Author Topic: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"  (Read 1341 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

SPQR

  • Guest
Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« on: February 07, 2014, 07:05:52 am »
Jay Leno has said goodbye to "The Tonight Show" before, but not like this. The comedian became tearful and choked up Thursday as he concluded what he called the "greatest 22 years of my life."

"I am the luckiest guy in the world. This is tricky," said an emotional Leno, stepping down for the second and presumably last time as host of TV's venerable late-night program. 
 
Jay Leno on "The Tonight Show": "I'll miss it tremendously"


 Jimmy Fallon takes over "Tonight" in New York on Feb. 17.

 Leno shared that he'd lost his mother the first year he became "Tonight" host, his dad the second and then his brother.

"And after that I was pretty much out of family. And the folks here became my family," he said of the crew and staff of "Tonight."

It was a tender finish to a farewell show that was mostly aiming for laughs, with traditional monologue jokes, clips from old shows and a wild assortment of celebrities helping to usher Leno out the door.

Leno first departure came in 2009, when he was briefly replaced by Conan O'Brien but reclaimed the show after a messy transition and O'Brien's lackluster ratings. In '09, he was moving to a prime-time show on NBC; this time he's out the door, and has said he'll focus on comedy clubs and his beloved car collection.

Looking sharp in a black suit and bright blue tie, Leno was greeted by an ovation from the VIP audience. The typically self-contained comic betrayed a bit of nervousness, stumbling over a few lines in his monologue.

He didn't trip over his opening line, though - a final dig at his employer.

"You're very kind," he told the audience. "I don't like goodbyes. NBC does."

 

Jay Leno, right, and Billy Crystal appear during the final taping of NBC's “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," in Burbank, Calif., Thursday, Feb. 6, 2014.
 Leno brought his show full circle with Billy Crystal, who was his first guest in May 1992 and his last  guest Thursday. Crystal played ringmaster at one point, calling on Oprah Winfrey, Jack Black, Kim Kardashian, Carol Burnett and others for a musical tribute to Jay with a "Sound of Music" song parody.

"So long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, goodbye. If Fallon tanks you'll be back here next year," sang Jack Black.

"The Big Bang Theory" star Jim Parsons' contribution: "We've watched you when we're weary. Your great success is called the big chin theory."

In a videotaped segment, celebrities offered career advice to Leno.

"Why would I give am (expletive) about what he does. He's a grown man," said Mark Walberg.

President Barack Obama, like other politicians a favorite target of Leno's, struck back in his clip.

"Jay, you've made a whole lot of jokes about me over the years, but don't worry, I'm not upset," Obama said, then said he was making Leno the U.S. ambassador to Antarctica. "Hope you have a warm coat, man."

Garth Brooks performed his touching song "The Dance" before Leno's farewell remarks. "Now that I brought the room down," Leno joked, he asked Brooks to lighten it up.

Another Brooks' song, "Friends in Low Places," closed out the show.

Before the show, the fenced off area where "Tonight Show" audiences had typically lined up hours early, remained empty throughout the day. Next to the soundstage where the show is taped, a giant white tent had been erected, presumably the setting for Leno's send-off party. Outside the tent were rows of white flowers, as well as a few of Leno's vintage cars.

"It's going to be difficult to not come in and do a show every day for our audience who has been so great to Jay," lamented Vickers, the executive producer. "And also hard for this group of people (the staff) who have all been together for 22 years," said Vickers, who worked on Johnny Carson's "Tonight" before taking the top job with Leno.

Leno, 63, said he plans to continue playing comedy clubs, indulging his passion for cars and doing such TV work as comes his way - other than hosting on late-night.

"It's been a wonderful job. This is the right time to leave," he said last week, and make way for the next generation.

Fallon, 39, starts his "Tonight" gig Feb. 17, with NBC hoping he rides the promotional wave of its Winter Olympics coverage the next two weeks.

Leno's late-night competitors aren't stepping aside for his final bow.

