Joan Rivers, the 81-year-old comedienne, who is an ordained minister officiated an impromptu “gay marriage” ceremony during the signing of her mémoire “ Diary Of A Mad Diva” at a Barnes & Noble bookstore in New York City.
Her “gay” fans Jed Ryan and Joe Aiello asked her to marry them right there and then. Joe said that he and Jed were reading her book and saw that she mentioned being an “ordained” minister.
“And I jokingly asked Jed, ‘Do you think it’s true? Maybe she’ll marry us.’ And he goes, ‘Ask her.’” So I did, Joe said. “I don’t think he really thought I would, and neither one of us thought she’d say yes!,” he added.
Rivers was happy to oversee the surprise “nuptials,” and asked the gay couple, who have been dating for three years, to join her on stage in front of 400 adoring fans as they sang “The Wedding March.”
The “Fashion Police” icon seemed moved to be asked to officiate their wedding, and often beamed during the ceremony.
“Do the two of you understand what marriage is about?” she asked the couple. “Adoring each other, standing behind each other, and forsaking all others, and really, honest to God, this is it, forever.”
The funny lady then had the pair hold hands as she read out some “on-the-spot” vows, before declaring them as married.
“The power that is granted to me as an ordained minister of New York City, I now pronounce you – and it’s wonderful because you’re my second marriage – husband and husband,” Joan said to the happy couple.
After the short ceremony Joan rushed to “hug” the newlyweds before the couple shared a passionate kiss. Joan proudly posted about her officiating on Tuesday in a tweet to her more than two million followers.
“Performed a gay wedding at my book signing of ‘Diary of a Mad Diva.’ How great was that?” she tweeted along with a photo showing her placing her hand over the clasped hands of Joe and Jed.
Rivers is ordained through the Universal Life Church and officiated the King Kong-themed nuptials of Preston Bailey and Theo Bleckmann in February 2013.
Being no stranger to “controversy,” with a reputation for “slamming” public figures and more often than not putting her “own foot” in her mouth, she was asked by a photographer when she thought America would see a gay president in the White House.
The octogenarian quickly shot back: “We already have it with Obama, so let’s just calm down.”
Before walking away from the reporter, Rivers said “You know Michelle is a tranny.” When asked to confirm her eyebrow-raising statement, she said, “A transgender. We all know. It’s okay.”
A representative for Rivers released the following statement from the comic about her remarks to the photographer:
“I think it’s a compliment. She’s so attractive, tall, with a beautiful body, great face, does great makeup. Take a look and go back to ‘La Cage Au Follies.’ The most gorgeous women are transgender. Stop it already … and if you want to talk about ‘politically correct,’ I think this is a ‘politically incorrect’ attack on me because I’m old, Jewish, a woman and a ‘hetty’ — a heterosexual … and I plan to sue the reporter who, when he turned off his camera, tried to touch me inappropriately on the ass – luckily he hit my ankle. Read the book if you think that’s silly, wait to you see what I say about FDR and Eleanor!”
In March 2013 she refused to apologize for a joke she made about the “dress”host Heidi Klum wore to the Academy Awards.
“The last time a German looked this hot was when they were pushing Jews into the ovens,” Rivers said while appearing on the E! channel’s “Fashion Police” show.
The Anti-Defamation League slammed Rivers, calling the remark “vulgar and hideous,” but she said it was her way of getting people to talk.
“It’s a joke, No. 1. No. 2 it is about the Holocaust,” she told HLN’s “Showbiz Tonight.” This is the way I remind people about the Holocaust. “I do it through humor.”
The octogenarian has a history of making controversial remarks, including slamming stars ranging from Adele to Miley Cyrus to Lindsay Lohan. Rivers recently claimed that she was being sued by “Twilight” actress Kristen Stewart for comments she made in her book, “Diary of a Mad Diva,” about Stewart’s affair with a married man.
Rivers doesn’t normally work the apology circuit. She often refuses to make amends for her cutting remarks, like when she dubbed the powerhouse singer Adele “fat” and wouldn’t back off when confronted on it. Like Don Rickles, Rivers’ biting brand of comedy is more or less grandfathered in.
This latest dust-up coincides with Rivers’ book, “Diary of a Mad Diva,” which was released on July 1.
Rivers’ representative said “These are all funny jokes. The book is hysterical. The prologue says if anyone takes anything in the book seriously (he or she) is an idiot. And (Rivers) says if anyone has a problem with that, they can feel free to call her lawyer Clarence Darrow.”
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