In just three days all eyes will be
on the opening ceremony heralding in the XXII Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
I love the Olympics and look forward to
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| Leno's first appearance on The Tonight Show. |
them with great anticipation and
excitement. However, this time I am conflicted. I am excited about the Olympics
but on the day before the opening festivities, Jay Leno will host The Tonight Show for the last time. The
show will then go dark until 17 FEB when it will return to its roots in New
York City with Jimmy Fallon hosting.
This is not
the first time Jay lost The Tonight Show. We all remember a few years ago when NBC forced him to give up the show for
Conan O’Brien. Jay got a show in prime time (The
Jay Leno Show) with hopes it would be a strong draw for viewers. His show
was unable to bring in enough viewers and Conan’s show plummeted in the
ratings. When Jay left, the show was on top and had been so since 1994. In a
response to local NBC affiliates and viewers, they made another move—bringing
Jay back to 11:35 pm for a thirty-minute show, moving Conan to 12:05 am. Conan
did not like this and decided to leave the network, allowing Jay to return as
host. I hated to see Jay leave but was somewhat comforted knowing I could catch
him at an earlier time. I, like many viewers, chose not to tune in for Conan so
it was no loss when he left. This time is different. There is no move to
prime time. While some have suggested he will take a gig with Fox, it still will
not be the same.
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| Billy Crystal. Leno's first guest. |
Like others
my age, we grew up watching Johnny. Johnny was funny and we all loved him. I
was happy when Jay was chosen as his successor. I remember seeing Jay in 1982
at a comedy club in Mobile, AL, and in the mid-80s in Jacksonville, NC outside of Camp Lejeune MCB. He was a funny, clean comic, known for his
observational style of comedy. He regularly booked 300 shows a year before
hosting. Many compare him to Bob Hope, in that he tells jokes for all of the
country—rich/poor, country/city, intelligent/otherwise—he is the Nation’s
comic.
I am
writing this in a way to feel better about the transition and to hopefully
share some information and anecdotes about Jay. Not much editing. Not polished;
just my raw thoughts and feelings. Hopefully, you will enjoy it, and perhaps might spur
some memories of your own.
Jay—James
Douglas Muir Leno— was the baby of the family born in New Rochelle, NY on 25
APR 1950 to Angelo Leno an insurance salesman, and Cathryn (Muir) Leno a
homemaker. He was the last of two children; the older son was named Patrick (b.
12 MAY 1940 d. 06 OCT 2002). Jay was born with a condition known as Mandibular Prognathism a condition in
which the lower jaw outgrows the upper. Although he is dyslexic, he graduated
from Emerson College in Boston, MA (Bachelor of Arts in Speech Therapy). While Jay’s
eating and sleep habits leave a lot to be desired, he neither smokes nor
drinks. He prefers to eat a lot of red meat and little to no vegetables. He has
been married to the love of his life Mavis Elizabeth Nicholson since 30 NOV
1980. He has two passions: telling jokes and automobiles.
In his 1996
autobiography Leading With My Chin,
Jay tells of his early years as a young boy playing pranks and telling jokes in
the living room to his family. His antics then made it to school classrooms
where a fifth-grade teacher commented, “If Jay spent as much time studying as
he does trying to be a comedian, he’d be a big star”. I guess this was somewhat
prophetic. When Jay finished his day jobs at either McDonald’s or as a
mechanic, he was in bars, lounges—including a strip joint—night clubs, and
comedy clubs “doing his bit”. In a journal entry on his twenty-second birthday (28
APR 1972), Jay wrote one of his goals: “Hope to host Tonight Show someday. Maybe Johnny will leave”. Just five years
later on 02 MAR 1977, Jay made his first The
Tonight Show appearance. He was excited because Johnny was actually
hosting. Johnny’s other guests that night were Burt Reynolds and Diana Ross. As
all comics made it to this stage, they all hoped to (1) make Johnny laugh and
(2) be asked to come sit beside Johnny. After he finished with the audience
laughing, Jay received the signal to go sit by Johnny. It was one of his
proudest moments.
Since his
first appearance, Jay continued honing his craft, often writing for TV
programs, acting in both television programs and films, and doing stand-up all
across the country. I like Jay. He came from a blue-collar family of mixed
heritage: his mother was born in Scotland and his father a first-generation
Italian. His older brother served in Vietnam and both were taught to work hard
and take no financial assistance from anyone.
