Leno with Barack Obama. James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno (born April 28, 1950) is an American stand-up comedian, television host and writer who succeeded Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show in 1992. Leno will continue to host The Tonight Show until May 29, 2009; Late Night host Conan O'Brien is his scheduled successor. Beginning this fall, he will have a primetime talk show, tentatively titled The Jay Leno Show, which will air weeknights at 10:00 PM ET (9:00 PM CT), on NBC.

Biography

Jay Leno was born in New Rochelle, New York, on April 28, 1950. His mother, Catherine (née Muir), a filmmaker, was born in Greenock, Scotland, and came to the United States at age 11. Her schooling was limited and as a result she prized her children's successes. Leno's father, Angelo, who worked in show business, was born in New York to immigrants from Flumeri, Italy. Leno grew up in Andover, Massachusetts, and although his high school guidance counselor recommended that he drop out of high school because of his grades, Jay not only graduated but also went on to receive a bachelor's degree in speech therapy from Emerson College, in 1973. He also attended Bentley College in Waltham, Massachusetts, but did not like it.Fact: date=May 2009 Leno's siblings include his late brother, Patrick, who was a veteran.

As Leno was growing up, he used to say that he would take over Johnny Carson's job, which he eventually did. Early in his career, Leno did commercials for Doritos brand tortilla chips. In the late 1970s, he was the warm-up act for Johnny Mathis, Tom Jones, and John Denver. He replaced Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show in 1992, after having been a regular substitute host for Carson since 1987. Leno has continued to perform as a stand-up comedian throughout his tenure on The Tonight Show.

In 2004, Leno signed a contract extension with NBC which would keep him as host of The Tonight Show until 2009. Later in 2004, Conan O'Brien signed a contract with NBC under which O'Brien would become the host of The Tonight Show in 2009, replacing Leno at that time. Because Leno's show continues to lead all late-night programming in the Nielsen ratings, the pending expiration of Leno's contract led to speculation about whether he would become a late-night host for another network after his commitment to NBC expired. Leno's last Tonight Show is scheduled for May 29, 2009. On December 8, 2008, it was reported that Leno will remain on NBC and move to a new hour-long show at 10 P.M. five nights a week. This show will be in a similar format to The Tonight Show, taped in the same studio, and retaining many of Leno's most popular bits.

During an August 1, 2007, interview with CNN journalist Anderson Cooper on The Tonight Show, Leno confirmed that he is dyslexic. He has been married since 1980 to Mavis Leno and has no children.