Josephina Victoria "Joy" Behar
(née Occhiuto
; born October 7, 1943) is a Daytime Emmy award winning American comedian, writer, actress, and a co-host of the talk show The View
. Behar will host her own talk show in the fall of 2009, titled The Joy Behar Show
on HLN. [1]
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Biography
Personal life
Behar, an
Italian-American,
[2] was born
Josephina Victoria Occhiuto
in
Williamsburg, Brooklyn,
New York on October 7, 1943. Her mother, Rose, was a seamstress, and her father, Gino Occhiuto, was a truck driver.
[3] She married Joe Behar in January 1965; they divorced in 1981. They have one daughter, Eve.
[4] Joy Behar and her partner, Steve Janowitz, whom she refers to as her "spousal equivalent," have been together since the mid-1980s.
[5] On March 17, 2009, Behar announced that she might eventually marry Steve, but that the probability is small.
Behar holds a
Bachelor of Arts degree in
Sociology from
Queens College, and a
Master of Arts degree in English Education from the
State University of New York at Stony Brook. Behar resides in Manhattan.
The View
Following years as a
stand-up comedian (particularly in
New York) and
WABC radio talk show host, Behar became one of the original cast members of
Barbara Walters's
ABC television creation,
The View
, in 1997. Originally, Behar appeared only on the days when Walters was away from the show; soon Behar became a regular co-host, with the panel expanding to five when Walters joined in. Behar often hosts a segment called "Joy's Comedy Corner" in which she presents up-and-coming comedians.
Star Jones, former co-host on
The View,
and Behar had well-publicized disputes. On March 27, 2006, Star Jones called in to the show to discuss a recent operation that she had undergone. After talking with the show's co-hosts, Behar abruptly stated to Jones, "OK, Star. That's enough about you. On to us. Bye. Keep your [breasts] perky!"
[6] Jones then responded, "Even today, you [Behar] are still a bitch."
In August 2009 Behar, alongside her co-hosts
Whoopi Goldberg,
Sherri Shepherd,
Barbara Walters and
Elisabeth Hasselbeck, won the
36th Annual Daytime Emmy award for Outstanding Talk Show Host. It follows over a decade of nominations for
The View
. None of the co-hosts of the show were in
Los Angeles to collect the award, following some shock that
The View
had for the first time not been nominated for Outstanding Talk Show as well.
[7]
Other work
Behar has appeared in a number of films including
Cookie
and
This Is My Life
. One of her few TV acting roles was in the 1988–89 TV series adaptation of the movie
Baby Boom
. She fulfilled a lifelong dream of acting in a movie with
Woody Allen when she appeared in
Manhattan Murder Mystery
. Behar has also made theater appearances in
The Food Chain
and
The Vagina Monologues.
Behar wrote a book of humorous essays and stories called
Joy Shtick — Or What is the Existential Vacuum and Does It Come with Attachments?
, published in 1999. She has also written a children's book called
Sheetzucacapoopoo: My Kind of Dog
, published in 2006.
In 2003, Behar became a spokesperson for
Jenny Craig. She lost 23 pounds in 11 weeks on the program, though she no longer is a spokesperson for the company.
Behar frequently incorporates her Italian-American culture into her comedy and once told
Charlie Rose on his PBS program that her grandmother kept a picture of
Mussolini in her home. Juxtaposed with that was another joke that the name Behar "sounds Jewish," so much so that she had trouble convincing her own mother otherwise. She is mistakenly thought to be Jewish, and has quipped that she is pleased to be "an honorary
Shiksa non-grata."
Behar appeared on the 8th season of
Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown and finished in 4th Place, behind
Robin Tunney,
Christopher Meloni and
Macy Gray, but ahead of
Andy Dick. She played for the
U.S. Fund for UNICEF.
Beginning in 2007, she has occasionally filled in as a
guest host on
Larry King Live
.
On June 11 2009, Behar announced that she will be hosting her own talk show in the fall of 2009, self titled
The Joy Behar Show
. She will not be leaving
The View
, but will be doing both shows.
[1]
Criticism and controversy
Behar's political views have drawn criticism. The
Anti-Defamation League (ADL), in an open letter to Behar, admonished her description of then-
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld as "
Hitler-like", noting that "Hitler's actions during the
Second World War and his responsibility for the
Holocaust have no parallel in history." The ADL described Behar's comparison as "inappropriate and offensive," noting that Hitler's name should not be "taken out of context or used for personal attacks or vendettas."
[9]
Behar has also drawn criticism numerous times from the
Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights. Catholic League president
William A. Donohue remarked that Behar, who was raised a
Roman Catholic, "is no stranger to Catholic bashing," pointing to her statement, "Don't you remember when you went to
Communion? '
In vino veritas.' The priests were all drunk, don't you remember?" The Catholic League maintains, "There is an anti-Catholic animus evident among the panelists on
The View
, with Rosie O'Donnell and Joy Behar being the worst offenders."
[10]
During the
2006 Duke University lacrosse case Behar in a conversation with Hasselbeck and McGowan labeled the innocent players as, "white boys sitting around with black girls, coming in and stripping. Alright, they didn't rape them, but...."
[11] The players were pronounced innocent of rape and victims of a "Tragic rush to accuse."
[12]
Awards and Nominations
Daytime Emmy Award
- 1998 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 1999 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2000 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2001 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2002 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2003 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2004 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2005 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2006 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2007 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host (The View
)
- 2008 Nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host(s) (The View
)
- 2009 Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host(s) (The View
)
References
- http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20284488,00.html?xid=rss-fullcontent
- Q&A with Joy Behar abc.go.com. Retrieved 25/02/08.
- Joy Behar Biography (-)
- {{imdb|0066877}}
- Joy Behar May Marry Boyfriend People, March 17, 2009
- Star, Joy Bleeped, Cut Off in On-Air Fight on 'View'
- Bold wins at Daytime Emmy Awards, Los Angeles Times
- http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20284488,00.html?xid=rss-fullcontent
- ADL letter
- Catholic League news release
- http://newsbusters.org/node/12001
- http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2007/04/11/national/a113721D83.DTL