Elayne Boosler performed in the most elite comic clubs on both coasts, but she could never get her own sitcom or even a network special – and she saw very limited time on the Tonight Show (Johnny wasn’t into assertive women). But she was a master of the stand-up hour. “Make no mistake: Ms. Boosler was its first female star, regularly putting out hours of jokes on cable in the 1980s and early ’90s that represented a break from the past. … Her act — hard-hitting, topical and dense with punch lines — anticipated the future of comedy better than most if not all of her peers.”