Jay Leno Took a nasty fall hours before his comedy show and still made it on stage.
“I went out and there was a restaurant. [at the bottom of a hill] But to get to it — I didn’t have a car — so you had to drive about a mile and a half,” the comedian, 74, told TMZ on Monday, Nov. 18. “Well, I said, ‘The hill doesn’t look that steep, maybe 60 to 70 feet. Let me see if I can go down the hill.’ And then I fell and boom, boom.
Leno, who was wearing an eye patch while speaking to the outlet, was staying at a “hotel on a hill” and was looking for a place to eat. Over the weekend, Leno was scheduled to perform at the Yamawa Resort and Casino in Highland, California, about two hours from Los Angeles.
“I fell down the hill, hit my head on a rock and fell into my eye,” he said before removing his eye patch to reveal his injury.
Leno’s face was swollen and bruised in addition to retaining a black eye. Despite hurting himself, Leno went ahead with the show because the accident happened “a few hours ago.” He shared that he didn’t go to the hospital until he returned home to Los Angeles and is currently “doing fine.”
When asked why he didn’t postpone the show due to his injuries, Leno said he didn’t want to disappoint the “26,000” fans who came all the way to see him and announced that the show should go on. . (Leno performed three shows at the venue.)
“It’s not that big of a deal,” he added of his injury. “That’s right.”
His recent fall is not the only instance in which Leno has sustained injuries to his body. In 2023, Leno was involved in a motorcycle accident that resulted in a broken collarbone, two broken ribs and two broken kneecaps.
A year ago, the former late-night host was hospitalized for 10 days after suffering severe burns to her face and body. While working on his 1907 White Steam car, a fire broke out in his Los Angeles garage. Leno later underwent a skin graft procedure and several other surgeries to properly treat his injuries.
Leno poked fun at himself on Monday for being so hurt the past two years.
“Great thing about [being] This is the age where you don’t learn from your mistakes,” he quipped. “You just keep saying the same stupid things.”