![Look Back at Jay Leno’s Final ‘Tonight Show’ 5 Years Later](/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Look-Back-at-Jay-Lenos-Final-Tonight-Show-5-Years-Later-01.jpg?w=1000&quality=82&strip=all)
Jay Leno had already made his exit from NBC’s The Tonight Show in 2009. But after his follow-up, The Jay Leno Show, failed to woo viewers, in 2010 he took back Tonight Show duties from his stunned and furious successor, Conan O’Brien.
“This is my last show — for real,” Leno joked during his final finale on February 6, 2014. “I don’t need to be fired three times, I get the hint!”
And that was Leno’s legacy. He was forever marked by his bottomless ambition — and what was perceived as the conniving wheeling and dealing he’d used to ace out David Letterman for Johnny Carson’s coveted gig in the late-night wars of the early 1990s.
But people watched Leno — in greater numbers than they tuned in for the edgier Letterman — and in the end, he became a legitimate heir to Carson’s throne.
Leno’s final show delivered a satisfying smorgasbord of entertainment, imbued, of course, with his signature middle-of-the-road flavor. He brought back Billy Crystal — his first-ever guest. The musical guest was also a safe bet: country legend Garth Brooks.
Cameos included Carol Burnett, Martha Stewart (who offered him a roll in the hay if he ever dumped his wife, Mavis) and even a stock Dana Carvey imitation of the lantern-jawed host.
![Look Back at Jay Leno’s Final ‘Tonight Show’ 5 Years Later](/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Look-Back-at-Jay-Lenos-Final-Tonight-Show-5-Years-Later-02.jpg?w=1000&quality=40&strip=all)
But after 22 years in the job he’d coveted more than life itself, Leno offered more sentiment than Letterman ever seem comfortable sharing.
“Boy, this is the hard part. I want to thank you, the audience. We wouldn’t be on the air without you. This has been the greatest 22 years of my life. I am the luckiest guy in the world,” he said as the final minutes ticked down.
“The first year of the show, I lost my mom. The second year, I lost my dad. Then my brother, and after that I was pretty much out of family. So the folks here became my family.”
In the final seconds, Jay looked to his hero Carson for inspiration, quoting his predecessor’s parting line: “I bid you all a heartfelt goodnight.”