'Joan Rivers: Exit Laughing' to Air on THIRTEEN on April Fool's Day; Featuring Lily Tomlin, Kathy Griffin and More!

Joan Rivers: Exit Laughing, the first documentary about legendary comedian Joan Rivers since her passing, will air on THIRTEEN on Friday, April 1 at 10 p.m. Featuring Sarah Silverman, Whitney Cummings, Kathy Griffin, Dick Cavett, Don Rickles, Lily Tomlin, Marlo Thomas and many more, the film was produced by the Comedy Hall of Fame.

Exit Laughingis the first in a planned series of documentary films about the grandmasters of comedy (and the future inductees of the Comedy Hall of Fame). This first documentary was created with the hope of bringing more comedy arts programming to public television. The program will debut on THIRTEEN because Joan Rivers embodied New York; brassy, forward, honest, smart and very funny.

"It was been more than a year since her passing and we felt it was important to honor Joan's legacy," said Jeffrey Pancer, Head Curator of the Comedy Hall of Fame. "She was critical to breaking the glass ceiling of then male-dominated standup comedy. In the process, she revolutionized the field as a pioneer to forge a path for the wave of female standups in the 1970's and 1980's and beyond. Today women have come to define comedy in all aspects of the field. This phenomenon has become one of the biggest sea changes in modern comedy. For this reason, the Comedy Hall of Fame felt it essential to chronicle and communicate Joan's importance for a new generation."

The film covers her journey, process, insights into the field and her impact on other comedians.

The cornerstone of Joan Rivers: Exit Laughing comes from Joan's interview for the Archive of the Comedy Hall of Fame, which represents their continuing effort to preserve the traditions that form the foundations of the genre.

As New York's flagship public media provider and the parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21 and operator of NJTV, WNET brings quality arts, education and public affairs programming to more than 5 million viewers each week. WNET produces and presents such acclaimed PBS series as Nature, Great Performances, American Masters, PBS NewsHour Weekend, Charlie Rose and a range of documentaries, children's programs, and local news and cultural offerings available on air and online. Pioneers in educational programming, WNET has created such groundbreaking series as Get the Math, Oh Noah!and Cyberchase and provides tools for educators that bring compelling content to life in the classroom and at home. WNET highlights the tri-state's unique culture and diverse communities through NYC-ARTS, Reel 13, NJTV News with Mary Alice Williams and MetroFocus, the multi-platform news magazine focusing on the New York region. WNET is also a leader in connecting with viewers on emerging platforms, including the THIRTEEN Explore App where users can stream PBS content for free.

About the Comedy Hall of Fame

Founded in 2004 as a conservancy with the mission to preserve legacies and celebrate the grandmasters of comedy through live and filmed programs like JOAN RIVERS: EXIT LAUGHING, the Comedy Hall of Fame functions through digital and film archives, symposia, educational initiatives, programming, performance, and an eventual brick-and-mortar edifice. A decade ago CHF's in-house production company started the Archives, a massive video biography project that has grown into the world's most comprehensive oral history of comedy. In 2007 the Hall established the Comedy Hall of Fame Foundation, dedicated to funding and implementing educational initiatives in the classroom. Laugh It Out Improv has reached thousands of NYC middle & high school students, using the power of comedy to engage students in the classroom. In 2012 CHF created a partnership with Museum of the Moving Image to bring comedy to the national museum system.