Joan Rivers will be remembered for laughter.

That is how Journey Gunderson, Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum & Center for Comedy executive director, will remember Rivers, who passed away Thursday at the age of 81. Rivers was the headlining performer during the Lucille Ball Festival of Comedy in 2011.

“In an effort to showcase the very best in American comedy in Jamestown, Joan Rivers joined us to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Lucille Ball’s birth date in the most fitting way possible: laughter,” Gunderson said in a prepared statement. “She gave an unforgettable performance and embodied what it means to be a true entertainer: She gave everything she had to the audience.”

Gunderson said Rivers’ presence on the stage at the Reg Lenna Center For The Arts three years ago was a key factor in the realization of Lucille Ball’s wish for her hometown – to celebrate and honor the best in comedy.

“Like Lucy, Joan changed the face of comedy for women on TV,” Gunderson said. “Her performances on Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson as early as 1965 were groundbreaking.”

Gunderson said her deepest condolences go to Rivers’ loved ones and to the innumerable fans and comedians she inspired.

“As with the recent loss of so many of our comedy legends, we will continue to celebrate Joan’s unique talents so that her legacy lives on for generations to come,” she said.

Rivers was hospitalized last week after she went into cardiac arrest at a Manhattan doctor’s office following a routine procedure. Daughter Melissa Rivers said she died at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, surrounded by family and close friends.

RIVERS ON LUCY

According to The Post-Journal article that ran in July 2011, prior to Rivers’ performance during the Lucille Ball Festival of Comedy, Rivers jumped at the chance to help celebrate the 100th birthday of her late friend and fellow icon.

“My agent called me and asked if I’d like to be a part of it and I said, ‘Love to,'” Rivers recalled. “What I find fascinating is that comedy hasn’t aged – you watch the Lucy show and it’s as wonderful now as it was when they first aired it.”

Like many Americans did and still do, Rivers grew up watching “I Love Lucy” – and later, the two ladies became comedic contemporaries. As an up-and-comer, Rivers met Ball, and got to know her professionally and personally.

“Our manager was the same manager, so that made a big difference,” Rivers said.

The ladies first became acquainted while hobnobbing at different Hollywood events in the late 1960s. They were both presenters at the Emmys and ran into each other at charity functions and the like. In 1973, Rivers got the opportunity of a lifetime: a role opposite the famous redhead on “Here’s Lucy.” In the episode, Ball winds up on jury duty alongside a young Rivers, and the two characters immediately despise each other.

“It was the first time I worked with her and, boy oh boy, (I was) very, very impressed,” Rivers said.

Was she intimidated by the star?

“Of course! She was Lucy!” Rivers exclaimed. “And I was the new girl on the block and she was the queen, the goddess. She was lovely and terrific, supportive, and it was a great experience.”

RIVERS’ LONG

COMEDIC CAREER

Rivers enjoyed a long career as a comedian, being in the spotlight for more than 50 years. In recent years, Rivers was known for her red-carpet fashion analysis prior to award shows, which she did with her daughter. She became one of the first woman stand-up comedians, which she started doing in the early 1960s. Rivers landed her big break when she performed on “The Tonight Show” starring Johnny Carson. That performance led to her doing a comedy album, staring in a Las Vegas show and scripting a movie. By 1983, Rivers came full circle as she was named permanent guest host for three years for Carson on “The Tonight Show.”

Rivers was born Joan Molinsky in Brooklyn to Russian immigrants Meyer Molinsky, a doctor, and Beatrice. After graduating from Barnard College in 1954, she went to work as a department store fashion coordinator before she turned to comedy clubs.

In recent years, Rivers was a familiar face on TV shopping channel QVC, hawking her line of jewelry, and won the reality show “Celebrity Apprentice” by beating out her bitter adversary, poker champ Annie Duke. In 2010, she was featured in the documentary “Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work.”

Survivors include daughter Melissa and a grandson, Edgar.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.