ABC's Jimmy Kimmel, who was harshly critical of Leno when O'Brien lost "Tonight," has the A-list cast of the new film "The Monuments Men," including George Clooney, Matt Damon and Bill Murray.

On CBS, David Letterman's "Late Show" will continue its musical tributes to the upcoming 50th anniversary of The Beatles' appearance on CBS' "The Ed Sullivan Show." Sean Lennon, son of the late John Lennon, will perform a Beatles tune with The Flaming Lips.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jay-leno-says-goodbye-to-the-tonight-show/

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #1 on: February 07, 2014, 08:16:50 am »
I'll miss Jay, like Blake Shelton said last night he always handled his jokes with class... I won't watch Fallon.  His last show tonight was great.
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

SPQR

  • Guest
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #2 on: February 07, 2014, 09:03:21 am »
I'll miss Jay, like Blake Shelton said last night he always handled his jokes with class... I won't watch Fallon.  His last show tonight was great.

Jay will be back as soon as NBC sees Jimmy Fallon's ratings. Jimmy Fallon's jokes are worse than his sketches on SNL.
« Last Edit: February 07, 2014, 09:05:03 am by SPQR »

SPQR

  • Guest
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #3 on: February 07, 2014, 09:10:46 am »
Jay will be back as soon as NBC sees Jimmy Fallon's ratings. Jimmy Fallon's jokes are worse than his sketches on SNL.

Jimmy Fallon and the The Tonight Show. A gigantic train wreck in the making.

« Last Edit: February 07, 2014, 09:52:33 am by SPQR »

Offline katzenjammer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2,512
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #4 on: February 07, 2014, 09:14:18 am »
I so much wanted to see this show and slept through it!!  Will have to look for clips on Youtube I guess... wonder if it will ever be rerun. ?..

SPQR

  • Guest
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #5 on: February 07, 2014, 09:17:37 am »
I so much wanted to see this show and slept through it!!  Will have to look for clips on Youtube I guess... wonder if it will ever be rerun. ?..

It was a good farewell. Probably one the best.
« Last Edit: February 07, 2014, 09:23:39 am by SPQR »

Offline katzenjammer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2,512
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #6 on: February 07, 2014, 09:24:38 am »
It was a good farewell.
I am still kicking my ass for missing it!!  I lay down after dinner for a few quick winks and wound up waking up 4 hours later....  Grrrrrr!!

Offline jmyrlefuller

  • J. Myrle Fuller
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 22,326
  • Gender: Male
  • Realistic nihilist
    • Fullervision
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #7 on: February 07, 2014, 03:10:25 pm »
Jimmy Fallon and the The Tonight Show. A gigantic train wreck in the making.


I do know Letterman and Kimmel are salivating at this dingbat Fallon, who stumbles over his lines and whose jokes probably don't resonate with anyone over 30, getting the Tonight gig. Letterman retires next year and you know he wants to go out on top.

Paar, Carson and Allen are rolling in their graves.
New profile picture in honor of Public Domain Day 2024

Offline jmyrlefuller

  • J. Myrle Fuller
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 22,326
  • Gender: Male
  • Realistic nihilist
    • Fullervision
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #8 on: February 07, 2014, 03:15:21 pm »
I am still kicking my ass for missing it!!  I lay down after dinner for a few quick winks and wound up waking up 4 hours later....  Grrrrrr!!
http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/video/thursday-february-6-2014/n45954
New profile picture in honor of Public Domain Day 2024

Offline katzenjammer

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2,512

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #10 on: February 07, 2014, 08:07:07 pm »
I always liked Leno, but after his farewell last night I like him even more, he is a true good person.
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline jmyrlefuller

