BEHIND THE CURTAIN BEHIND THE CURTAIN BEHIND THE CURTAIN (11 page)
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Authors: Dave Berg
Tags: #Entertainment
In 2007, I almost fell out of my chair while reading a
Cond
é
Nast Traveler
interview with Jordan’s King Abdullah II. The king, who was primarily promoting tourism in his country, said: “I watch Jay Leno at night [on satellite TV], and when he asks Americans questions in the street about history or culture, their responses are still pretty shocking.”
King Abdullah
watches Jay Leno?!,
I thought. By making a specific reference to Jaywalking, he was saying he actually was a fan.
What a great guest he would make!
Here was a young, forward-thinking king from the Middle East who liked skydiving, riding motorcycles and science fiction, especially
Star Trek.
And his wife, Queen Rania, was incredibly beautiful.
I’d certainly stay up to watch him!
I had a strong feeling King Abdullah would be interested, if I could just figure out how to get to him. I didn’t have many contacts in the Middle East, and government bureaucracies could be impossible to deal with under the best of circumstances. But the king was easier to reach than I thought.
Peter Greenberg, a travel reporter I knew who had done a special on the king, contacted His Majesty on my behalf and confirmed that he was interested in making an appearance. But I was never able to make it happen. My colleagues and our executive producer were intrigued, though they didn’t think he was a big enough draw. These decisions were never easy. Maybe they were right. But if we had booked King Abdullah, one thing is certain: we would have owned the ratings in Amman that night!
Jay and I doing a faux interview at the desk in Studio 11 right after the show had been recorded.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Here I am in
The Tonight Show
audience playing the president of Amtrak as Jay (not pictured) tells a monologue joke about the railroad company’s uneven safety record.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Hugh Grant making his famous
mea culpa
to Jay Leno in 1995.
(Photo by Margaret Norton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
John Elway, former Denver Broncos quarterback, with me backstage during his only visit to the show in 1999, after leading the Broncos to their second consecutive Super Bowl victory and being named Most Valuable Player.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Garth Brooks was one of Jay’s favorites and the last guest ever to appear on
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
Here he is performing as Barbera Libis, music co-producer, and I watch.
(Photo by Margaret Norton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
The fake seismograph printout, mounted over my office door, that Shirley MacLaine didn’t think was funny.
Dennis Rodman with me backstage. This is actually a conservative look for him. Dennis was always a ratings draw and a favorite of the staff.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Jerry Seinfeld, John F. Kennedy Jr., and Jay Leno during John’s only appearance (1998).
(Photo by NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)
Mr. Obama arriving at
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
on March 19, 2009, for his appearance as the first sitting president on a late-night show. (l-r) Walter Lewis, President Obama, me, Jay Leno.
(Official White House photo by Pete Souza)
Jay and President Obama in the dressing room. Mr. Obama made six appearances.
(Official White House photo by Pete Souza)
Former president Jimmy Carter and me during one of his eleven appearances. Mr. Carter was our first major political “get.”
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Former senator Bob Dole with me in 1996 during his presidential run. Mr. Dole was the first presidential candidate to come on the show.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)
Then Texas governor George W. Bush in the hair and makeup room during his 2000 presidential bid. (l-r) Mark McKinnon, Logan Walters, aides; Mr. Bush; Meta Hahn, hair design artist; me.
(Courtesy NBCUniversal Media, LLC)