Instant Favorite.

Admirable film.

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

I'll always be sad I skipped out on my tickets during one of Jay Leno's last shows in LA in 2013. Jay headlined this show for over 20 years, and I grew up watching Jay crack good-natured jokes at every celebrity's and politician's expense. I miss seeing him every night, in a definite case of "you don't know how much you need it until it's gone."Jay's monologue was always the best part of the show, and the intermediate bit between the monologue and the guests was usually pretty great. "Headlines" was always a favorite of mine, as was Beyondo. Though the Jay-walking segments weren't my favorite, they managed to inspire me to become a better person and citizen. I usually skipped the necessary corporate/studio promotional material - aka guest interviews - because they didn't have enough of Jay. Still, Jay had great chemistry with everyone, and I never had to worry about an awkward interview.The show hit its peak with Ed Hall's self-deprecating humor and Kevin Eubanks heading the band while cracking up at Jay's unfiltered banter. They always had a touch of old-fashioned class mixed in with their dirty jokes and ridiculousness, and that's something Conan's more yuppie d*****baggery (I still like Conan) and Jimmy Fallon's new-age clearly- forced silliness (an astute viewer can tell Jimmy hates his job) can't quite pull off. One thing I absolutely hated: Ross. He's gone on to work with perennial nasty, wrinkled old bag Chelsea Handler, so I can see why I was never a fan.Jay was the consummate professional, loyal to his staff, and a really great guy. He made fun of everybody on an equal basis, and tried to stay away from the mean-spiritedness that can ruin an entire night for a viewer or the lampooned public figure. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno was great, and I miss the joy Jay brought to his work and into American homes.

Jay Leno is funnier than Dave, but not as funny as Conan. Jay was a funny comedian at first but his skits are to formulated and predictable. I do not mind Jay Leno. Jay is a good interviewer and has A team guests on The tonight show. However, Conan has better skits. Jay like Dave has become glued to his seat in the last five years as a talk show host. I will watch the show depending on who the guests are, but for pure entertainment I like to watch Craig Ferguson. I give The tonight show 5 or 6 out of 10, depending on the guests. There are just too many of these late night talk shows. They all have the same guests on their shows. Over exposure is killing the industry.

The Tonight Show began in 1954, being hosted by Steve Allen, then in 1957 got Jack Paar, and Johnny Carson came in 1962. Jay Leno first appeared on this show in 1977, and became one of the many to become famous because of it. In the 80s, Jay began to appear more regularly, and became guest host in 1987. In 1992, Johnny Carson decided to retire. There was a bitter battle between Jay Leno and David Letterman on who would get the show, and Leno won."The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" aired on May 25,1992. It runs today. It features a great segment, Headlines, in which Jay reads actual headlines from newspapers that have a funny mistake in them. It also has Jaywalking, in which Jay travels in LA and asks questions and finds ridiculous answers from pedestrians. Jay also tells about a 10 minute monologue, that varies from night to night.Jay is a pretty funny guy, and narrowly beats out Letterman. Some things on the show can be a bit cheesy, but it's good. But Conan is still the best.8 of 10.

When the long-running "Tonight Show" needed a new host in 1992, as Johnny Carson retired, frequent show guest and funny man Jay Leno was chosen. To his great credit, Leno did not try to emulate Johnny Carson. No one could do that. Instead Leno simply kept the framework -- a 10-minute stand-up comedy routine, followed by two or three celebrity guests plus a musical guest. He also kept the announcer and the band. But his announcer was the new face, Edd Hall who, instead of emulating Ed McMahon with a "Heeeeeeerrrrrreeeees Jay", he simply said "Jay ... Leno."And, instead of using a traditional music approach, he hired jazz great Branford Marsalis as band leader to take the music in a totally new direction. It took some getting used to, and I suspect many old fans left for good, but Jay Leno made the new Tonight Show his own, even billing himself as "head writer." Three years later the music took another turn when Kevin Eubanks, a guitarist, became band leader. He seems much more comfortable with the inevitable jokes and "banter" with the host than did Branford. And even more recently, John Melendez has taken over the announcing duties.I have always like Jay Leno's brand of humor. He is nowhere the interviewer that Johnny Carson was, but he has invented a number of new ways to tickle the viewing audience. One is his always topical opening routine which plays on the headlines of the day. He picks on people in the news mercilessly. Like Michael Jackson going through his current pickle. Or the standing president, whomever that may be. He is an equally-opportunity comedian, not favoring any political party.Now Leno has announced his retirement, still a couple of years away. A chance to spend more time with his motorcycle collection.