  • J. Myrle Fuller
  • Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 22,326
  • Gender: Male
  • Realistic nihilist
    • Fullervision
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #11 on: February 07, 2014, 10:01:41 pm »
I always liked Leno, but after his farewell last night I like him even more, he is a true good person.
His fellow comedians seem to hate him. Yet they love Conan, who's a mediocre comic to be sure. I suppose politics might be the reason behind that. Like Carson, Conan seems to be a schmoozer. Fallon has that same gift, hence why no criticism when Lorne Michaels set this plan into motion to give him late-night TV's most storied job despite his absolutely horrible track record.
New profile picture in honor of Public Domain Day 2024

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #12 on: February 07, 2014, 10:03:36 pm »
His fellow comedians seem to hate him. Yet they love Conan, who's a mediocre comic to be sure. I suppose politics might be the reason behind that. Like Carson, Conan seems to be a schmoozer. Fallon has that same gift, hence why no criticism when Lorne Michaels set this plan into motion to give him late-night TV's most storied job despite his absolutely horrible track record.

Beck spent a lot of time talking about him today, and what a genuine man he is.
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #13 on: February 08, 2014, 03:32:58 am »
I forgot night before last Leno had on Blake Shelton. As a parting gift Blake gave him a weeks worth of his blue work shirts and a week's worth of jeans - his normal away from TV wardrobe.
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #14 on: February 08, 2014, 03:49:10 am »
http://tv.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=851266

Jay Leno: Only Conan takes a shot as late-night hosts say goodbye
Feb. 7, 2014, 10:07 AM EST
By Tim Molloy
TheWrap

Conan O'Brien took the lone shot at Jay Leno as late-night hosts said goodbye to "The Tonight Show" host who has led the show to two decades of ratings dominance.

"The Olympics start airing tonight on NBC," O'Brien said, near the end of his monologue Thursday. "That's right, NBC has the Olympics. It's a big deal. NBC will finally get to show somebody who's okay with passing the torch."

He gave a thumbs-up as his audience gave him an extended applause break.

"I allowed myself one, but it was a good one," O'Brien said.

More: Jay Leno says goodbye with grace

It was the lone bitter note from Leno's fellow late-nighters. Even Jimmy Kimmel and David Letterman, both of whom have feuded with Leno in the past, found nice things to say about him.

"Congratulations on a wonderful run, and I'll tell you something," Letterman said. "If I was Jay Leno and I was retiring, you know what I would do? I'd go out and buy myself a car."

Kimmel tweeted: "Issues aside, 20 years at #1 is a remarkable achievement. Congratulations and best wishes to @jayleno on an incredible run."

Arsenio Hall, who visited Leno on "The Tonight Show" Wednesday to suggest what he can do with his new free time, praised Leno as the "Michael Jordan of late night."

"He's number one. They're getting rid of the number one guy," Hall said. "That's like Michael Jordan -- He's the Michael Jordan of late night. That's like somebody saying, 'Hey Mike. Put your tongue back in your mouth and get out of here."

He then asked his audience to applaud "the living legend of late night."
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

Offline Rapunzel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 71,613
  • Gender: Female
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #15 on: February 08, 2014, 03:54:12 am »
http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/jay-leno-tonight-show-final-ratings-1201091469/

Jay Leno’s Final ‘Tonight Show’ Hits 15-Year Ratings High


Final Tonight Show   
February 7, 2014 | 07:01AM PT
Variety Staff

Jay Leno’s last episode as host of “The Tonight Show” (we think) has scored the program’s most-watched episode in more than 15 years.

In updated estimates for Thursday night, Nielsen said “Tonight” drew a big 14.64 million viewers overall, the fourth biggest ever for the show. The only shows to rate higher were May 20, 1993 (“Cheers” finale, 22.4 million), May 25, 1992 (Leno’s debut, 16.1 million), May 14, 1998 (“Seinfeld” finale, 15.0 million) and Feb. 6, 2014 (Leno’s final telecast, 14.6 million).

The final “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” was up 283%, nearly tripling the show’s season average in total viewers (3.82 million heading into this week). And in adults 18-49, “Tonight” did a 3.8 rating — more than four times the show’s average this season (0.9) and its highest since Conan O’Brien’s final night as host in January 2010.

