Who is Joy Behar?

Bio from Wikipedia:
Josephina Victoria "Joy" Behar (born October 7, 1942), née Occhiuto, is an American comedian, writer, actress, and a co-host of the talk show The View. Behar began hosting her own celebrity news and commentary program in the fall of 2009, titled The Joy Behar Show on CNN's sister network, HLN.

Personal life
Behar, an Italian-American,[4] was born Josephina Victoria Occhiuto in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York on October 7, 1942. Her family originates from Calabria.[5] Her mother, Rose (née Carbone), was a seamstress, and her father, Gino Occhiuto, was a truck driver for Coca-Cola.[6][7] She married Joe Behar in January 1965; they divorced in 1981. They have one daughter, Eve (b. 1970).[8] Joy Behar and her partner, Steve Janowitz, whom she refers to as her "spousal equivalent," have been together since the mid-1980s. On March 17, 2009, Behar announced in an interview with Barbara Walters that she might eventually marry Steve.[1] Behar called off the engagement three months later[9] because she wanted people to stop talking about it.

Behar holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Queens College (class of 1964), and a Master of Arts degree in English education from the State University of New York at Stony Brook (class of 1966). She taught English in the late 1960s and early 1970s at Lindenhurst High School on Long Island, New York, during the same time that Pat Benatar was a student there; however, they did not meet until years later. Behar was raised Catholic but considers herself agnostic.[10] She resides in Manhattan.

The View
Following years as a stand-up comedian (particularly in New York) and WABC (AM) 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. Behar typically joins Whoopi Goldberg in representing the liberal position on The View.

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."

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.

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 is no longer 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 eighth season of Bravo's Celebrity Poker Showdown and finished in fourth 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 news program on CNN's HLN beginning in the fall of 2009, titled The Joy Behar Show. She will not be leaving The View, but will be working on both shows simultaneously.

Criticism and controversy
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," 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."

On October 14, 2010, Behar and Whoopi Goldberg stormed off the set of The View after they both disagreed with statements made by FOX commentator Bill O'Reilly attributing the 9/11 attacks to Muslims. Barbara Walters then told the audience that "we should be able to have discussion without . . . walking off stage.".

On the October 26th, 2010 episode, the co-hosts were discussing a recent political ad titled "The Wave" released by Nevada Republican Senate Nominee Sharron Angle. Behar called Angle a "bitch", and also stated that Angle is "going to hell, this bitch". Behar described the ad as "a Hitler youth commercial" and stated that Angle is "a moron on top of being evil" and dared Angle to "do this ad in the South Bronx".

The following day, Sharron Angle sent a flower arrangement to Joy Behar along with a thank you note stating “Joy, Raised $150,000 online yesterday. Thanks for your help. Sincerely, Sharron Angle”. Joy Behar's responded to the flower delivery stating “I’d like to point out that those flowers were picked by illegal immigrants, and they’re not voting for you, bitch.