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Jay Leno is continuing to stand by his wife during her battle with advanced dementia — a decision that has stunned some in Hollywood.
The former “Tonight Show” host revealed that while caring for his wife of 45 years, Mavis, some people have reacted with disbelief and even suggested he find a girlfriend.
“You take a vow when you get married, and people are stunned … they’re so shocked that you would live up to it. Why?” Leno said during an appearance on the “Life Above the Noise with Maria Shriver” podcast.
JAY LENO TRIES TO FIND THE HUMOR DURING WIFE’S DEMENTIA BATTLE
Jay Leno said that people suggesting he get a girlfriend is “the most Hollywood thing.” (Michael Tullberg/Getty Images)
Shriver reacted, “In sickness and in health … then when there is a sickness and you’re there, you’re saying people are like, ‘Whoa.’”
Leno said the most surprising comment came straight out of Hollywood.
“Yeah, my favorite thing was — and this is the most Hollywood thing — a guy said to me, ‘Uh, so are you going to get a girlfriend now?’ Well, no, I have a girlfriend. I’m married. I’ve been married 45 years. ‘Yeah, but you know what I mean.’ No … we’re kind of in this together, you know. You can’t, ‘Honey, honey, I’ll be with my girlfriend, I’ll be back later.’ That was like the most Hollywood thing. It just made me laugh,” he said.
Leno said he laughs off the thought of getting a girlfriend. (Nina Zacuto)
Shriver asked whether the reaction had surprised him.
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“But you’re saying that people … their reaction has been surprising to you?” she asked.
Leno was appointed conservator over Mavis’ estate in 2024. (Charley Gallay)
Leno replied, “We just make a big deal out of it. You’re just doing the right thing because you’re supposed to. Right. That’s kind of — that used to be the norm, and then when you strayed, that was the out-of-whack part. Now the out-of-whack part is fairly common, and staying and doing what you’re supposed to do is stunning to people. Well, we kind of made a deal, you know.”
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Leno, 75, has been married to Mavis, 79, since 1980. The couple never had children. He has described standing by her side not as a sacrifice but as a responsibility he accepted decades ago.
Leno, 75, has been married to Mavis, 79, since 1980. (NBC)
In January 2024, Leno filed for conservatorship over Mavis’ estate, stating she “lacks the necessary capacity to execute the estate plan” due to “major neurocognitive disorders (including dementia),” according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
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Mavis is far more than the spouse of a TV icon. She earned a Nobel Peace Prize nomination in 2002 for her advocacy supporting Afghan women living under Taliban rule.
The couple first met at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles in the 1970s.