In
a perfect world, Jay would remain the host, but this is not the case. During
both the first fiasco with Conan O’Brien and now this transition, Jay has
remained a gentleman and consummate professional. He took a bad rap from his
detractors wrongly believing he pushed Conan out. What NBC told Jay and what
happened with Conan was totally different. Regardless, the viewing public did
not care for Conan’s comedy and quickly propelled Jay back to the top of the
ratings. He gave of himself. He visited the troops and did not speak of this
because he did not want people to think he was boasting. Shortly after 9/11, he
started shooting an episode on Thanksgiving Day (the only late-night host to do
so) with an all-military audience. He would bring in a pretty actress or singer
and host inter-service competitions. He paid for all of them to have a great
Thanksgiving meal.
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| Painting by Pres. George Bush. |
Through
the years we watched Jay ask an embarrassed Hugh Grant, “What the hell were you
thinking?” after his arrest for being with a prostitute and cheating on Liz
Hurley. We watch both former and current presidents take their seats alongside
Jay. We watched Jay help the nation laugh after 9/11. We watched Jason Sehorn
surprise Angie Harmon as he walked on set as she was in the guest chair, to
take a knee and ask her hand in marriage. We watched Arnold Schwarzenegger
announce he will run for governor of California. We watched a special tribute
episode to Johnny Carson the day after Carson’s death. In between all of these,
we watched sports figures, actors, politicians, and everyday people make their
way to The Tonight Show stage. Two of
my favorite episodes were the ones he eulogized first the death of his
mother, and shortly after, the death of his father. I remember Jay taking a
seat behind his desk just days after burying his mother (d. 06 JUN 93) and
speaking of her. “I always thought my mom was funny. She could have been the
next Gracie Allen….Of all the comedians I think of as friends, none of them
could make me laugh the way she did. She was simply the best friend I ever
had”. I had just lost my dad a month earlier (d. 08 MAY 1993) so the pain of
seeing him speak of his mother increased my grief. He shared more of his mother
in those few moments than he had at any other time. His comments were sweet,
respectful, and loving. The pain was real, but he tempered it with a bit of comedy.
A year later, he sat behind the same desk and eulogized his dad (d. 17 AUG 1994).
To see the pain in another man’s face as he spoke of his dad brought back many
memories of my dad and the pain and grief I experienced. It is hard to explain,
you just need to watch the video below.
We
will be able to keep up with Jay through either his “Jay Leno’s Garage” column
for Popular Mechanics or his YouTube
channel of the same name. I doubt he will make any late-night appearances on any
channel. Regardless, it will not be the same after he signs off Thursday night.
His last guest is Billy Crystal. Billy was his first guest on the first night
he became host in 1992. Jay told him thanks for coming and being the first
guest. Billy replied, “It is my pleasure. I will be here with you until the end”.
He is the only scheduled guest, but Jay said the show will have a lot of
surprises and even he does not know what the producers have scheduled. I do not
know how he will end his 22-year career, but I am sure it will be heartfelt with
a bit of comedy thrown in.
On
Johnny’s last show, the last scene opened with him sitting on a single stool on
center stage, much the same as Jack Paar’s last show. The lights were dimmed with
only a spot on him. He gave these final words. “And so it has come to this: I,
uh…am one of the lucky people in the world; I found something I always wanted
to do and I have enjoyed every single minute of it. I want to thank the people
who’ve shared this stage with me for thirty years. Mr. Ed. McMahon, Mr. Doc
Severinsen, and you people watching. I can only tell you that it has been an
honor and a privilege to come into your homes all these years and entertain
you. And I hope when I find something that I want to do and I think you would
like and come back, that you’ll be as gracious in inviting me into your home as
you have been. I bid you a very heartfelt good night”. With that, the spot
slowly dimmed with just enough illumination to show him sitting in shadow.
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| Promo shot of the show. |
However,
he closes the show, I trust it will be one of the most watched shows, and
ratings will reflect this. I hope NBC recognizes him for a job well done.
Since he has been compared to Bob Hope, it is only fitting I use Mr. Hope’s words.
“Thanks for the memory….Awfully glad I
met you, cheerio, tootle-oo, Thank you, thank you”.
Timeline
02 MAR 1977 First The Tonight Show appearance.
30 NOV 1980 Married
wife Mavis.
01 FEB 1982 Late Night With David Letterman debuts on NBC.
09 SEP 1986 First
time as guest host of The Tonight Show.
1987 Named
as exclusive guest host of The Tonight
Show.
