Jay Leno

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“These Days, Transparency Is A Requirement For A Young Comedian”

March 6, 2014 in Excerpts, Science/Tech | Permalink

Andy Greenwald has a really good article at Grantland about comedy in the time of Twitter and Instagram, inspired by Jimmy Fallon’s attempt to be crowned the new King of Late Night, but I don’t know that I agree with his conclusion about contemporary comics being “transparent.” The long tail of distribution and the decentralization of media have made for more opportunities to pursue our dreams even if most of those positions pay far less or not at all. Comics, like anyone else in media, need to place advertisements for themselves on as many channels as possible. But I don’t think that means that we get to see the real person any more now than we have in the past, except for the rare slip-up. Ubiquity is one thing but reality another. And our so-called Reality TV era has very little to do with being real. It’s still scripted, just with worse writing.

Fallon seems to be a younger and handsomer version of Jay Leno: a machine-like dispenser of entertainment who reveals very little of his real self except for the aspects he wants to stress in order to connect with his audience. If anything, he’s smoother, not as rough around the edges, having knocked about less, never having been homeless and arrested for vagrancy the way Leno was when he was trying to make his way in the L.A. stand-up scene. That’s not an insult to Fallon. There’s nothing wrong with him creating an image for himself, but it never feels particularly revelatory on a personal level. We may see Fallon and his peers in the media constantly now, but constancy doesn’t necessarily reduce distance, and being more connected doesn’t really mean we’re any closer. From Greenwald:

“When Tina Fey was a guest on Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee, she was friendly but reticent, wondering aloud how she’d continue to ‘stay opaque.’ But these days, transparency is a requirement for a young comedian. Audiences don’t want to be told jokes, they want to be in on them. Flubs and falls are endearing; seeing the cracks is what cracks people up. Jimmy Fallon has proven himself to be the ideal comedian for this moment because he understands that being funny is now a full-time gig, that oversharing is just another way of being generous. Forget leaving them wanting more: Fallon can’t ever leave them at all. He always has to be on, and so too does his show, tweeting out gags, offering up videos, and, with the help of the incomparable Roots, making Studio 6A feel like a madcap launching pad for creativity and joy, not just a destination for A-listers with projects to push. From across a generational divide and, for now at least, several tax brackets, Jerry Seinfeld and Jimmy Fallon seem to have reached the same conclusion at exactly the right moment. Comedy has a new mantra and it’s working like gangbusters: Always let them see you sweat.”

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1 Thing About Jay Leno’s Obamacare Jokes

December 11, 2013 in Politics, Urban Studies | Permalink

I understand that Jay Leno, the make-believe working-class hero, is just a buffoon with a talk show and that nothing he says to a dwindling late-night television audience really matters. He practices some sort of moral equivalency even when none is deserved because he wants to appeal to the widest viewership possible. He panders. But it is a little infuriating that he continually refers to Obamacare as something that Americans “don’t want.” You know, because the uninsured would rather get sick and die. So much neater that way. Real closure.

There are millions of citizens in this country who want Obamacare. Actually, they desperately need it. Their lives and the lives of their children depend on it.

A deserved shot or even a cheap shot against the President is fair game. But a wealthy person taking a cheap shot against poor, working poor and moderate-income Americans in the service of pandering isn’t.•

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Did Jay Leno Quietly Fire The Rest Of The Tonight Show Band After Kevin Eubanks Quit?

June 8, 2010 in Misc. | Permalink

I want a new band, Mavis.

When Tonight Show bandleader Kevin Eubanks stepped down from his position after close to two decades, something strange happened: Every member of the band also left. It’s hard to believe that none of these people wanted to keep the late-night gig and quit en masse just because their guffawing boss decided to move on. Eubanks has no doubt earned a ton of money and had the right to go off and do whatever he wants. But why would his backing musicians leave a steady, paying gig?

On Eubanks’ last night, Leno hastily mentioned that the whole band was also leaving. No long goodbyes to them. When Leno introduced his new bandleader, Rickey Minor, on Monday, he was backed by an entirely new ensemble. Maybe Minor refused to exit his similar position at American idol and take the job if he couldn’t bring his people with him. But it seems odd that Leno, who tries to position himself as a loyal father figure and a friend of working people, would accede to such demands unless he was looking for an excuse to make a wholesale change to freshen up the show. Anyhow, it sucks for those musicians if that’s what happened. They’re obviously good at what they do and weren’t responsible for any of the show’s lameness.

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Recently Posted On NYC’s Craigslist

April 12, 2010 in Misc. | Permalink

Someone wants to look like me, Mavis.

Jay Leno Costume! – $500 (Bohemia,NY)

Jay Leno Costume!
$500.00
Includes Jay Leno Head,and Suit

Great for children party’s,plays,carnivals,etc.

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Decoder: Jay Leno’s Remarks About The Oscars While Interviewing Richard Roeper

March 9, 2010 in Humor | Permalink

Are you ready to take the green car challenge?

Jay Leno: I am so glad [Jeff Bridges] won. He’s a good guy, he’s been married, he has a nice family.

Decoder: I like to rate the quality of other people’s family lives, like when I’ve pointed out in past that Conan O’Brien and others are good family guys. Judging which Americans have the right level of family values is a job that should be handled by someone like myself. You know, a childless TV comic with an exaggerated sense of self-importance who’s trying to pander to Middle America in the same desperate way that politicians do.

Jay Leno: I’ve seen all these [war] movies and, I’m sorry, they all end with the American soldiers doing something wrong, doing something for the wrong reason, accidentally killing someone–they’re always the bad guys. Here’s a film [Hurt Locker] about Americans that are going out and risking their lives to save Iraqis. I watch it and I feel good about the people in it, whereas some of these other movies, I come out depressed.

