Guilty by omission

Joan Rivers left out of Oscars tribute

‘In Memoriam’ segment omits comedienne, who died in September; Academy Awards PR says there was no room

By ToI Staff 23 February 2015, 5:45 pm Edit

Comedian Joan Rivers in 2009. (AP/Lionel Cironneau)

Joan Rivers was omitted on Sunday night from the Oscars’ montage honoring the stars who died last year, which spotlighted actor Robin Williams, actress Lauren Bacall and others.

The snub of the longtime actress and comedian, who died in September, sparked outrage on Twitter with many fans and several celebrities taking to the social media platform to decry the decision.

While Rivers was primarily a stand-up comedian, she also had dozens of acting credits to her name, and co-wrote the 1978 film Rabbit Test, starring Billy Crystal. She was also a fixture on the red carpet, having attended the Academy Awards numerous times.

Am I missing something or was @Joan_Rivers really left out of the #Oscars memorials?

— Kelly! (@KellyOsbourne) February 23, 2015

In response to the online outcry, the Academy Awards publicity office said there was no room in the tribute — which honored marketing executives and other relative unknowns — for Rivers.

“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,” a statement from the Academy Awards said, according to Buzzfeed.