Primetime television is about to get a facelift. One of late night’s favorite comedians, Jay Leno, is ready to introduce his new program, “The Jay Leno Show,” to audiences across America.
After taking over for Johnny Carson and hosting “The Tonight Show” for more than 15 years, the award-winning entertainer is now in full control of his own program.
“Even though you make [“The Tonight Show”] your own, there’s still certain conventions that you have to conform to, so it’s fun being able to change that up a little bit,” Leno said in an interview with The Eagle.
Leno’s show will have some familiar bits from his prior gig, such as “Headlines” and “Jaywalking,” but there will also be new and entertaining segments for viewers to enjoy.
One exciting change will include having celebrities race electric cars around a track while attempting to set records, he said.
“We will have in-car cameras as well so you can hear the celebrity swearing as they hit the wall and stuff, so it’ll be fun,” Leno said.
Leno will not be the only one providing laughs for the audience. Comedian correspondents will also be a common segment on the new show. A variety of funny guests will grace the stage, ranging from Rachel Harris to Duane Perkins.
To balance out the show’s talent, when it comes to musical guests, Leno said he is trying to do something a little different on his show.
“We’ll have less music than we had on ‘The Tonight Show’ but more unusual pairings of people who don’t normally work together and see how that works for them,” explained Leno.
The show will be setting a high standard of its choice in musical talent, as Jay-Z, Rihanna and Kanye West will perform on the premiere episode.
Though there are notable differences in Leno’s new show, one aspect that will remain the same is the content of his monologues. Even with the show airing earlier in the night, Leno does not feel the subject matter of his jokes will need to be censored. “I can’t imagine anything we’ve done at 11:30 you couldn’t do at 10 o’clock,” Leno said.
Leno will be up against a number of other primetime shows that audiences have already become attached to, such as ABC’s “Private Practice” and CBS’s “CSI: Miami.”
The competition might be nerve-racking, but Leno said he is not nervous.
“You kind of keep doing what you always did but maybe with new energy and new excitement and some new bits and you see how people like it,” he said. “All you can do is give it your best shot.”
Leno’s confidence for his new time slot also has to do with his idea of 10 p.m. becoming the new 11:30.
“Nowadays I find people — and younger people — even people who work at the office, you know, they go to bed at quarter to 12, 12:30 usually the latest,” Leno said. “Consequently, they don’t stay up that late.”
Along with the impressive musical lineup prepared for Leno’s first episode, popular comedian Jerry Seinfeld is also set to make an appearance on the premiere show.
After a summer-long vacation from television, Leno said he is ready to get back into the swing of things.
“I like writing jokes, going to work and telling my jokes,” he said.
Luckily for Leno and his fans, his television hiatus has ended, and America’s funny man will now be gracing television screens five days a week at 10 p.m. on NBC starting Monday, Sept. 14.
You can reach this writer at thescene@theeagleonline.com.
