Jay Leno injured in Pittsburgh area after falling down hillside
GREENSBURG, Pa. (KDKA) -- Jay Leno, a comedian and former host of "The Tonight Show," was in Greensburg for a stand-up comedy show at the Palace Theatre on Friday. While the show went off without a hitch, what happened before the show has everybody talking.
"I was thinking, 'I need to call an ambulance' because I thought, whatever happened, it was a severe fall," said Gary Latshaw, the owner of Latshaw Productions, the company that put on the sold-out Jay Leno show.
The comedian was apparently staying at the Hampton Inn off Route 30 near Greensburg when he decided to get wings at the nearby Dino's Sports Lounge.
The restaurant is only about 200 yards from the hotel, but the quickest way to walk to it is down a steep, grassy hillside.
Leno said that while trying to navigate the slope, he lost his footing, and was tumbling some 50 to 60 feet down the hill into the parking lot below.
The 74-year-old comedian was badly injured, breaking his wrist, and hitting his head and left eye so badly that he put on an eye patch to hide the swelling, but despite being hurt, the thought of canceling his show was not an option.
The Emmy winner carried on as if nothing had happened, performing stand-up for over 1,500 people for 90 minutes and receiving a standing ovation at the end.
Gary Latshaw says that in all his years of producing shows and working with talent, he has never seen anything like what Leno went through.
"It's really inspiring to see somebody that committed to their work and their profession," said Latshaw. "And he didn't want to disappoint people, including people who were there to meet him backstage. He could have canceled that. He cancelled nothing. I stand amazed. I really do. It was inspiring to watch."
It would seem Jay Leno is the personification of the old theatre adage: the show must go on.