Melissa Rivers responds to Oscars snub of late mother Joan Rivers
Oscars producers left Joan Rivers out of their annual "In Memoriam" tribute, and now Melissa Rivers is speaking out.
In a Facebook post, she writes:
"It would have been nice, especially considering the impact she had on the awards season, but Cooper and I have been overwhelmed with support and love over my mom's passing and we choose to focus on that."
The Academy released a statement on Monday, explaining that she "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."
But Melissa wasn't the only one they let down. Fans and fellow celebs also expressed their disappointment in the Academy's decision.
Chat show host Sally Raphael tweeted, "No mention of @Joan_Rivers in the Memorial?! That's not right."
And Billy Eichner said, "She basically created the red carpet ... For shame!"
Others attempted to remind the Academy that she directed Billy Crystal's "Rabbit Test" in 1978.
Dave Itzkoff posted a pic of Joan back in the day wearing her "director person" shirt, and Stephen Battaglio also posted a picture, asking, "How could the Academy have forgotten about this?"
While Rivers wasn't necessarily known for her movie appearances, her IMDB page cites 38 acting credits over 63 years, with roles in "Space Balls," "Iron Man 3," "Shrek 2," and the 2010 documentary "Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work."
Other celebs who were notably left out include Elaine Stritch, Taylor Negron, Gottfried John and Richard Kiel.
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