Saying goodbye (for now) to Jay Leno

NBC’s Tonight Show says goodbye (again) to Jay Leno on Thursday night, and apparently this time it’s for real.  This photo was taken after Jay’s 1991 appearance at Chattanooga’s Memorial Auditorium, as he enthusiastically signed an autograph for my beautiful, smiling wife Cindy.  Yes, he’s left-handed, one of many famous left-handers: David Letterman, Oprah Winfrey, President Barack Obama, former President Bill Clinton, Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Gates, Carol Burnett and Cindy Sexton are all southpaws.  See, we’re only one paragraph in, and you’ve already learned something!

I’ll be honest.  I haven’t watched Jay regularly in a long, long time.  I loved him in his early days as a standup comic, when he guested on Letterman’s show, and when he filled in for Johnny Carson, hundreds of times when Carson was on vacation (unlike Jay, Johnny was not real big on working a lot).  But when he took over the Tonight Show in 1992, something didn’t feel right.  He tried to do the show like Johnny did, and it seemed like everyone was uncomfortable.  A few years later, he moved to a smaller studio, settled into a groove, and started winning the ratings battle.  To this day, he’s number one in every late-night category.

Although I would tune in now and then to see a guest that I liked, I didn’t care for some of Jay’s comedy “correspondents,” whose on-location bits often bombed, at least in my living room.  The “JayWalking” segments, while good for a cheap, quick laugh, often struck me as mean-spirited: “Look at how stupid these people are.”  And his interviews seemed extremely planned and scripted, as is the case on many talk shows, from Ellen DeGeneres to Letterman and almost everyone else (except Craig Ferguson).  Leno is one of too many hosts these days who seems to be looking off camera a lot, making sure things are going as planned.  Things sure seemed more spontaneous back in the Carson days.

Still, I’m kind of sad to see him go.  His guests in recent weeks have said some awfully nice things about how he’s helped them in their careers.  Ellen, in particular thanked him very genuinely, looking him right in the eyes, saying, “You’re a really good guy.”  Jay, who tends to be a bit robotic at times, was clearly quite touched.  I would encourage you to watch or record Jay’s final four shows (through Thursday February 6) because he’s showing some very funny highlights of his 22-year reign, and hosting some very good guests.  Jay has done some very good TV recently, and I’m sure the final shows will be even better.  Then we’ll sit back and see where the hardest-working comic in show business will turn up next.  One prediction I feel pretty good about:  sometime this year, he’ll show up on his old rival Letterman’s show.  Dave, who seems increasingly disinterested these days, might even enjoy that.  I know I would.

So goodbye Jay, at least for now.  The critics didn’t like you, the awards shows ignored you.  Like you said in a recent interview, everybody goes after the guy who’s carrying the ball.  You’ve been a heck of a ball-carrier for a very long time.  I know you’re proud to do what few long-running TV stars have been able to do: go out on top.

Here’s a 1990 clip of Jay having a little fun, at my expense:

Here’s my 1990 New Years Eve interview with Jay, from WRCB’s “Live At Noon” show.  I’ve done better interviews (hopefully), but it has its moments.  It’s my one brush with Jay, just a couple of years before he took over the Tonight Show.