Jay Leno got into some trouble this month after he told some mocking jokes at the expense of NBC. Well, the late night comedian didn’t show any signs of toning it down last night when he referred to executives at the network as “snakes.”
Leno reportedly exchanged a couple of heated emails with NBC entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt this month after Jay made fun of NBC for falling to fifth in the ratings behind Univision.
It’s not clear what Greenblatt said in the emails but he was clearly upset with Jay for mocking the network.
Well, the warning didn’t phase Jay at all.
Last night during his monologue he called NBC executives, like Greenblatt, a bunch of snakes.
Leno said : “Well you know the whole legend of St. Patrick, right? St. Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland, and then they came here to the United States and became NBC executives … It’s a fascinating, fascinating story.”
Jay’s feud with the network comes at a time when rumors are circulating about his exit. A retirement date hasn’t been set yet but several sources say that NBC wants to bring in Jimmy Fallon to the Tonight Show in order to compete with younger hosts like Jimmy Kimmel.
Of course, now they might toss Jay just because he isn’t playing nicely with Greenblatt.
Here’s the video of Jay’s monologue.
Do you think Jay is playing with fire? Do you think his job is in jeopardy?
Making fun of your superiors has been a staple in late night comedy for decades and Jay probably won’t lose his job over a couple of jokes. But if NBC is serious about bringing in Fallon, this little feud could expedite Jay’s retirement.