'Please pray': Joan Rivers' daughter asks for prayers as mother, 81, is rushed to hospital after she stopped breathing during surgery The 81-year-old was having surgery on her vocal chords at a clinic in Manhattan when she suddenly stopped breathing during the procedure She was rushed to Mount Sinai hospital, where she is now in stable condition after doctors fought to save her life Someone called 911 at 9:39 a.m. New York time, telling the dispatcher, 'We have somebody in either cardiac or respiratory arrest' The star's daughter Melissa is en route to New York Joan Rivers' daughter has asked friends to 'please pray' for her mother after she was rushed to hospital when she stopped breathing during a surgical procedure. The 81-year-old was having surgery on her vocal chords at a clinic in Manhattan when she suddenly stopped breathing during the procedure. She was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in critical condition but has now been upgraded to stable after doctors fought to save her life. Her daughter, Melissa, 46, and grandson Cooper, 13, were pictured at Los Angeles airport as they traveled to be by the star's side. 'This morning, Joan Rivers was taken to The Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, where she is being attended to,' Sid Dinsay, a spokesman for the hospital, said in a statement this afternoon. 'Her family wants to thank everybody for their outpouring of love and support.' He said the hospital would provide an update on Rivers' condition as it becomes available. A source told E! News earlier: 'They were putting a scope down her throat to check her vocal cords. She stopped breathing.' The source added that the operation was not a major one though Rivers was sedated throughout. It's unclear what medication was used. TV host Billy Bush said on Facebook that he had exchanged texts with Joan's daughter Melissa who asked him to 'please pray'. Melissa and her son Cooper rushed to be by the star's side. He wrote: 'Praying for Joan Rivers who is in critical condition at Mt Sinai hospital in NY. Texted with Melissa Rivers who said 'please pray.' Already doing that. Joan is beloved around here. A regular guest on Access Hollywood Live she never fails to deliver. 'She taped her post Emmy special Tuesday in LA and was strong. This is out of nowhere. Come on Joan you have to make it. Just think of all the material. Sending love and prayers.' He later tweeted: 'Per Melissa, The mighty @joan_rivers Is in stable condition. That Means her first joke is coming... :)' According to the New York Daily News, Rivers' assistant, Graham Reed, was overheard saying 'She's not conscious, but she's stable,' obviously distraught. E!'s Ken Baker also said that Rivers was now stable after the emergency. TMZ reported that an emergency call was placed to 911 at 9:39 a.m. New York time. The caller told emergency services: 'We have somebody in either cardiac or respiratory arrest.' The drama unfolded at Yorkville Endoscopy on East 93rd street near Third Avenue, police confirmed. A woman who answered the phone at the clinic this afternoon told MailOnline: 'I don't know what you're talking about, have a great day!' According to another E! source, Rivers 'had a lot of energy' and was 'cracking jokes' at a Wednesday event in New York to promote her new book. Similarly on Tuesday, she gave no hint about needed surgery as she taped a special 90 minute edition of her show Fashion Police which aired on E! that same night. Covering both the Emmy Awards and the MTV VMA's the veteran comedienne's voice did sound raspy but she has become known for her gravelly voice and biting tongue. The star's no-holds-barred comedy has made her one of Hollywood's mainstays having a career spanning over 60 years. The often outspoken funny lady - born Joan Alexandra Molinsky - started her career in her native New York performing in comedy clubs across the city and even starred in a play as a lesbian woman with a crush Barbara Streisand in the 1950s. Joan started to make a name for herself in the male-dominated comedy world as a guest on The Tonight Show from 1965 and then also started landing guest spots on The Ed Sullivan Show. Taken under the wing of Tonight Show host Johnny Carson as a writer, Joan further developed her biting wit. Going on to host Saturday Night Live during the Eighties, the iconic star was awarded her show by for The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers - it was this show that led to a bitter fallout with her mentor Carson and he never spoke to her again before his death. Only this year was Joan's ban from ever appearing on the Tonight Show lifted by Jimmy Fallon. The comedian would eventually be fired from her Fox show after she challenged executives' decision to removed her husband Edgar Rosenberg as a producer. Edgar was the star's second husband - her first marriage was annulled after just a few months in 1955 - and he tragically committed suicide three months later in May 1987, Joan blamed the 'humiliation' of Fox's treatment.

• published: 28 Aug 2014
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