Veteran talk show host Jay Leno recently voiced out his thoughts on Jimmy Fallon as the new face and voice of The Tonight Show.
Leno has been known as the face of the iconic television program since 1982, after taking the seat of the late great Johnny Carson. While Leno held the spot for 27 years, his stint had its trials and tribulations along the way. The most notable one involved fellow late night talk show host Conan O'Brien, when he took over the reins as The Tonight Show host in 2009.
Leno had his own show when Conan was the Tonight Show host, but because of a brief timeslot battle at NBC, O'Brien opted to leave the show, which led to Leno's reinstatement.
In April 2013, Leno once again left The Tonight Show seat, and passed the torch on to Jimmy Fallon. This time around, no timeslot debacles happened, and instead, the veteran talk show host was even all praises towards his second successor.
In a report by TIME, the 64-year old late night television fixture had nothing but good words towards the former Saturday Night Live talent.
"I like Jimmy [Fallon]; I think he's terrific. "Every host brings his own personality to the show. It's different now than when I was there, just like the show was different than when Johnny Carson was there."
Leno further commended Fallon for "doing a great job" in terms of keeping the reputable trait of The Tonight Show.
"That's part of the legacy of the show," he adds. "Everybody who has ever hosted Tonight has been number one when they left, and there's a lot to be said about that. I think Jimmy is doing a great job."
Since he stepped down from The Tonight Show, Leno has been busy with his stand-up comedy, wherein he claims that is able to do 200 shows per year. Naturally having spent two decades as the show's host, he admits that he still misses his old gig, but affirms that if given a chance, he will say no to doing it all again.
"You know, things are great now," Leno says. "Showbiz is like champagne. If you drink it every day, you become an alcoholic. I enjoy being around it and observing it now, rather than being in it."
