Howard Stern’s edgy humor offended Jay Leno so much that he almost walked out of a taping of The Tonight Show.

Throughout the ’90s, there were a few hosts that were the best, including Jay Leno and Howard Stern. Thanks to his years of success, Leno became one of the richest talk show hosts even though he lived beneath his means. Similarly, Stern’s radio show made him extremely wealthy.

Since Stern was so controversial he once got beaten up, Leno had to know things could be crazy when he was welcomed on The Tonight Show. However, things got so out of control that Leno reportedly almost walked out on his own talk show.

This article will reveal what Howard Stern did to outrage Jay Leno so much he almost walked off The Tonight Show. Then, the article will look at what Leno did to Stern after the shock jock’s controversial Tonight Show appearance.

Howard Stern Reportedly Offended Jay Leno So Much He Almost Walked Off The Tonight Show

In 1995, Jay Leno welcomed Howard Stern to The Tonight Show. From the moment that Stern walked out onstage, there was no doubt that their interview was going to be a totally unique for two reasons.

First off, when Stern walked out onstage, he was accompanied by a pair of scantily clad women who were showing off most of their bodies. Secondly, Leno’s audience was hooting and hollering like they had just come from a night of hard partying.

If Leno thought that Stern wouldn’t go further then bringing out to scantily clad women, it soon became clear he was far from done. After talking to Leno about how he was going to get him ratings, Stern had the women he came out with have, “the first Tonight Show lesbian kiss”.

The Tonight Show’s production team clearly didn’t think Stern’s antics could be shown on network television. After all, they had a cameraman stand in front of the women so that their kiss couldn’t be seen during the telecast.

How much older is Jay Leno than Howard Stern, according to Britannica?

When was Jay Leno born?:
April 28, 1950

When was Howard Stern born?:
January 12, 1954

How much older is Jay Leno than Howard Stern?:
3 years, 8 months, and 15 days

Throughout this scene, Leno looked like he was out of his element and he even joked about how “sexually naive” he was. Stern still wasn’t through, however, as he did something proactive to one of the women he was accompanied by.

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Throughout this part of their interview, Leno could be seen repeatedly telling Stern he was going too far. As Leno tried to tell Stern over and over, he was doing things that were so extreme they’d inevitably be edited out.

During another part of Stern’s appearance, he pulled a slew of celebrity books out of a bag and mocked the books and their authors. Stern also remained onstage with the two women and consistently interrupted Leno’s other guests that night. Siskel & Ebert.

Throughout all of this, Leno seemed like he was extremely uncomfortable.

Stern’s Tonight Show appearance was so out of control that NBC released a statement apologizing the following day. A Chicago Tribune report from December 1995 quoted the network’s apology.

“While (Stern)’s always outrageous, he has previously stayed within acceptable boundaries. Last night, NBC and the show felt he crossed that boundary.”

However, The Chicago Tribune called NBC out for not realizing Stern would be outrageous. The outlet also pointed out that NBC didn’t have to air the footage of Stern they deemed too offensive.

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A Mental Floss article from 2020 also detailed how outraged Leno was by Stern’s 1995 conduct.

In January 2019, Jay Leno appeared on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. During the resulting conversation, Leno was asked about his longstanding feud with Howard Stern. In response, Leno called Stern “really talented” and praised him as a “good interviewer”. Leno also explained that he had moved on from their feud. “I don’t hold any grudges. I listen to him now, he’s funny, he’s good.”

In fact, it was reported that Leno almost walked off his own show and refused to continue his interview with Stern.

Since Jay Leno didn’t personally confirm that he almost walked off The Tonight Show instead of interviewing Stern more, it makes sense to be skeptical of that claim. However, after the interview continued, Stern referenced how upset Leno had been behind the scenes.

“During the commercial, it was unbelievable. Jay went into a funk, a tizzy and a funk. He brings out two producers. He brings out, “You know what, it’s not going to be on. It’s not going to be on.’ I said, ‘Jay, why don’t you think positive? Why don’t you think positive?'”

Stern then proceeded to confront Leno about why he thought two women kissing on his show would be a problem. On camera, an obviously annoyed Leno asked Stern why he thought that was a good idea. “Why would that be positive?”

Jay Leno Reportedly Banned Howard Stern From The Tonight Show For His Antics

Over the years, Howard Stern has been interviewed by David Letterman many times. However, it has been many years since Stern has spoken to Leno on camera.

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According to an article from The Things, there is a good reason why Leno didn’t interview Stern after 1995. After Stern was out of control on The Tonight Show in 1995, Leno banned him from ever appearing on the show again.

Looking back at Stern’s 1995 The Tonight Show appearance, it is easy to see why he wasn’t welcomed back.

First off, most networks don’t want to have people they’ve previously apologized for appear on their programming again. Secondly, it seemed very obvious that Leno was very annoyed by Stern in 1995.

It, is also worth noting that according to The Things’ article, Stern isn’t the only one that Leno banned. Leno also wouldn’t welcome Joan Rivers and Kathy Griffin on The Tonight Show during his tenure.