JOAN Rivers, the red-carpet queen of barbed one-liners, is expected to abdicate her throne at E! for a job at the TV Guide Channel.
Sources tell The Post that Rivers and her daughter (and co- host) Melissa will share between $6 million to $8 million over three years – contrary to published reports which pegged the deal at $8 million for each annually.
As a result, Rivers and her daughter are expected to become the most prominent personalities on the
network. TV Guide Channel, which outbid A&E for the catty TV hostesses, is also expected to include development deals for other Rivers projects.
Rivers, 71, has reportedly been miffed at E! since last year and refused to renew her contract with the cable
channel – despite its efforts to put together a compensation package to keep her.
Rivers, known for her snarky comments about how celebrities dress at awards shows like the Oscars, the Emmys and the Grammys, has a penchant for attracting younger, female viewers. And that’s a demographic in which both TV Guide and A&E were interested. In the end, A&E was apparently muscled out by the listings-based channel.
TV Guide Channel is available in 75 million homes and is widely considered the fastest growing cable network in the U.S. E! is currently available in about 84 million homes.