An 89-year-old comedian dubbed “the world’s oldest working female comedian” was brutally punched in a random attack in Greenwich Village.
Last Wednesday, D’yan Forest was walking to her gym around 9 a.m. when an unknown woman approached her and punched her in the face at the corner of Seventh Avenue South and West 11th Street.
The force of the violent blow caused Forest, who has acted alongside Jerry Seinfeld and Joan Rivers, to fall to the ground, and shortly after, the attacker fled the scene.
“I’m just standing on the corner waiting for the light to come through,” said Forest, who turns 90 next month. The New York Post.
D’yan Forest, dubbed “the world’s longest-running female comedian,” was brutally punched in a random attack in Greenwich Village.
According to authorities, the suspect, who remains at large, was last seen wearing a white tank top with the Jurassic Park logo on the front.
“I’m smiling and happy, I was drinking my coffee. And suddenly, a tremendous blow hit my eye.”
Forest was stunned by the power of the blow.
“I didn’t know what it was. It could have been a light pole, it hit me so hard I fell.”
Before the unknown woman attacked Forest, she stomped on a homeless person, according to the comedian.
After the attacker brutally beat the 89-year-old woman, she stood over him and frowned at her victim, who was struggling to see out of his injured eye.
“I looked at a woman in front of me and thought she was going to come and help me up because I was lying on the ground in shock,” Forest said. Mail.
“She frowned at me and then ran away. So I guess she was the perpetrator,” the comedian continued.
According to the New York Police Department, the attacker fled the scene and rushed west on Bank Street.
The suspect is currently at large.
Immediately after being punched, Forest began to worry about how his injury might affect his 90th birthday show, which is scheduled for July 29 at Joe’s Pub in NoHo.
“The first thing that happened to me was, ‘Oh my God, my show, my show!'” he said, adding, “I don’t want to lose an eye!”
“Afterwards, people came to help me up,” Forest told the Mail.
“I couldn’t see out of my left eye and was petrified with shock. I kept asking them, ‘Is my eye still there?'”
Immediately after receiving the punch, Forest immediately began to worry about how his injury might affect his 90th birthday show.
Fortunately, the comedian’s eye was intact, but it was in bad shape.
From the scene of the incident, she was rushed to hospital, where she spent a few hours recovering, before leaving to attend a rehearsal for an upcoming performance.
I went out, I did my rehearsal,’ said the 89-year-old.
“Of course, my director was like, ‘You look horrible.’ That’s exactly what I needed. Because I hadn’t really seen myself,” she said.
On Thursday, the bruise on his eye was no longer visible, but he explained that his blood vessels still need time to recover.
The attack, however, had both psychological and physical consequences for the elderly comedian.
“I was a little bit shocked and didn’t want to talk about it for a couple of days,” she said.
At first he thought, “Whatever it is, it’s my fault.”
Since the brutal assault, she has also become more circumspect and nervous about walking on familiar streets.
The attack had both psychological and physical consequences for the elderly comedian.
“It’s kind of crazy, like, ‘Is that person going to reach out and hit me?'” he said.
If she had the chance to speak to New York Mayor Eric Adams, she said she would beg him to solve the homelessness and mental health crisis that is crushing the city.
“I would say that this is what is happening now… There are more homeless people, people with mental illnesses on the streets, and even in my beloved town.”
Forest, who has lived in the same building on West 10th Street since 1966, explained that what he is witnessing now is an entirely new phenomenon.
“This is what I’ve noticed this summer. Get these people off the streets. Help them… so that 90-year-old women don’t get whipped!”
Forest’s sentiments echo those of many New Yorkers, who worry that violent, unprovoked crime is blighting the city.
If she had the chance to speak to New York Mayor Eric Adams, she said she would beg him to solve the homelessness and mental health crisis that is crushing the city.
Until this summer, the comedian had felt safe in her beloved New York City.
“There were a lot of homeless people sitting in my area,” he said, before adding: “this never happened.”
Forest was born near Boston in 1934 and began acting after her marriage failed in 1962. She later moved to Paris, where she began performing in cabaret clubs.
Her career has spanned half a century and she has shared the stage with stars such as Jim Gaffigan and Drew Barrymore.
Forest has also performed at such venerable venues as Saturday Night Live, France’s Got Talent, Comedy Central and Joe’s Pub, according to Forbes.
Two years ago, when she was 87, the Guinness Book of World Records awarded her the title of ‘the world’s oldest working female comedian’.
The 89-year-old comedian is now dealing with her attack with her trademark humor.
Two years ago, when she was 87, the Guinness Book of World Records awarded her the title of ‘the world’s oldest female comedian’.
“I’m getting better. I can joke about it,” he told the BBC. Mail“I couldn’t joke about it a couple of days ago.”
“Who knows, I might make a song about it. You never know,” he said.
According to authorities, the suspect was last seen wearing a white tank top with the Jurassic Park logo on the front.
Police are asking anyone with information about the suspect to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).
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