The entertainment world has been noticeably quieter, polite, and less interesting since we lost Joan Rivers in 2014. Joan was a comedic pioneer who built her entire career out of saying the quiet part out loud, refusing to apologize, and working harder than anyone else in the room.
There is no better way to honor her legacy than by watching her do what she did best: commanding a screen, making audiences gasp, and turning tragedy into comedic gold. Whether you want to witness her historic late-night triumphs, her iconic voice acting work, or the raw, unfiltered reality of her daily life, here is the definitive viewing guide to remembering Joan Rivers.
1. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010)
If you only have time to watch one thing today, make it this magnificent, award-winning documentary directed by Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg. Filmed over the course of her 76th year, the movie peels back the plastic-surgery jokes and glamorous fur coats to reveal the fiercely driven, vulnerable, and sometimes terrified woman underneath. Watching Joan look at a completely empty calendar with absolute dread—and then witnessing her meticulously organize her archive of thousands of index-card jokes—is an intimate masterclass in artistic survival.
2. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1965–1986)
To understand how Joan completely transformed television, you have to go back to where it all began. After years of being told women weren’t built for stand-up, her 1965 debut on The Tonight Show changed everything. Carson was so enchanted by her frantic, self-deprecating wit that he immediately launched her into superstardom. Her subsequent years as his permanent guest host feature some of the sharpest, fastest improvisational crowd work in late-night history.
3. Spaceballs (1987)
Joan’s distinct, raspy Brooklyn cadence was so legendary that she didn’t even need to appear on camera to steal a movie. In Mel Brooks’ brilliant Star Wars parody, Joan provided the voice for Dot Matrix, Princess Vespa’s neurotic, hyper-protective android chaperone. Sporting a golden C-3PO-style chassis equipped with a literal “Virgin Alarm,” Joan’s dry, sarcastic delivery provided the cult-classic film with some of its biggest laugh-out-loud moments.
4. Fashion Police (2010–2014)
Joan didn’t just attend award shows; she turned the post-show post-mortem into appointment television. As the sharp-tongued matriarch of E!’s Fashion Police, Joan brought her signature bite back to mainstream pop culture every week. Alongside her co-hosts, she treated bad Hollywood fashion as a high crime, delivering rapid-fire, jaw-dropping roasts that proved her comedic reflexes were just as fast in her late seventies as they were in her twenties.
5. The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers (1986–1987)
This show represents one of the most volatile, historic chapters in television. By accepting Fox’s offer to launch her own late-night program, Joan permanently fractured her relationship with Johnny Carson, but she also shattered the ultimate glass ceiling. As the first woman to ever host a major network late-night talk show, Joan brought an electric, chaotic energy to the desk that paved the way for every female host who followed.
6. The Joan Rivers Show (1989–1993)
Following the cancellation of her Fox show and the tragic suicide of her husband, Edgar Rosenberg, Hollywood tried to write Joan off. Instead, she pivoted to daytime television and pulled off a spectacular redemption arc. The Joan Rivers Show was a massive hit, blending heavy-hitting journalistic topics with broad comedy. The industry rightfully rewarded her resilience in 1990, when she took home the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host.
7. The Celebrity Apprentice (Season 8 / Celebrity Season 2) (2009)
Before the series became a bizarre political footnote, Joan delivered one of the most wildly entertaining reality TV runs in history. Entering the competition at age 75 alongside her daughter, Melissa, Joan treated the corporate tasks like actual life-or-death warfare. Her legendary, screaming locker-room confrontations with Melissa’s detractors showed a fiercely protective maternal instinct and an unyielding work ethic that eventually propelled her to win the entire season.
8. Louie (Season 2, Episode 11: “Joan”) (2011)
In this highly acclaimed guest appearance, Joan played a fictionalized version of herself performing in a hotel showroom. When a younger, disillusioned comic (played by Louis C.K.) complains about how brutal the comedy industry is, Joan delivers a raw, stunning, and beautifully written monologue about why the struggle is a privilege. It is an incredibly poignant, meta moment that perfectly encapsulated her deep, lifelong reverence for the craft of making people laugh.
9. The Muppets Take Manhattan (1984)
Joan was an absolute master of the brief, high-impact cinematic cameo. In this classic Muppet feature, Miss Piggy takes a job working at a high-end department store perfume counter alongside Joan. What follows is a brilliantly chaotic 90 seconds of the two legends aggressively applying makeup to each other in a frantic, ad-libbed frenzy. It remains a masterclass in how to leave a permanent mark on a film with minimal screen time.
10. Joan Rivers: Don’t Start With Me (2012)
To remember Joan at her most lethal, you have to watch her on a stand-up stage without network censors. Released just two years before her passing, this Showtime special features Joan performing at the absolute height of her powers. At nearly 80 years old, she paces the stage like a caged tiger, unleashing a relentless torrent of unfiltered, politically incorrect, and brilliant jokes targeting absolutely everyone and everything. It stands as a beautiful, ferocious reminder that Joan Rivers never, ever slowed down
