By Sam Watermeier
Thursday evening, Jay Leno bid his final good night to the crew and audience of the talk show he has hosted for 22 years.
Of course, this was not the first time Leno has said goodbye to "The Tonight Show." In 2009, he moved to prime-time, passing the "Tonight Show" torch to Conan O'Brien, but then reclaiming the show, which NBC offered him after O'Brien's low ratings and time slot conflicts. (Watch Leno's explanation below.)
Thursday night, Leno's explanation behind reclaiming "The Tonight Show" dispelled the popular notion that he acted out of mere show biz selfishness.
"People say to me, 'Hey, why didn't you go to ABC or FOX?'"
"I didn't know anybody over there," Leno said, then describing his NBC crew as family.
It was a humble, selfless speech from a man often accused of being otherwise.
There is more to a show than what meets the eye, Leno illuminated, pointing to: the 64 children of his NBC crew that were born during his time on the air; the fact that his parents and brother died during his first years on the show and the NBC crew became his family, etc.
By getting personal and letting tears strip away his clown makeup, so to speak, Leno revealed the intimate power of television. He turned the auditorium into a living room, and when he said, "I want to thank you, the audience," I felt like he was talking directly to me.
Journalist Edward R. Murrow was right; television can illuminate and inspire. When Leno connected with his audience on a personal, emotional level Thursday night, he further proved Murrow's point that television is not merely wires and lights in a box.
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