How did Melissa Rivers and Steve Mitchel meet? Joan Rivers' daughter marries LA attorney

Melissa Rivers, the actress and television host renowned for her acting skills and Hollywood legacy, has married the Los Angeles-based attorney Steve Mitchel. The daughter of late comedy legend Joan Rivers tied the knot with Mitchel on March 15, beginning a new phase in her life after saying she never wanted to marry.

According to USA Today, the couple’s romance started at a Didi Hirsch Mental Health and Suicide Prevention function in 2023 that Rivers was attending as a co-chairmen of the event.

Steve Mitchel was accompanying a mutual friend, and the chemistry between them was instantaneous. It was unusual, Melissa Rivers recalled, for a total stranger to come up and talk to her, which is exactly what Mitchel did. She told People Magazine,

"It’s not often that a total stranger comes up to me and just starts talking. We’ve been together now for about a year and a half."

Though Melissa Rivers previously stated she'd never walk down the aisle again in her lifetime after her split with John Endicott. But she changed her mind when Mitchell popped the question during a getaway to the Mandarina Resort in Mexico.

Mitchel proposed to Rivers in the year 2023, at a beachside dinner. Rivers was distracted by a boat flashing its lights in the distance and was totally unaware that Mitchel was preparing for the big moment. Reminiscing about the proposal, she quipped,

"I didn’t see it coming and it’s really not easy to pull a fast one on me. Once Steve shoved some smelling salt under my nose from passing out, I said yes."

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More about Melissa Rivers and Steve Mitchel's engagement ring and Joan Rivers’ influence on the wedding

Mitchel put a lot of thought into designing the engagement ring and secretly enlisted the help of Peter McNeal of McNeal and Grunberg, a close friend of Rivers’. The sentimental value was heightened by her family’s involvement in the ring, as Mitchel also obtained approval from Rivers’ son, Cooper Endicott, before popping the question.

Though Joan Rivers could not be a part of the wedding, Melissa Rivers made sure to invoke her mother’s spirit throughout the ceremony. At each guest’s place setting was a bee pin, a reference to Joan’s personal source of inspiration.

The bee represented resilience, as Joan liked to say, because bees, by all logic, shouldn’t be able to fly, and yet they do. The tribute was a reminder of her mother’s legacy and the belief that anything is possible.

The couple exchanged emotional vows on the dance floor, with Sabrina Lott Miller, who has worked as the Rivers family's executive assistant for 37 years, officiating the ceremony. Taking the mic, Rivers' son, Cooper Endicott, gave a heartfelt speech, explaining his joy in bringing 63-year-old Steve Mitchel into their family.