Joan Rivers, Dionne Warwick, Lee Grant, Sidney Lumet, Betty White and many others.