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Joy Behar
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Josephina Victoria "Joy" Behar (née Occhiuto); born October 7, 1942 is an Emmy-Nominated American comedian, writer, actress and co-host of the talk show The View.
Biography
Personal lifeBehar, an Italian-American, was born Josephina Victoria Occhiuto in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York; on October 7, 1942; the daughter of Rose, a seamstress, and Gino Occhiuto, a truck driver. She married Joe Behar, of Sephardic Jewish descent, in January 1965; they divorced in 1981; they had one daughter, Eve. Behar nearly died from an ectopic pregnancy in 1979.
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 and was a member of Delta Zeta sorority. She was a teacher at Lindenhurst High School in Lindenhurst, New York. Behar currently resides in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan.
The ViewFollowing years as a stand-up comedian (particularly in New York), Behar became one of the original cast members of The View in 1997. Originally she appeared only on the days when Barbara Walters was off; soon she 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.
Behar stands on the left side of the political aisle and is in favor of taxpayer-funded embryonic stem-cell research and is also in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage, among other liberal positions. She has expressed her opposition to the war in Iraq and her dislike of Medicare's coverage of Viagra prescriptions. Behar recently referred to the Bush administration as "liars and murderers". When Fox News show host Bill O'Reilly contentiously claimed on The View that it was a mistake for Rosie O'Donnell to come out as gay and predicted that both her career and Ellen DeGeneres's would spiral downward because of it, Behar challenged this view. She replied that "someone has to take those risks [in order for there to be change in society]."
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!" Jones then responded, "Even today, you [Behar] are still a bitch".
As of 2007, Behar and Walters are the only panelists from the original lineup of Meredith Vieira, Jones, Behar, occasionally Walters, and Debbie Matenopoulos that remain on the show today.
Other workBehar has appeared in a number of films including, Cookie and This Is My Life, which was directed by Nora Ephron. 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 theatre 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 she "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, and ahead of Andy Dick. She played for the US fund for UNICEF.
Criticism and controversyBehar'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."
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", pointed 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."
Behar again raised eyebrows when she publicly opined that Democratic Senator Tim Johnson's recent health problems were the result of a Republican Party conspiracy to retake control of the Senate. When conservative co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck asked, "Why is everything coming from the liberal perspective a conspiracy?" Behar responded "I know what that Party is capable of."
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