Comedian Joan Rivers dies at 81

Joan Rivers, the sharp-tongued comedian known for her quick wit and cutting observations – particularly concerning anything and everything in the world of celebrity and fashion – died yesterday at a Manhattan hospital. She was 81.

The circumstances surrounding her death are being investigated by the New York State Health Department. Rivers lost consciousness last week after she was reportedly undergoing a procedure on her vocal chords. On Tuesday, she was said to be on life support before she was moved out of intensive care on Wednesday.

Her career spanned more than five decades, with Rivers moving from a sassy, self-deprecating performer in nightclubs to a coarser assassin on countless TV appearances in later years. After years as a guest on “The Tonight Show,” and a brief stint with her own television show in the mid-1980s, Rivers' later career centered around putting a microscope on celebrities at red carpet events and on programs such as Entertainment network’s “Fashion Police.”

Read more from the New York Times.[[In-content Ad]]