Conspicuously absent from the Oscars‘ “In Memoriam” tribute this year was the formidable Joan Rivers. While some on social media say she doesn’t technically qualify to be remembered by The Academy, we’re here to tell you they’re wrong.
OK, so no one really looks forward to the “In Memoriam” segment of the Oscars, but we all secretly relish the time to remember our beloved performers, jokesters and emoters. It is a lovely tribute to those actors who have recently died.
More: Melissa Rivers gives touching speech about her mother, Joan Rivers
We were just shocked not to see Joan Rivers as part of that annual grieving session. Rivers sadly died in September 2014 and will be missed by her fans for years to come. It was as if the entire Academy forgot about all her red carpet reports and jabs. As if they forgot all the movies Joan appeared in. As if they forgot her gift of laughter.
Many people on Twitter are saying she didn’t make the cut because she was a comedian and not an actress. But she was an actress. She appeared in the films Iron Man 3, The Smurfs and The Muppets Take Manhattan. She also voice-acted in Shrek 2 and Spaceballs. These are all movies.
Not only was she an actress, but she was an institution on the red carpet, inventing the catchphrase, “Who are you wearing?” She was a genius like that, turning even the smallest job of Oscars night into something entertaining fun and memorable.
Twitter really seemed to go crazy over Rivers’ absence from the segment. Another female comedian also missing from the “In Memoriam” tribute was Elaine Stritch.
More: Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin remember 30 Rock‘s Elaine Stritch
Though Stritch was mostly known for appearing on such TV shows as The Cosby Show and Head of the Class, she also appeared in numerous movies like Cocoon: The Return.
We only hope the Academy apologizes for leaving out these lovely ladies.
UPDATE (Feb. 23): A rep for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences told BuzzFeed news:
“Joan Rivers is among the many worthy artists and filmmakers we were unfortunately unable to feature in the ‘In Memoriam’ segment of this year’s Oscar show. She is, however, included in our ‘In Memoriam’ gallery on Oscar.com.”
UPDATE (Feb. 24): Melissa Rivers, Joan Rivers’ daughter, posted a message on Facebook addressing the snub:
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Watch the segment:
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