Former Tonight Present host Jay Leno just lately referred to as out late-night TV for alienating “half the viewers” with partisan politics.
Throughout an interview with David Trulio, president and CEO of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Basis, Leno, 75, opened up about ensuring his jokes had been politically balanced. Leno hosted The Tonight Present from 1992 to 2009 and once more from 2010 to 2014.
“There was an evaluation accomplished of your work on The Tonight Present for the 22 years and that your jokes had been roughly equally balanced between going after Republicans and taking goal at Democrats,” Trulio identified. “Did you will have a technique?”
To that, Leno admitted, “It was enjoyable to me once I obtained hate letters — ‘Pricey Mr. Leno, you and your Republican buddies’ and ‘Nicely, Mr. Leno, I hope you and your Democratic buddies are completely happy’ — over the identical joke.”
“And I’m going, ‘Nicely, that’s good,’” he stated. “That’s the way you get an entire viewers.”
At the moment, nonetheless, Leno acknowledged that the late-night TV panorama has modified.
“Now you must be content material with half the viewers as a result of you must give your opinion,” he shared.
Moreover, Leno introduced up his longtime good friend, comic Rodney Dangerfield, who died in 2004 and visitor co-hosted The Tonight Present a number of occasions.
“I knew Rodney 40 years. I don’t know if he was Democrat or Republican,” he stated. “We by no means mentioned, we simply mentioned jokes.”
Leno continued, “And to me, I wish to suppose that folks come to a comedy present to sort of get away from the issues, you realize, the pressures of life, no matter it is likely to be. And I really like political humor, don’t get me mistaken. Nevertheless it’s simply what occurs when folks wind up cozying an excessive amount of to at least one facet or the opposite.”
Throughout his chat with Trulio, Leno shared recommendation on how comedy can unite folks.
“Humorous is humorous,” Leno stated. “It’s humorous when … you make enjoyable of their facet they usually snort at it. I don’t suppose anyone desires to listen to a lecture.”
He concluded, “I don’t perceive why you’d alienate one explicit group … simply do what’s humorous.”
Though Leno didn’t contact upon Stephen Colbert’s Late Present cancellation, the interview got here on the heels of the surprising July 17 announcement.