| Jay Leno  AKA James Douglas Muir Leno
Born: 28-Apr-1950
Birthplace: New Rochelle, NY
Gender: Male
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Talk Show Host Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Successor to Johnny Carson As a successful stand-up comedian, long before his Tonight Show days, Jay Leno performed as many as 300 nights a year. He was hired to write for the '70s sit-com Good Times, and briefly appeared in one episode. His fame really started with a few 1977 appearances on Johnny Carson's Tonight Show, and as part of the comedy ensemble in that summer's Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis Jr. Show. The early Leno often told jokes with an edge, and was a frequent guest on NBC's Late Night with David Letterman show through the 1980s. He was also a perennial guest and guest host on Tonight, where his humor was well-received but began lacking the bite it had elsewhere. Presumably, he was trying to appeal to Carson's older, middle-of-the-road audience.
It worked, and Leno was named Carson's "permanent guest host" in 1987, and when Carson announced his retirement in 1991, NBC named Leno as his replacement. Letterman was stunned, as Carson had been his mentor and The Tonight Show had been his long-time aspiration. Carson himself agreed that Letterman would've been a better choice, and advised him to walk away from the network. Letterman took an offer from CBS, and on Carson's last Tonight Show, Leno wasn't mentioned at all.
After a few rough months as the new host, Leno eventually melted into the Tonight Show format. His monologues are longer than Carson's and not as memorable, but he projects an easygoing, nice guy persona that America seems to love. In 2004, Leno hired Stuttering John Melendez from Howard Stern's radio show -- but a press release from The Tonight Show said Melendez would be working with a speech coach to minimize or conquer his stutter. This is indicative of Leno's dilemma: The Tonight Show needs to appeal to a young, hip demographic, but without raising eyebrows among the show's sizable older audience. It's a delicate balance that Leno has mastered, and week after week, year after year, his Tonight Show remains #1 -- while Letterman's Late Show is consistently funnier.
In 2004, Leno announced his retirement, effective in 2009, and NBC announced that Conan O'Brien would take over The Tonight Show. As that date has drawn closer, Leno's people have quietly made it clear that he does not relish retirement. Father: Angelo Leno (insurance salesman, Italian, b. 1911, d. 16-Aug-1994)
Mother: Cathryn Leno (housewife, Scottish, b. 1911, d. 26-Jun-1993)
Wife: Mavis Nicholson (writer, women's rights activist, m. 30-Nov-1980)
Slept with: Sandra Bernhard (according to her)
High School: Andover High School, Andover, MA
University: BA Speech Therapy, Emerson College (1973)
Hollywood Walk of Fame 6780 Hollywood Blvd.
Endorsement of Frito-Lay Doritos
Risk Factors: Dyslexia
TELEVISION
The Tonight Show Host (1992-)
The Tonight Show Guest Host (1986-1992)
FILMOGRAPHY AS ACTOR
The Astronaut Farmer (23-Feb-2007) Himself
Cars (14-Mar-2006) [VOICE]
Ice Age: The Meltdown (1-Mar-2006) [VOICE]
Robots (10-Mar-2005) [VOICE]
First Daughter (24-Sep-2004) Himself
Mr. 3000 (08-Sep-2004) Himself
Stuck On You (10-Dec-2003) Himself
Calendar Girls (9-Aug-2003) Himself
Comedian (11-Oct-2002)
Juwanna Mann (18-Jun-2002) Himself
John Q (15-Feb-2002) Himself
Paul McCartney: Back in the US (2002) Himself
Space Cowboys (1-Aug-2000) Himself
Ed TV (26-Mar-1999) Himself
Jerry Seinfeld: I'm Telling You for the Last Time (9-Aug-1998) Himself
Wag the Dog (25-Dec-1997) Himself
Mad City (10-Oct-1997) Himself
Contact (11-Jul-1997) Himself
Meet Wally Sparks (16-Jan-1997) Himself
The Flintstones (27-May-1994)
Major League II (30-Mar-1994) Himself
Wayne's World 2 (10-Dec-1993) Himself
We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (24-Nov-1993) [VOICE]
Dave (7-May-1993) Himself
Collision Course (27-Apr-1989)
Americathon (Aug-1979)
Silver Bears (21-Apr-1978)
American Hot Wax (17-Mar-1978)
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