Comedienne Joan Rivers died today at the Mount Sinai Hospital in New York where she was rushed after she stopped breathing during surgery on her vocal chords at an endoscopy clinic on August 28, according to USA Today.

"It is with great sadness that I announce the death of my mother, Joan Rivers. She passed peacefully at 1:17pm surrounded by family and close friends. My son and I would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff of Mount Sinai Hospital for the amazing care they provided my mother," Melissa Rivers said in a statement today.

Rivers added, "Cooper and I have found ourselves humbled by the outpouring of love, support and prayers we have received from around the world. They have been heard and appreciated. My mother's greatest joy in life was to make people laugh. Although that is difficult to do right now, I know her final wish would be that we return to laughing soon."

Joan Rivers had been unconscious and on life support for a week. She was reportedly stable enough to be moved out of intensive care and into a private room yesterday.

Her daughter rushed from Los Angeles to be by her mother's side and issued statements thanking friends, fans and fellow celebrities for the good wishes and tweets that were made.

Joan Rivers was known to be the "queen of comedy." She made her first appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1965 and started a talk-show career with gigs on The Tonight Show and The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers on Fox in 1986, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Joan Rivers' most popular E! Network show Fashion Police announced that it would be on hiatus while she was sick, even during Fashion Week.

"E! and NBC Universal send out deepest condolences to Melissa, Cooper and her entire extended family on this incredibly sad day," the network said in a statement.