Leno got a nice assist on Thursday night from NBC’s special early coverage of the Winter Olympics in advance of Friday’s Opening Ceremonies. The Peacock averaged a 6.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 20 million viewers overall in primetime, the largest aud for any network on the night since the opening game of the NFL season last September.

“Tonight Show” had certainly been picking up ratings steam heading into this week, as it averaged a nightly audience of 4.99 million viewers for the Jan. 27-31 frame — up about 30% from the comparable week a year ago — and crushed its ABC and CBS competition. CBS’ “Late Show With David Letterman,” which aired a few repeats during the week, averaged about 3 million, and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live” drew about 2.4 million.

The last time Leno drew more viewers in a week was March 1-5, 2010 — his first week back for his second stint in the host’s chair of “The Tonight Show.”

Through 19 weeks, “Tonight” was enjoying its most-watched season in five years. And Leno exits “Tonight” on a 67-week winning streak in total viewers against rival Letterman’s CBS show.

“Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” followed Leno on Thursday with 6.01 million viewers, its largest since a special post-Super Bowl Sunday episode in February 2012.

Leno’s final episode did not start off with a sentimental vibe, our Brian Lowry wrote in his review, but went in that direction as the night went on.
�The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves.� G Washington July 2, 1776

SPQR

  • Guest
Re: Jay Leno says goodbye to "The Tonight Show"
« Reply #16 on: February 08, 2014, 03:59:30 am »
http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/jay-leno-tonight-show-final-ratings-1201091469/

Jay Leno’s Final ‘Tonight Show’ Hits 15-Year Ratings High


Final Tonight Show   
February 7, 2014 | 07:01AM PT
Variety Staff

Jay Leno’s last episode as host of “The Tonight Show” (we think) has scored the program’s most-watched episode in more than 15 years.

In updated estimates for Thursday night, Nielsen said “Tonight” drew a big 14.64 million viewers overall, the fourth biggest ever for the show. The only shows to rate higher were May 20, 1993 (“Cheers” finale, 22.4 million), May 25, 1992 (Leno’s debut, 16.1 million), May 14, 1998 (“Seinfeld” finale, 15.0 million) and Feb. 6, 2014 (Leno’s final telecast, 14.6 million).

The final “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” was up 283%, nearly tripling the show’s season average in total viewers (3.82 million heading into this week). And in adults 18-49, “Tonight” did a 3.8 rating — more than four times the show’s average this season (0.9) and its highest since Conan O’Brien’s final night as host in January 2010.

Leno got a nice assist on Thursday night from NBC’s special early coverage of the Winter Olympics in advance of Friday’s Opening Ceremonies. The Peacock averaged a 6.0 rating in adults 18-49 and 20 million viewers overall in primetime, the largest aud for any network on the night since the opening game of the NFL season last September.

“Tonight Show” had certainly been picking up ratings steam heading into this week, as it averaged a nightly audience of 4.99 million viewers for the Jan. 27-31 frame — up about 30% from the comparable week a year ago — and crushed its ABC and CBS competition. CBS’ “Late Show With David Letterman,” which aired a few repeats during the week, averaged about 3 million, and ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live” drew about 2.4 million.

The last time Leno drew more viewers in a week was March 1-5, 2010 — his first week back for his second stint in the host’s chair of “The Tonight Show.”

Through 19 weeks, “Tonight” was enjoying its most-watched season in five years. And Leno exits “Tonight” on a 67-week winning streak in total viewers against rival Letterman’s CBS show.

“Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” followed Leno on Thursday with 6.01 million viewers, its largest since a special post-Super Bowl Sunday episode in February 2012.

Leno’s final episode did not start off with a sentimental vibe, our Brian Lowry wrote in his review, but went in that direction as the night went on.

It was a great farewell. If Jimmy Fallon's ratings does not pass muster, Jay will be back.
« Last Edit: February 08, 2014, 03:59:54 am by SPQR »