# Jay Leno have a hardon or something....? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2012, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111 "2012-06-14T06:57:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/41 "2012-06-14T16:49:47Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > He’s also a bit racist. (Dancing Itos and all that.) Because Japanese men are known for their dancing skills? :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/42 "2012-06-14T18:04:31Z")
It’s Leno’s job to poke fun at the President, regardless of party. Also candidates. He is supposed to tell jokes in a lighthearted manner late at night to ease people into sleepy time. Mr. Weaver, the fellow who thought up the Tonight Show thought of it as light just before bedtime entertainment. Not edgy. Unlike his daughter, Sigorney, who is synonymous with wet your pants scary entertainment. At least that is what Sigorney claimed when she hosted SNL. I gave up on Leno in about 2003 when it was apparent that he was going way too easy on Bush’s moronic tendencies and still telling Clinton’s penis jokes instead. I think Clenis jokes are funny from time to time, but he shouldn’t thrust them in where they don’t belong. The monologue isn’t a humidor, but topical humor. I’m pretty sure that Leno is actually a fairly liberal Democrat, or at least he was prior to 9/11 as he was personally chummy with more Democrats than Republicans and went to more Democratic fundraisers and donated to charities that appealed to liberals. Whether he still is, I don’t know. Heck, Ronald Reagan and Charlton Heston were once very liberal Democrats. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/43 "2012-06-14T18:55:22Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Well, he did say Obama wasn’t constitutionally eligible to be president on account of being a n\*\*\*a. Obama is a ninja?? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/44 "2012-06-14T19:13:24Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > It’s Leno’s job to poke fun at the President, regardless of party. Actually, it is the job of his writers, right? Let’s not give chin-dude any more credit then he is due. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/45 "2012-06-14T19:15:22Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > I think Clenis jokes are funny from time to time Not me. Cleanish jokes leave me all :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/46 "2012-06-14T20:31:50Z")
Leno played a big role in launching Schwarzenegger’s political career, whatever that might indicate. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/47 "2012-06-14T21:22:43Z")
Yes, Leno will (pretty gently) mock whoever lives in the White House at any given time. Remember that Obama was the first incumbent President to appear on late-night TV, and he did it on Leno’s show. I don’t think he would’ve if he thought Leno was hostile to him. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/48 "2012-06-14T22:36:50Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Actually, it is the job of his writers, right? Let’s not give chin-dude any more credit then he is due. Leno is also one of the writers. Or at least he was for many years. He works almost all the time. His writers certainly are entitled to a lot of credit. For the ten years or so I watched him it was pretty clear he sat in on several hours of writing every day. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/49 "2012-06-14T23:08:54Z")
The only people I know of that Leno has ever pissed off is the [Catholic League](http://www.catholicleague.org/jay-leno-goes-back-to-sewer-2/). Well, them and humor fans. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/50 "2012-06-14T23:50:14Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Leno is notoriously anti-Democratic. Has been for a long time. E.g., the joke he made in 1988 about “Dukakis” being Greek for “Mondale”. > > He’s also a bit racist. (Dancing Itos and all that.) > > Put them together and guess what you get? How does the Dancing Itos sketch lead you to conclude Leno is racist? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/51 "2012-06-14T23:53:23Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > How does the Dancing Itos sketch lead you to conclude Leno is racist? I thought it made him justicist. Or Itoist. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2012, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/52 "2012-06-14T23:58:09Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Actually, it is the job of his writers, right? Let’s not give chin-dude any more credit then he is due. I can’t answer the President-thing but let me just hijack to say that it isn’t the writer fault that he mugs for the camera after every lame joke, in order to try to pretend that it was meta-humor and funny because it wasn’t funny. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/53 "2012-06-15T00:07:48Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > If he’s really anti-Democrat, there have to be better examples than this. So far it just sounds like a couple Democrats can’t take jokes about their party. G’wan! Get out of here! Since when has that ever been the case??? 😃 I’m a card, I am. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/54 "2012-06-15T00:10:20Z")
> [@hopesperson](#): > > Well, he did make that one joke in 1988, besmirching the good name of Michael Dukakis and almost certainly costing him the election. And to lampoon The Honorable _Lance Ito_? Is no cow too sacred for Leno, that racist?! Well put,\*\* hopesperson\*\*. Their blood is on his hands! ---
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/55 "2012-06-15T00:13:33Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > I wish you folks would realize that not everyone on the Dope watches US TV. Here, here! Come on now you folks, no more posting about _anything_ that not _everyone_ on the dope is privy to. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Niply\_Elder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@The\_Niply\_Elder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Niply_Elder)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/56 "2012-06-15T01:17:46Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > I don’t watch the show, can you give an example? I would assume that the president is always going to be the butt of late-night humor, it’s pretty much part of the job description. Yeah but his jokes arent even remotely funny. They feel like such a strech. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/57 "2012-06-15T01:23:06Z")
Actually, Dukakis is Greek for McGovern. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/58 "2012-06-15T02:11:14Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > Couldn’t agree more on, all points. I watch most nights, or at least have it on when I go to sleep, and I haven’t noticed anything particularly over the top. I’m really surprised to hear anyone say he’s a staunch Republican. As **DMark** pointed out, socially he’s very liberal. Just coming in to 3rd this. I hate Letterman! He’ll tell a joke, and then laugh at it, to make sure SOMEBODY did. ---
**Author:** ![bahia\_hombre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@bahia\_hombre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bahia_hombre)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/59 "2012-06-15T02:22:04Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > In my world, hardon collisions aren’t that rare. Any sign of the Higgs boson then? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2012, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111/60 "2012-06-15T02:29:55Z")
> [@bahia\_hombre](#): > > Any sign of the Higgs boson then? Hardon collision are frot with danger. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/jay-leno-have-a-hardon-or-something/625111.md?page=4)