SLM; said:
As acerbic and cutting as she could be towards others, she was also quite self-deprecating too.
I have always enjoyed NY humor and she was an example of what this is all about. Like Don Rickles, Jackie Gleason, Danny Kaye, Andy Kaufman, and others who were eccentric, abrasive, and had good one liners, she created legends about herself while still engaging in self effacement. In a sense she (like they) were having a good laugh at other people's expense but laughing at themselves at the same time.