Jay Leno

10th September 2019

Stop what you’re doing, turn off the kitchen sink, pull over the car… our guest is Jay Leno! He’ll look back on a comedy career that’s stretched almost 45 years. Jay’s one of the biggest TV hosts in the history of TV hosts. A guy who, by his own admission, never got much love from critics. Who got cast, more or less, as the villain in the late night battles with Letterman and Conan. He’ll open up about those late night wars in this in-depth interview. He’ll also reflect on his childhood and how that’s influenced his comedy. From sleeping in alleys on the streets of New York, to hosting The Tonight Show for decades. It’s a remarkable story, and we hope you’ll join us.

Episode notes

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Photo: Jesse Thorn
Jay Leno on the late night wars, and spending decades on The Tonight Show, and Jay Leno’s Garage
We’re joined by one of the biggest TV hosts in the history of TV hosts: Jay Leno! He’ll chat about his career that spans almost 45 years.

He’s been spending his time in what could be his retirement working on his TV show for CNBC called Jay Leno’s Garage. The show is in its fifth season. It’s a lot of fun, especially if you’re really into weird , old-school cars. He’s still a disarming interview, still charming and still quick on his feet.

By his own admission, Jay says he never got much love from critics. He got cast, more or less, as the villain in the late night battles with Letterman and Conan. He’ll open up about those late night wars in this in-depth interview.

Jay also reflects on his childhood and how that’s influenced his comedy. From sleeping in alleys on the streets of New York, to hosting The Tonight Show for decades. It’s truly a remarkable story, and we hope you’ll join us.

In this episode...

Senior Producer
Producer
Maximum Fun Producer
Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Guests

  • Jay Leno

About the show

Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

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People

Senior Producer

Producer

Maximum Fun Producer

Maximum Fun Production Fellow

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