Joan Rivers is being remembered by gay fans, including one who once spent the night with drinking with her in an Edinburgh bar. The brassy and bold comedian has died in New York following complications from surgery. She was 81. Former Gay Auckland Business Association President, TV producer Glenn Sims, met Rivers while bar-hopping at the Edinburgh Television festival the year before he moved to New Zealand. “In a very dark corner of the bar were two old ladies and one of them looked very familiar,” he recalls. “My friend went up to them and, a few minutes later he asked me to join them. It was Joan Rivers and a friend and they asked us to join them for a drink.” Sims, who now lives in Indonesia, says unlike so many other celebrities, Joan wasn't particularly interested in talking about herself. “She was interested in us and I think we spent more time talking about my friend and I, rather than asking her all the questions we were desperate to ask her. She was a bit of an idol - one of the first comedy books I read was The Life and Hard Times of Heidi Abromowitz at the age of around 12, and it totally changed my perspective of what comedy could be,” he recalls. “After several hours, we were all completely legless and it was time to say goodbye. I will always remember that she said that she loved the gays and would always support us. She was humble, she was gracious, she was the grandmother you wished you had. “She said that nothing was off limits when it came to making people laugh - herself and her husband's suicide included. My meeting with her was fleeting, but it's a privilege to have spent time with her.” Others mourning Rivers today include Christchurch drag identity Miss Mole, who is a huge fan and says her death means another legend is gone. “I grew up with Joan. She was the funniest, most witty woman on the planet and her humour was so funny. I remember her movie Rabbit Test she made with Billy Crystal about a pregnant man ... so funny. RIP Miss Rivers. You will be sadly missed and never forgotten.”
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 5th September 2014 - 3:04pm