Jay Leno on Letterman, September 26, 1984

[@TheRealLaughingGravy]

At any age, Jay Leno always looks like a caricature of Jay Leno.

[@neffsam5474]

Wasn't there a McDonald character like him

[@rondareid8197]

Michael McDonald

[@kikarias79]

Best comment about Jay Leno…EVER! 😂😂😂😂

[@schrodingerscat8621]

Of all the comedians I’ve ever seen, he’s one of them.

[@nucksfordacup]

Good one, Don. Now drop your pants and fire a rocket

[@donaldblankenship-ph1un]

Funny funny

[@donaldblankenship-ph1un]

​@@nucksfordacupGood one. Now give him a cookie and he'll go away.

[@mrm1885]

You havent seen many LOL

[@mr.brenman2132]

I'll do you one better. Of all the comments ive ever seen, this one is the most unoriginal 👏

[@joekagerer]

I met Jay at a bike meet a few years ago, He walked up and started talking to us!

[@LaurenMiddleton28]

This is Almost 40 years old. Time Flies..

[@igano111]

So do flies.

[@segaboy9894]

Hearing someone call Jay Leno a young man is crazy.

[@MrThatGuy97]

I like how Letterman calls him that even though he’s only three years older than Leno.

[@krisscanlon4051]

I know right...ohhhhh the old days were so good

[@ParticleLarry]

Jay Leno not only a standup comedian but has a side hustle as a 1980's Elvis impersonator

[@Zlife-kz1go]

I was probably 6 yrs old when this came out. I love Jay even more now after seeing this. . Thanks for the video.

[@Dreamformeable]

How can you remember anything when u was 6? I cant even remember what i had for breakfast today!!

[@Zlife-kz1go]

@@Dreamformeable Lol. Idk Maybe I was 7 just some memories stick with you I guess..

[@janetremsing6988]

😂This guy does the best Leno impression I've ever seen!🤣‼️

[@tubadude905]

I watched this live when it first aired. Then a couple of years later I saw Jay at an outdoor British Motorcycle event in Worcester Mass where he was alone and looking at parts. I approached him and said Hello Beemer. He smiled and replied, "nah, not me.". Shook my hand and I left him alone. interesting to see this again almost 40 years later.

[@robbiemcbobbie8030]

that’s cool

[@SacDaddy420]

Maybe he just didn't like your stench.

[@jasras5003]

@@SacDaddy420 Did you vote yourself up? Cute.

[@dinofx35]

That’s a pretty dumb line.

[@mr.brenman2132]

​@@dinofx35You would know.

[@geoff3103]

GREAT clip. This is how you do late night. Not one divisive convo/bit in the whole interview

[@davidkaplan5517]

Yeah nothing like reading a porno on air.

[@richardstoffel6585]

Love jay. I was born in ‘84. And to see the pace he has is great. I got to see him live just after his accident and he put a show on! My fav

[@jasras5003]

My dad's only 18 years older than me and swears one of the best comedians on the live LA club circuit around this time in the early 80's was Leno. It boggled my mind because i only really knew him as a talk show host. He saw some greats at these smaller venues and swears Jay always killed it live. He's not a huge fan now but goes to show you he was a killer on stage back then.

[@vrASMR180]

I saw him live maybe 4 years ago in south Florida. It was alright. No side splitting laughs or anything, just chuckles. But seeing him young here I can envision him being pretty great back in the day.

[@Jerry-oo8hd]

Mmm. Yeah. I saw Jay on stage in 1987. He was great! And here he’s great. Dave and Jay were just good for each other until they weren’t. This is a great clip not only for its content but also for a glimpse into how it once was in their halcyon days.

[@jimreily7538]

He was the comedians' comedian. Seinfeld and many others looked up to him as a mentor and idol. He worked very hard. And he was very well recognised too, as a great club comic in those days so you're Dad is spot on correct.

[@tunahxushi4669]

Super clip thank you thank you...

[@_PrimetimePranks]

Two legends !! ❤

[@USAAF]

Thank you for sharing. Great footage from the good old days. Love Leno and Letterman. Two great legends

[@johncamp7679]

The early 80’s. Those Amex commercials, I remember them. I was 12 in 84, so many things in this clip that brings up memories of the time

[@MachineGunMike]

The 80s were great. I barely remember the end of them, as I was so young, but those were great times!

