The former Tonight Show host encountered two distinct incidents in late 2022.
Due to not one, but two serious incidents that left Jay Leno with numerous injuries throughout his body, the past few months have been challenging for him.
First off, the 73-year-old singer had to spend nine days in the Grossman Burn Center at West Hills Hospital after being hurt on November 12 of last year while repairing a vintage car in his garage at home in Los Angeles.
His second and third degree burns were extremely severe as a result. A little more than a month later, on January 27, he was hurt while riding a motorcycle, breaking his collarbone and two ribs.
Despite the string of mishaps, the comedian, who currently hosts Jay Leno’s Garage and the NBC game show You Bet Your Life, has no intention of stopping anytime soon.
Leno spoke candidly to Page Six at the Hot Wheels: Ultimate Challenge premiere about his retirement plans—spoiler alert: he has none—and what it would take to step away from the spotlight.
The seasoned late-night host insisted that he does not have any plans to retire, adding, “Unless I have a stroke, then you slow down”.
According to him, you retire when you have a stroke, so he insisted that he wouldn’t quit his job until his health forced him to”.
From both of his most recent collisions, Leno made an admirable recovery. He underwent various grafting procedures during a nine-day hospital stay, but he quickly resumed driving and even went to the scene of the collision.
A little less than a week later, he performed on stage once more at the Comedy Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, California, to a sold-out audience and standing ovations.
The former late-night host spoke about his car fire mishap with People in an interview a month after the incident, adding: “When you work with cars, you have a lot of accidents, but this is bigger than most. ”.
He acknowledged: “I knew how close I was to the pilot light and I thought, ‘Uh oh. He talked about getting a “full face of gasoline” while repairing a fuel line that had become clogged in the undercarriage of a 1907 White Steam Car.
It “felt exactly like my face was on fire,” he said.
“Maybe like the most intense sunburn you’ve ever had, that’d be fair to say”.
While in the hospital, he underwent two skin grafting procedures to help grow new, healthier skin, as well as sessions in a hyperbaric chamber to help oxygenate the tissue. Painkillers were used as a diversion during this time because he refused to take them because they were “a reminder that I’m an idiot.”.
His family and notable acquaintances also generously demonstrated their support for him. His 43-year-old wife Mavis informed him that Russell Crowe called from Australia, Tom Selleck sent flowers, and John Travolta sent him a large Italian basket during his stay at the burn center. Considering how long I’ve worked in this field, it was extremely moving to feel such love.
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