Goodbye Jay

After 17 years of hosting The Tonight Show, Jay Leno signed off Friday night. It feels like a huge seismic shift in the late night landscape. I watched his last show and was sad when it ended. I already miss him. I miss headlines on Monday nights. I miss Jaywalking. I miss Kevin. I miss his easy-going nature. I miss his humor. I've been watching Jay since I was a kid, not always on a regular basis, but when I'm up late at night he's the one I turn on. My friend Lindsay and I even refer to him as Jay, as if we are close friends that talk often. His last show was really great, with a beautiful acoustic performance from James Taylor, best of Jaywalking, and Jay showing off his legacy--the 68 children that have been to staffers of the Tonight Show over his 17 years!

On Monday I watched the new Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. I'm a fan of Conan's, but think he's just not the same at the earlier hour; too much of what made him funny--the quirkiness of him--seems to be gone, (although he did have a really funny bit last night about a shopping spree on Rodeo Rd, and Green Day was pretty awesome, too). So I will wait for fall when Jay has his new show, might occasionally watch Conan, and poor Jimmy Fallon will get the shaft at my house.