Decoder: I know all war movies don’t end that way; I’m just being manipulative. It’s not that I don’t care about the troops, but this statement has nothing to do with them. I will wrap myself in the flag and stick the pole up my ass if that’s what it takes to make gullible Americans love me and watch my show. Patriotism–at least this pandering type of patriotism–is the last refuge of a lout. Politicians always behave this way when trying to win votes, but in my case the election never ends.

Jay Leno: I thought Avatar was treated unfairly [at the Oscars]. I would guess that last night’s telecast was the highest rated in five years was because you had Avatar fans wanting to see their picture win. Hurt Locker is a great picture and I saw it, but not many people have.

Decoder: When something is really popular–like my show for instance–it should be given awards even if it isn’t of the best quality. Despite my popular success, I’m still insecure about the lack of critical acclaim I’ve received.

Read other Decoders.

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Decoder: Jay Leno’s Speech About The Late Night Controversy

January 20, 2010 in Humor, Misc. | Permalink

My chin grows when I lie.

Jay Leno is probably no more insincere and greedy than anyone else in show business. But he tries so hard to prove he’s a solid working-class American who’s above the fray that he comes across as passive-aggressive and manipulative. His recent speech about the late-night talk show wars is a good example of his bullshit. The following is a decoded version of the least-honest moments of Leno’s address.

Jay Leno: I said, Well, I’ve been No. 1 for 12 years. They said, We know that, but we don’t think you can sustain that. I said, Okay. How about until I fall to No. 2, then you fire me? No, we made this decision.

Decoder: I actually hadn’t been number one for all 12 years. I struggled mightily during my first couple of years. Thankfully, Johnny Carson wasn’t hovering over me every second, campaigning to get his job back. Especially since he was pushed out of the job in favor of me while he was still number one in the ratings.

Jay Leno: Don’t blame Conan O’Brien. Nice guy, good family guy, great guy.

Decoder: I’m the one everyone is blaming, so I am going to pivot and pretend Conan is somehow the object of scorn. Then I will absolve him of the fictional blame to make myself look magnanimous. Also: I am the kind of solid American who can judge the family values of others. Didn’t you notice my American flag lapel pin?

Jay Leno: I said, All right, can I keep my staff? There are 175 people that work here.

Decoder: It’s not about my ego. It’s about me keeping my staff employed during these difficult economic times. I am very thoughtful that way.

Jay Leno: Conan’s show during the summer…we’re not on…was not doing well.

Decoder: My historically poor lead-in is not responsible for Conan trailing David Letterman. I also trailed Letterman during my first couple of years as Tonight Show host, so I speak from experience.

Jay Leno: They said, Well, look, how about you do a half-hour show at 11:30? Now, where I come from, when your boss gives you a job and you don’t do it, well…

Decoder: I am just a working stiff like Joe Lunchpail. A working stiff with hundreds of millions of dollars and hundreds of vintage cars, but I’ve still got to punch the clock and support my wife because I’m a good family man.

Jay Leno: I said okay. Shake hands, that’s it. I don’t have a manager, I don’t have an agent, that’s my handshake deal.

Decoder: I’m a regular guy like you, not one off these show biz phonies with managers and agents. At one point, I did have a manager and she worked tirelessly to get Carson pushed out of the Tonight Show so I could have the job, even though Johnny was number one in the ratings.

Jay Leno: Yeah, I’ll take the show back. If that’s what he wants to do. This way, we keep our people working, fine.

Decoder: Again, it’s about my staff keeping their jobs, not about my ambitions.

Jay Leno: But through all of this, Conan O’Brien has been a gentleman. He’s a good guy. I have no animosity towards him.

Decoder: In a couple of days, I will make a joke about what an overrated millionaire Conan is. He’s not a working class hero like me.

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Jay Leno And The Politics Of Late Night TV

January 12, 2010 in Misc. | Permalink

I need the "Tonight Show" job to support my wife and chin.

In 2004, Jay Leno announced he would be stepping aside as Tonight Show host in favor of Conan O’Brien: “When I signed my new contract,” Leno said in a press release, “I felt that the timing was right to plan for my successor, and there is no one more qualified than Conan.” He discussed it further on the show, saying he didn’t want there to be an unpleasant transition like there was when he and David Letterman ended their longtime friendship over the awkward struggle to replace Johnny Carson.

When the time came for the baton to be passed, however, Leno was less sanguine about the transfer of late-night power. He still dominated Letterman in the ratings and didn’t want to abdicate the throne. Leno could have done several things. He could have refused the initial overtures in 2004 to step down from his post while he was still on top. He could have gone to another network in 2009 and beaten NBC at its own game. Or he could have tried to do a 10pm show the way he did.

But one thing he shouldn’t have done was to openly campaign to replace Conan just five months after O’Brien took over the Tonight Show. But that’s exactly what Leno did, in passive-aggressive mode, in a November 2 interview with Broadcasting & Cable. An excerpt:

“B&C: Do you want to go back to 11:35?

Jay Leno: If it were offered to me, would I take it? If that’s what they wanted to do, sure. That would be fine if they wanted to.”

During this whole public fiasco, Leno has maintained that no show has ever been cancelled when it was rated number one like his Tonight Show was. Actually it has happened before. It was in 1992, when Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show, which was rated number one, was cancelled when Leno’s manager got NBC brass to push Carson out of the job. Leno, eternally innocent, knew nothing about these machinations. He decided to not immediately relinquish the host’s chair when he found out about the back-room dealings. And even though Leno struggled mightily both creatively and ratings-wise at first, Carson never campaigned to get his job back.

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