Saturday, August 18, 2012

Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work (2010)

In this documentary, Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg explores the life of Joan Rivers. We hear the comedienne behind the stage, philosophizing about ambition, endurance, and what drives her to not retire yet. Workaholism has been her vehicle to success, fame, respect, wealth, including disrespect. To this Barnard grad, work is air.

At seventy-five*, it's amazing how energetic this woman is, performing to this and that city, constantly traveling.  She seems hungry for something beyond revenues and the residuals of fame. You can feel she'd lose it, if she's not out there, entertaining people. Is it simply work, the urge to perform? She's in some kind of rhythm that cannot be domesticated, the kind we can only see as glamour. 

* Her age when the film was made.

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