[@Shadowx011]

Oh my God Jay used to be a half moon!!!

[@shawni321]

Aw jeez, I liked them so much when they were friends

[@DouglasRichardson-er4ky]

They played the same 🐀 🕳️ clubs then struck it rich chatting on TV lol

[@mr.brenman2132]

​@@DouglasRichardson-er4kyJay didn't even need the Tonight show. He was one of the most successful touring comedians around. Who could turn down that Tonight show money though?

[@gmo9172]

Can't believe I'm older now than both of them in this clip

[@rsz90182]

No wonder Jay is where he is today. He was full of talent!!!

[@importon]

"Where he is" you mean his portrait on the Count Chocula box?

[@bearrights273]

Yeah he knocked dave out of his spot for the tonight show a few years after this, then "retired" and gave the show to conan then came back and took it from him

[@keithkoenig5320]

Seriously?? The eternally UNFUNNY Jay Leno??

[@RonWolfHowl]

You’re a decade or two off, but you’ve got the spirit.

[@YourMrFixer]

NBC didn’t want to keep Dave. Then when Conan had five years left ,NBC forced Jay to announce he would retire in five years even though Jay didn’t want to. Five years pass by and Craig Ferguson was beating Conan. NBC panicked. Conan took over and was flopping. They asked Jay to come back and do a show to lead into Conan (with the news break between shows), so it would boost Conan. Then Conan’s producers heard about the show offer to Jay and demanded Jay only have one guest so that guests wouldn’t chose Jay’s prime time show over a 11:35 pm show. Jay said he’d do the show but demanded NBC pay his staff for the entire year if it got cancelled. Jay’s prime time show didn’t work. It didn’t help Conan either. Conan was a bomb. Loyalty has nothing to do with business. The only reason networks make their shows is to make money. Jay was number one every year other than Dave’s first year on CBS. Knock Jay all you want but you don’t know the real story.

[@Anne6621]

dang how did 40 years just zoom by at light speed it is making my mind short circuit

[@TheLadsBandLive]

Chris Eliot’s Leno is spot on.

[@philpalmer4877]

Voices never change...

[@davidsthubbins176]

I almost forgot that Jay and Dave were once young men.

[@andypike1234]

Elvis Leno

[@snootslobber]

I was there. Met him in the hallway.

[@jkker05]

What a great era before we started hating each other like we do now. Everyone's a victim nowadays

[@caiusjulius9836]

Without Letterman, we wouldn't have Leno of today.

[@blakeada999]

Like two young bucks, interesting to watch these two joust.

[@teddenglercoletti5896]

When Leno was the funniest stand up of his age. He could never do these jokes as Tonight Show host where joke writers dumbed him down for the masses.

[@DSToNe19and83]

I bet even back then, he was as driving something cool! Jays a “people’s champ”, and a real car guy!

[@ninjanerdstudent6937]

The early Chandler Bing character has many of the same mannerisms as this guy.

[@retrobros9684]

Jays a good talker for sure

[@st.charlesstreet9876]

Both of them….So Young.

[@PJJ196]

What a force.. you could see how an executive thought this guy would be a perfect host

[@markjackson6431]

if that was the case why did Letterman have to vouch for him to get the guest hosting gig when Carson and the executives were apprehensive?

[@PJJ196]

@@markjackson6431 well you still need help.. but you still need to showcase the charisma and vibrancy to be a good host.

[@jamesjannell8706]

Love this old Leno stuff

[@pleasebaws]

Very interesting seeing Jay Leno go over cars and bikes before he got the big money

[@mr.patrickaloysiusbartholo4727]

I live close to where Jay lives now and I heard from others that he frequents the local chili cheese Hot Dog joint quite often. I think he’s even the same guy today that we see here inspite of his fame and fortune.

[@BigJonkulous]

He's always loved them

[@drzaius844]

Couldn’t even afford a Guzzi at that point. Crazy.

[@DouglasRichardson-er4ky]

🙋🏼‍♂️ once a gearhead always one I had a motorcycle addiction growing up also old VWs I made to 51 🎅🏼 somehow tomorrow I drive a Prius w 175k on it now I swear I used to be cool 😎👍🏻 The new electric VW Bus 🚐 has my attention they should do a camper model from the factory driver's seat a toilet 🚽 w a curtain system for semi containment lol 😉

[@kolst8406]

The actress playing the evil twin on Magnum PI was Sharon Stone.

