The secret villain whose diabolical, behind-the-scenes machinations were the real source behind the 30-year feud between Rivers and Johnny Carson.

The delicious revenge Elizabeth Taylor took on Rivers after suffering years of jokes about her weight—a comeuppance delivered in a mischievous conspiracy, engineered by George Hamilton.

How she distorted her life history—from her upbringing and academic record, to the credit she gave Bill Cosby for helping her get on The Tonight Show.

The story of her lovers. Did they really include Johnny Carson and Robert Mitchum?

Although her husband’s suicide was a personal tragedy, it liberated Rivers, paving the way for her greatest success. She rebuilt her career in her 60s and 70s, ultimately achieving vast wealth, international renown, and enormous influence at an age when women are routinely dismissed as irrelevant.

The young Rivers believed that a woman needed a man to depend on, but it was her own husband who nearly wrecked her career, leaving her broke and ruined in her mid-50s.

“Last Girl Before Freeway” was an iconic Joan Rivers joke early in her career, when she claimed that her mother was so desperate to marry her off that she put up a sign in their front yard, advertising her availability.