22 MAY 1992 Johnny
Carson’s last show.
25 MAY 1992 Jay’s
first episode as host of The Tonight Show.
06 JUN 1993 Mother
Cathryn Muir Leno passes.
17 AUG 1994 Father
Angelo Leno passes.
1995 Won
Emmy® for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series.
1997 Autobiography,
Leading With My Chin.
29 MAY 2009 Last
episode as host. Conan O’Brien was the last guest.
14 SEP 2008 The Jay Leno Show debuted. Jerry
Seinfeld was the first guest.
01 MAR 2010 Returned
as host of The Tonight Show.
AUG 2012 Took a
pay cut to save the jobs of some of his staffers.
03 APR 2013 NBC
announces Jay will leave as host and Jimmy Fallon as new host.
UPDATE: 07 FEB 14
Last
night was Jay’s finale episode. I, along with nearly 15 million others, got in
bed, got under the covers and tuned in to see how he would sign off. This was
the fourth-largest audience during his tenure. (The numbers for his top shows:
(1) 20 MAY 1993, Cheers finale: 22.4
million. (2) 25 MAY 1992, Leno’s debut: 16.1 million. (3) 14 MAY 1998, Seinfeld finale: 15 million. (4) 06 FEB
2004, Leno’s finale 14.6 million.)
Show
Recap
Along
with scheduled guest Billy Crystal, Jay’s favorite Country singer Garth Brooks
sang two songs; “The Dance” and “Friends in Low Places”. Notable guests
included Oprah Winfrey, Carol Burnett, Jim Parsons, Cheryl Crowe, Jack Black,
and Kim Kardashian. Yeah, that last one threw me for a loop too. They sang
their own version of “So Long, Farewell” from Sound of Music. Stars that sent a recorded message included Matt
Damon, Tyler Perry, Kevin Bacon, Mark Wahlberg, Charlie Sheen, Martha Stewart
and Jimmy Fallon. Fallon
told Leno, “If a big story ever breaks and you have your head full of jokes,
you can always come home to The Tonight
Show.” NOTE: A link to his final episode and one for his final comments, are below.
Earlier
today, I received a tweet from @YouTooCongress. She complimented me on the blog
but reminded me I forgot Mrs. Hawkes. It’s true. In my haste and without much
editing, I forgot one of the most influential people in Jay’s life—Mrs. Hawkes.
She taught creative writing and was one of Jay’s high school teachers. She told
Jay he was always fooling around in class, telling jokes and funny stories
making people laugh. She encouraged him to write these stories down and she
would grade them for class credit. Jay enjoyed this assignment. Homework was
no longer “work”. He threw himself into his assignments, often rewriting the
stories until they were perfect. After some time had passed, Mrs. Hawkes asked
Jay to read his stories to the class. The class laughed. It was then she
suggested he consider becoming a comedy writer. The rest—as they say—is
history. When you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life.
From the manner Jay has thrown himself into his craft, and his heartfelt
comments, it is obvious Jay has made a heck of a living, having never worked a
day of his adult life. He simply loved being a comedian.
Incidentally, @YouTooCongress in a second tweet, shared this tidbit of information: “I went
to HS with [Jay]. He wrote in my yearbook: ‘Never forget Mrs. Hawkes’. I didn’t
know why for years.” Small world.
Edited
Transcript of Final Comments
“Boy,
this is the hard part….This is tricky. I have to thank the audience. We wouldn’t
be on the air without you people. This has been the greatest 22 years of my
life. I am the luckiest guy in the world. I got to meet presidents, astronauts,
movie starts. It’s just been incredible. I got to work with lighting people,
who made me look better than I really am. I got to work with audio people who
make me sound better than I really do. And I got to work with producers and
directors, and just all kinds of talented people. They made me look a lot
smarter than I really am. I will tell you something. The first year of this
show I lost my mom. The second year I lost my dad. Then my brother died and uh,
I was pretty much out of family. The folks here became my family….In closing, I
want to quote Johnny Carson who was the greatest guy to ever do this job. And
he said ‘I bid you all a heartfelt good night’.”
I think Jay knew, and I certainly agree, there was no better way to close than quoting Johnny. Johnny set the standard. His comments above were for his staff, the audience, and the viewers. However, I really think his last four words were reserved for the one love of his life, his wife Mavis. Well done and Good Night Jay. "Thanks everybody. Watch Jimmy Fallon. I’m coming
home Honey".