[@jonhohensee3258]

Not true.

[@hurley911]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mZe9q2irlMajf6csi=xjsKEbIsMBzCE5DE

[@earthquake903]

Watching 40 years later

[@WhiteWizzard]

If I had those checks I could buy her back right now….genius. The 2 sharpest TV guys -amazing to see them so long ago together …What a great time to grow up in…Leno was so confident and witty.

[@TheRealCCSmith]

Back when Jay didn't have one of every motorcycle and car! 😂

[@nathanforester5993]

I'd say it's more than a concidence that they played the Ghostbusters theme for Jay's entrance considering Jay auditioned for Louis in the first Ghostbusters movie.

[@mizmo21]

It was new drug 😂

[@adamr8628]

"new drug". By Huey Lewis..

[@zorak1997]

​@@adamr8628I'm not sure which one it is. I do know Lewis sued Ray Parker Jr for ripping him off for "Ghostbusters" and won.

[@ArmenChakmakian]

Always my favorite guest on Letterman

[@michaelwatson9333]

I miss the good ole days

[@aarfeld]

The laughs before the tears.

[@rsuriyop]

It’s weird how his voice sounds even higher here than I’ve ever remembered it.

[@blessedarmadillo8257]

Back when Leno was funny, actually one of the funniest standups going. When he got the mega deal for the Tonight Show he became Homogenized Jay, doing his best to please the corporation. Sort of like what happens when a good craft beer is acquired by Anheuser Busch.

[@havefunbesafe]

Man Leno on a roll 😂

[@bart666a]

Jay Leno has literally the largest chin i have ever seen on a human being.

[@TechTVusa]

It has it's own postal code.

[@jameshudson169]

that's a pointed observation.

[@dizzotizzo69]

He also probably has 10,000,000x your $$

[@dingdongdickweed6288]

@@dizzotizzo69 You'd think he use some of that $$$ to fix his freakish chin, though...

[@dizzotizzo69]

@@dingdongdickweed6288 It's what he was born with. Live with what you have and don't change for anything or anyone.

[@MalcolmDesigns]

I watched all these when I was in college when they aired, I forgot Jay used to be skinny.

[@soulscanner66]

Wow, Leno was funny!

[@kouroshhariri8124]

He was before he got the tonight show

[@jameshudson169]

@@kouroshhariri8124 he was the HOST on the tonight show. he's at least as funny as conan.

[@dingdongdickweed6288]

@@jameshudson169 Nah. He was never as funny as Conan.

[@jameshudson169]

@@dingdongdickweed6288 jay leno is 10x as slightly amusig as conan!

[@zorak1997]

​@@kouroshhariri8124 I found him much funnier than Carson when Leno became the only guest host on "The Tonight Show" in 1988. He spent the next 3 1/2 years hosting every Monday night and once a week each month and he was great. It made sense to me that NBC picked him over Letterman for the 11:30pm slot. But then he started as the permanent host and just got lame.

[@jrb5667]

I was 4 days old

[@BradfordtheEclectic]

So, you don't remember most of this show?

[@fcv1967]

Damn, young Jay Leno reminds me a lot of Doug DeMuro.

[@earlosandwich7433]

Yup, he does. I call DeMuro, Discount Jay Leno.

[@randomx7526]

The way it should have been.

[@andy42x]

His head is a crescent moon 🌙

[@47mphill]

Back in the day when they were friends 😂

[@samzach2057]

Funny that a few years later, Lay Leno would get the Johnny Carson spot, and David Letterman would leave NBC in protest.

[@kingly71]

tbh to watch this interview alone you'd agree with the decision... one has way more charisma. Both have great comedy chops, though David is funnier imo... and prob a better dude. Though Jay seems like a good guy too, just don't like how he did my boy Conan

[@ritamarie4453]

The" Hapsburg Jaw" on full display.

[@alphadog1961]

Letterman and Norm MacDonald made for a good show,I was never big on Leno though.

[@demisx]

I was never big on Letterman. Wasn’t funny to me. Leno, on the other hand, ….

[@mazsroy9]

@@demisxexactly. Agreed. Letterman also got mean over time…

[@donaldblankenship-ph1un]

It's called a Habsburg jaw. The result of centuries of european royal inbreeding. It's not his fault. I believe Jay had a bit of it sawed off. But we all look better when we make a billion dollars.

