Jay Leno’s an Unsung Brooklyn Hero

For the past dozen years, former Tonight Show host Jay Leno has quietly supported Bailey’s Café, a small intergenerational arts organization in Brooklyn. Founded in 2002, the non-profit focuses on bringing together young and old for everything from cooking lessons and computer help to after-school music programming. For the comedic legend, who returns to CNBC in November for the season premiere of Jay Leno’s Garage, donating over $1 million to this organization over the years has felt like a perfect fit. Read on to find out why the standup comedian, who has been performing for four decades and does about 210 dates a year, gravitated to this non-profit, as well as what’s keeping him busy these days:

You’re supporting a charity that’s a long way from LA. What appealed to you about Bailey’s Cafe?

They’re doing real-world work. I like the the idea that they put young people with elderly people. It’s all community-based and it’s just a terrific organization. There are lots of charities that give out socks or underwear for Christmas, but that doesn’t feel like a present even though you need them. What this does is give people companionship and enables young and old people to learn together. It’s a fascinating little place there.

And you originally found out about Bailey’s Café because the founder, Stefanie Siegel, is your college girlfriend, right?

Exactly. I’ve always been attracted to women who do good things.

Like your wife, Mavis.

Yes—she got a Nobel Peace Prize nomination and has worked with the women of Afghanistan. I like that part of the feminine mystique. I’m attracted to it. When people ask ‘how do you stay married a long time,’ I always say you want to marry your conscience, the person you wish you could be. That tends to make for a pretty good life. Show business is a profession where you’re always trying to do more things for yourself, so why not hook up with people who do things for other people? This way it will balance out your life.

Are you always thinking of ways to give to Bailey’s?

Yes. Like this week I’m doing this show, Lip Sync Battle, and they’ll give $10,000 to Bailey’s. A lot of show business things I do are like that. I’ll have the money go to this charity. That seems to work out well. It doesn’t come through me—it goes directly to the charity.

So do you have a soft spot for Brooklyn?

It wasn’t about that. It could have been Chicago or anywhere else. It was more about Stefanie. She’s a nice person and the community seems to embrace her. What she’s doing is good for the community.

How much fun are you having with Jay Leno’s Garage? I’ve read you own more than 200 cars and motorcycles.

It’s about cars and transportation, which is something I know about. When I was doing The Tonight Show, I wasn’t the big sports guy or a big music guy. There were so many times I’d say, ‘My next guest has sold more albums than Elvis and the Beatles combined’ and I’d think, ‘Who is this? I never heard of this guy.’ Cars are something I have an interest in. I can talk about them off the top of my head. It’s what I like to do. Plus, you don’t have to deal with any publicists. We don’t care about your client’s cocaine bust or divorce. We’re talking about cars and motorcycles and their first car. It’s great fun. They know it’s not an ambush show. There’s so much heavy news now. It’s nice to have some light entertainment.

I have to ask—are you a great driver?

No, no. Driving is like sex. All men think they’re good at it, but you have to ask the passenger. Don’t ask the driver.

And what about stand-up? What do you love most about it?

When you do stand up you show up. It’s the most basic form of human communication. With the exception of a microphone, the art form hasn’t changed a lot in the last hundred years. If you watch a love story from the 1920s, it’s so slow, so boring, it would be hard to sit through it. But if you watch a Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin movie, it’s just as funny and maybe funnier because of the clothes, the social mores and customs and all that. So that’s kind of what I like about it. Also, all my friends who are musicians, they have to get to a gig the day before and rehearse. When you’re a comedian, the show’s at eight, the plane lands at seven, you get to the venue at 7:45 and you go, ‘Heck I have to kill 15 minutes.”

What’s the feeling about America you’re getting when you’re on the road?

The vibe is that society can’t work unless people basically do the right thing. One in every 600 people is a criminal. If you live in a neighborhood of 1,200 people you have two criminals and if you don’t catch them, it’s a problem. But, you know, most people do the right ting. They really do. The number of instances I see of people helping one another or doing something nice far outweigh the negative, but we live in a time where the news is completely unfiltered. If there’s a traffic accident in Beijing, I hear about it like it’s up the street.

Are there any topics you avoid when you’re on stage?

In the end, you’re there to get laughs. When I was on The Tonight Show, no one could figure out my politics. We tried to make fun of all sides equally. I never questioned anyone’s patriotism, I only questioned their motive. It’s getting crazy out there but, ultimately, I think Americans will do the right thing.