Jay Leno: "I Am Definitely Done Next Year -- With NBC," "I Have Always Banked My Tonight Show Money And Lived Off The Stand-Up"

USA Today:

Although Conan O'Brien will take over The Tonight Show in 2009, Leno says he isn't ready to permanently trade his sports coat for mechanic's overalls.

"I am definitely done next year -- with NBC," he says, sitting in a huge recliner in his poster-strewn shop office. Would he go to another network? Leno just smiles. "I'm not a beach guy, and the last time I was in my pool was to fix a light. Don't worry, I'll find a job somewhere."

In the meantime, he'll keep coming here in between the more than 160 stand-up dates he does each year. For Leno, Hollywood's gifts are fickle, but his automotive family -- from his machines to the half-dozen mechanics who work for him -- grounds him in a reality that recalls his New England roots.

"In showbiz, your success is totally subjective. 'Oh, the ratings are great, we love you. Oh, they're not, we don't love you,' " he says, waving a hand dismissively. "Here in the shop, if something is broken and you fix it, you know you can be proud."

...

Leno may have millions, but his approach to wealth dates to his early days turning a wrench.

"I had two jobs as a kid, one at a fast-food restaurant and one at a Ford dealership. And I'd put the money from one job in one pocket and spend it. And the other paycheck I'd save," he says. "I do that now. I have always banked my Tonight Show money and lived off the stand-up. I have one credit card, no mortgage, and I don't lease."

Any plans for his Tonight Show windfall? Leno leans over a stack of papers, pretending they're bank statements. "I suppose I'll just look at the number one day and go, "Oooh, that's pretty neat,' " he says. He says he has set up foundations that donate to a range of charities but then closes the book on the topic.

Read the whole story: USA Today

Comments

[David423]

Impressive is the word. He lives on his stand-up performer's
earnings.

Jay can play Monopoly for keeps, it seems.

On the other hand, Ed McMahon didn't scale
down his lifestyle when the money stopped
rolling in.

I'll miss Leno and his occasional silliness.

[wordvarc]

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Leno's my favorite. However, "Early to bed and early to rise" keeps me from all those late nighters.

Those who watch a show that starts at 11:30 pm may better enjoy someone who seems funny when the viewer is drunk or high. Maybe Concan is a fit. (Insomniacs watch Larry King reruns and old movies. )


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[XME]

I've always liked Leno...can­'t stand Conan. But, if they continue with Headlines, I will still watch that segment!

[Quotidien]

I first saw Jay do standup on the Mike Douglas Show in the '70s.

Leno is a class act. No scandals, no nasty divorces, no controversies except for his battle to win his spot from David Letterman. He held his position very well as the King of Late Night.

I wish Conan well. He has big shoes to fill. Leno filled the biggest shoes of all - Johnny Carson's.

Leno is a classic standup comic - that's what distinguishes him from Conan, who was a writer. Jay is true to his craft and an asset to Hollywood. I don't understand why he never hosted the Oscars. He deserves more respect than he is getting.

[slinkigirl311]

Dear Jay,
Thank God. Now please go now and replace Adam Corrola as the host of the US version of Top Gear... Go.... Go Now.
Thx, S.

[lainey]

I like Leno and I like his approach to life. Seldom do you see people understand the value of a dollar and the value of work. Thanks for the laughs...

[haleywins]

Leno's been done for many years.

[Bettysdad]

A low class slob like Leno has no business using the same studio as Johnny Carson.

The idea that a self-absorbed child like O'Brien will the same show that has had Steve Allen, Jack Paar and Carson is truly an indication of the depths to which our culture has sunk.

Hopefully, Letterman will never retire.

[ChiGuy]

Glad to see Leno go, but O'Brien will drill The Tonight Show right into the ground.

[TheRebel82]

Conan is WAY better than Leno. Leno has been a complete joke for years! A joke that smart people never laughed at that is!

I heard ABC might offer him something.

[bikerdude]

Conan is no Jay Leno.

[mandalaina]

I"ve never liked Conan, Carson was too fake for me--yeah, right, like he was in K-Mart during a blue-light special--uh huh right.

Leno always struck me as a regular guy, I though he was very funny, he seemed a little stiff in the interviews but I like him a lot better than Letterman. I loved his initial routine, and especially loved the Monday night headlines.

[wmbear]

IT WAS INTERESTING TO WATCH HIS RISE TO POWER...

From those first few appearances on Carson as a young unknown...­.

[DesertLight]

J is a class guy. No one is sacred with him.

[suuzie]

NBC you are making a huge mistake in replacing Leno with Conan. Conan is so obnoxious I don't care how desperate I am to watch something, anything on TV when I can't sleep, I cannot take Conan.

[Agentlady007]

It was a long run sweetie. I'll miss you.