[@petesmitt]

0:05 Dave calling Jay a young man.. Jay is only 3 years younger than Dave.

[@MrSteve280]

Jay looks so fresh, like he's having so much fun. Hosting a TV show must be like being elected President; you come out the other side looking not quite like you did going in.

[@MrEric0822]

Forty years later, still waiting on Leno to make me laugh. Once.

[@mitchross2852]

no one cares

[@MrEric0822]

@@mitchross2852 Valid point.

[@Crazy_Joe_Davola]

I just found Jay is responsible for the mass spread of the term beemer. Not bad...

[@RidiPwn]

love that chin , all the comic elements in the right place

[@Diecastclassicist]

Wow, I sure do feel old now.

[@ericdovigi7927]

Love how despite the beef, you can tell that Leno has the ability to make Letterman laugh way more than most

[@506363]

1984... This was BEFORE the Leno giver stole the Tonight show. (The 1st time).

[@charlesdjones1]

Honestly, looking back at the whole Letterman/ Leno bs drama, it was petty of Letterman to assume he would ever just inherit anything from Carson. He made such a big deal about it, when he (of all people) should have known business is business, and NBC obviously cared about the bottom line first. History shows they were right. Let me clarify, that I personally never liked nor watched Leno, but would occasionally tune into Letterman; before he got all stagnant and cantankerous that is.

[@tharveytucker1]

@@charlesdjones1letterman was picked by Carson to take over. It was a last minute change by the top brass. There’s a reason Letterman guest hosted the Tonight Show so many times in the last handful of years. He was being prepped.

[@charlesdjones1]

@@tharveytucker1 Letterman became "too difficult to work with or please," according to (then) GE CEO Jack Welch, majority owner of NBC at the time, who also made the decision himself to hire Leno before Carson even retired. They couldn't wait to get rid of Letterman. Leno, in contrast, was a "yes man" according to the show's producer in the 90's. If NBC needed Leno to go out and promote the show and put on a good face for fans, he would do it, no questions asked. Letterman hated that kind of stuff and was terrible at it. But even with Carson's endorsement, I still feel the same about how petty and childish Letterman acted about the whole ordeal.

[@edwoll]

Young fellow, you've got your timelime way out of whack. Since that Tonight, Show throne battle, these 2 haven't spoken a word to each other in all of these years.

[@Kubakaiser]

I bet if Dave hadn't asked him a single question, he still wouldn't have shut up for the whole interview.

[@dongiller]

_Every_ standup comic spends his or her time at panel with more stand-up material. Jay is no exception.

[@Kubakaiser]

@@dongiller I guess that's true. Dave did the same with Carson. It's just I'm always hoping to hear a real conversation, rather than rehearsed lines.

[@dingdongdickweed6288]

Cocaine is a helluva drug.

[@el34glo59]

​@@KubakaiserAgreed

[@tiakajamir6843]

Just don't blame Conan

[@ZenShroud1]

Conaw

[@CassandraL-sp6bt]

The tension in this conversation is great,love how letterman can silently ruin your jokes with fake laughs

[@alexanderchenf1]

Is Jay Leno a descendant of Habsburg?

[@airport862]

That was just two years after David started his show. Carson had eight more years before he retired and the two here were suddenly in conflict.

[@gallery7596]

Yes, if Carson had left around year 25, his replacement would doubtlessly have been Dave. However, because he continued to phone it in for another half decade while relying heavily on guest hosts like Garry Shandling and, of course, Jay Leno, when he finally announced his retirement the question of who should replace Johnny was no longer obvious.

[@cynthiahusband106]

They were such good friends Letterman gave Leno a chance had him on a lot. ( well , yeah ratings would go up) sad when Carson retired , the whole world wanted that Carson spot hence the conflict between Letterman , who I think the job would go to him, instead Leno was given the spot. But you could tell Leno and Letterman were good friends and Letterman clearly enjoyed Leno, made Letterman laugh a lot which was charming. To bad it all didn’t work out where everyone could be friends.

[@dizzotizzo69]

@@cynthiahusband106 You don't know the real story. They were at each other's throats.

