59 Facts About Jay Leno

James Douglas Muir Leno is an American television host, comedian, and writer.

Jay Leno hosted his last episode of his second tenure on February 6,2014.

Jay Leno writes a regular column in Popular Mechanics showcasing his car collection and giving automotive advice.

Jay Leno writes occasional "Motormouth" articles for The Sunday Times.

Jay Leno was born April 28,1950, in New Rochelle, New York.

Jay Leno's homemaker mother, Catherine, was born in Greenock, Scotland, and came to the United States at age 11.

Jay Leno's father, Angelo, was an insurance salesman born in New York to immigrants from Flumeri, Campania, Italy.

Jay Leno grew up in Andover, Massachusetts, and graduated from Andover High School.

Jay Leno obtained a bachelor's degree in speech therapy from Emerson College in Boston, where he started a comedy club in 1973.

Jay Leno's older brother, Patrick, was a Vietnam War veteran who became an attorney.

Jay Leno made his first appearance on The Tonight Show on March 2,1977, performing a comedy routine.

Jay Leno had minor roles in the films Americathon, and Polyester.

Jay Leno's only starring film role was the 1989 direct-to-video Collision Course, with Pat Morita.

Jay Leno appeared numerous times on Late Night with David Letterman.

Jay Leno appeared on three weeks of the short-lived NBC game show Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour in 1983 and 1984.

Jay Leno continued to perform as a stand-up comedian throughout his Tonight Show tenure.

In 2004, Jay Leno signed a contract extension with NBC to retain him as host of The Tonight Show until 2009.

NBC and Jay Leno claimed there were private meetings with the WGA where a secret agreement was reached allowing this; the WGA denied such meetings.

Jay Leno answered questions in front of the Writers Guild of America, West trial committee in February 2009 and June 2009, and when the WGAW published its list of strikebreakers on August 11,2009, Jay Leno was not on it.

The illness was not initially disclosed, but Jay Leno later told People magazine that it was for exhaustion.

The gag order was challenged, and the court ruled that Jay Leno could continue telling jokes about the trial as long as he did not discuss his testimony.

Jay Leno celebrated by devoting an entire monologue to Michael Jackson jokes.

Jay Leno left The Tonight Show on Friday, May 29,2009, and Conan O'Brien took over on June 1,2009.

On December 8,2008, it was reported that Jay Leno would remain on NBC and move to a new hour-long show at 10 pm Eastern Time five nights a week.

Leno's new show, The Jay Leno Show, debuted on September 14,2009.

Jay Leno's show would be shortened from an hour to 30 minutes.

Jay Leno returned as host of The Tonight Show following the 2010 Winter Olympics on March 1,2010.

On July 1,2010, Variety reported that total viewership for Jay Leno's Tonight Show had dropped from 5 million to 4 million for the second quarter of 2010, compared to the same period in 2009.

Jay Leno's final show as the host of The Tonight Show was on February 6,2014, with guests Billy Crystal, musical guest Garth Brooks, and surprise guests Jack Black, Kim Kardashian, Jim Parsons, Sheryl Crow, Chris Paul, Carol Burnett and Oprah Winfrey.

Jay Leno has maintained an active schedule as a touring stand-up comedian, doing an average of 200 live performances a year in venues across the United States and Canada and at charity events and USO tours.

Jay Leno has appeared on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Late Night with Seth Meyers, and was a guest on the finale of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.

Jay Leno appeared in a cameo role drilling and tormenting James Corden in a facetious boot camp for talk-show hosts on the premiere of The Late Late Show with James Corden.

Jay Leno declined an invitation to appear on Late Show with David Letterman despite speculation he would appear on the show's finale in 2015, although he had appeared with Letterman along with Winfrey in a Late Show commercial airing during Super Bowl XLIV in 2010.

Jay Leno had a recurring role in the Tim Allen comedy series Last Man Standing since season 5, playing a mechanic, Joe Leonard, in a store operated by Allen's character, Mike Baxter.

Jay Leno hosted the third revival of the game show You Bet Your Life for two seasons, from 2021 until 2023.

In 2019, Jay Leno was a guest judge on season 14 of America's Got Talent where he pressed the Golden Buzzer for opera singer Emanne Beasha.

In 2023, Jay Leno returned to NBC to appear as a celebrity guest judge on the two-episode season finale of Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge.

Jay Leno has faced criticism for his perceived role in the 2010 Tonight Show conflict.

Critics have cited a 2004 Tonight Show clip where Jay Leno said he would allow O'Brien to take over without incident.

In 2009, Jay Leno received criticism for asking rapper Kanye West how his recently deceased mother, Donda West, would have felt about the incident at the 2009 VMAs, causing West to begin crying live on air.

Jimmy Kimmel discussed his appearance on Jay Leno's show during an interview with Marc Maron for the latter's podcast in 2012.

Jay Leno has been criticized for the perceived change in the content of his monologues from his previous stand-up material.

Jay Leno is the consummate professional and one of the hardest-working people in television.

Jay Leno said that the situation was "all business", and that all of the decisions were made by NBC.

Jay Leno appeared on the January 28,2010 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show in an attempt to repair some of the damage done to his public image.

In 1993, during his first season as host of The Tonight Show, Jay Leno's mother died at the age of 82; and the next year, his father died at 84.

Jay Leno is known for his prominent jaw, which has been described as mandibular prognathism.

Jay Leno spends much of his free time visiting car collections and working in his private garage.

Jay Leno has claimed that he has not spent any of the money he earned from The Tonight Show, but lives off his money from his stand-up routines.

Jay Leno received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Academy of Art University in 2021.

On November 12,2022, Jay Leno suffered "serious burns" to his face and hands when a vehicle at his Los Angeles garage burst into flames.

On November 16,2024, Jay Leno had broken his right wrist, including tearing the fingernail off his right index finger, and sustained several bruises on his left side acquiring a periorbital hematoma after he accidentally tripped while walking to go have dinner at Dino's Sports Lounge outside the Hampton Inn in Greensburg, Pennsylvania causing him to roll straight down a hill landing on the curb.

Mavis Jay Leno is on the board of the Feminist Majority.

In 2009, he donated $100,000 to a scholarship fund at Salem State College in honor of Lennie Sogoloff, who gave Jay Leno his start at his jazz club, Lennie's-on-the-Turnpike.

Since 1985, Jay Leno has been the Grand Marshal for the Love Ride, a motorcycle charity event which since its founding in 1984 has raised nearly $14 million for charities benefiting muscular dystrophy research, Autism Speaks, and in 2001, the September 11 attacks recovery.

Jay Leno has a website and a TV program called Jay Leno's Garage, which contains video clips and photos of his car collection in detail, as well as other vehicles of interest to him.

Jay Leno has a regular column in Popular Mechanics which showcases his car collection and gives advice about various automotive topics, including restoration and unique models, such as his jet-powered motorcycle and solar-powered hybrid.

Jay Leno writes occasional "Motormouth" articles for The Sunday Times, reviewing high-end sports cars and giving his humorous take on motoring matters.

Jay Leno's collection contains almost 100 cars from this period, and allowed the team to create their images as accurately as possible.