[@thugger-vandross]

@@dizzotizzo69 I was about to say, watching this interview I can sense that Dave isn’t too fond of Jay That could be my bias, with the benefit of hindsight and knowing Dave had resentment for Jay later on.. but he has gone on record saying he never liked Jay

[@CoachatCole]

You can clearly see the contrasting comedic styles here. Leno is a workaholic and str8 rehearsed standup while letterman is a laidback situational improve. Jay doesn’t like to adlib while Dave loves it.

[@tr051982]

Leno sure was and still is sharp!!

[@sarcasmo57]

Leno got some money after this.

[@nadyarossi5102]

I miss Jay on late night.

[@gallery7596]

Yes, great chemistry. Nice to know towards the end of their talk show careers that the two started speaking to one another again.

[@christoc99]

Me too.....wow i can't believe I am watching this...he is soooo young

[@jonhohensee3258]

Nadya - Are you SERIOUS???

[@siggylloyd3566]

Nadya Rossi buddy, you’re the only one. ;-)

[@mr.brenman2132]

@@siggylloyd3566 He's 10× better then any of the woke hacks on television today and people actually watched his show.

[@charold3]

Jeez, he really was funny

[@betweenlamppost]

Letterman over Leno any day!

[@nukesean]

I still think Leno is painfully unfunny, but this was by far the best material I’ve ever seen him do.

[@user-vg2eg7oo5n]

As Jay got older, he became less funny. When he was on Dave once a month, he did his best tv spots. His Tonight Show jokes, when he worked only Mondays, were pretty good. When Johnny retired, Jay couldn't create enough jokes for a whole week and he tried to please a wide demographic. Sort of a boring explanation, like Jay between accidents.

[@MartinHiggins1972]

Ah, the old "ghostbuster" himself, Jay Leno.

[@lowmax4431]

Why was the Ghostbusters theme playing when he walked in?

[@NoName15845]

Good video

[@silversurfergw]

Who would have thought that Leno would eventually replace Carson instead of Letterman.

[@markmarsh27]

Great clip Don! Historic actually. Subscribed. GIMME MORE!

[@dongiller]

Thanks! There’s plenty here. :)

[@davidanderson911]

Jay Leno couldn't mop the floor after Dave

[@keppela1]

Wow, young Leno definitely had a Clooney thing going on (or did Clooney have a Leno thing going on?)

[@savethisforlater]

The loops on my pants hold my belt up... Who's the real hero?

[@keppela1]

@@savethisforlater Well that gives new meaning to the term non sequitur.

[@rodrigues5639]

❤❤❤❤❤

[@mikekranshaw3796]

I actually thought "Viva Late Night " was a real movie. lol

[@joemc1960]

Been so long since Jay was funny

[@PAULY-P]

Never realized that Jay had a big lisp when he talks. Guess as he aged it went away or they taught him speech therapy before his show....

[@brianallen2358]

It never completely went away, to the delight of impersonators everywhere.

[@drblaze3850]

yeah man that's the first thing people do when impersonating him, a high voice with a small lisp

[@historyiwitness5915]

Dave doesn't take his eyes of that chin. It is truly prodigious.

[@thegreenbean6777]

Why did Jay roll up his sleeves in a blazer? 😂

[@jjryan1352]

80s

[@celticgodsoriginal]

It was a style in the 80s, Disco/New Wave/Miami Vice etc....

[@geraldhenrickson7472]

That was a thing around 1980, maybe earlier...cannot remember for sure.

[@coffeeabuse]

Ha! I knew the Evil Twin thing would come up! 🤣

[@jcr4runner]

The man in the moon.

[@lisaburns8597]

Who was the actor insulting Dave in Viva Late Night? He looks familiar.

[@declanmcardle]

Is it me or from certain angles could Jay be Fred Savage's Dad?

[@kgsalvage6306]

Or Jim Carrey in Me and Irene.

[@AA-nf2jl]

A young Doug Demuro

[@politicalaccountabletheory768]

I always liked Letterman , he didn't get any strangers business

[@FutureAbe]

Have you seen this have you heard about this

[@winstonian88]

I feel like there was friction even then. Jay is so down to earth that the professional hierarchy doesn’t even occur to him. Dave didn’t like over confident guests, unless it was done in an over-the-top manner like Martin Short. It’s amazing, you can see even here that Jay was a born to be a host.

[@el34glo59]

Letterman crushes Leno

[@josephkelley8641]

Jay's appearances on Dave always white-hot.