The Jay Leno Show may have slipped off the air last night without an official farewell from its host or NBC, but it won't be buried without a few words by Movieline. After all, we've watched this $375 million disaster from the moment that Jay Leno pulled his orange Prius into the 10 PM time slot as he deflated his ratings, totaled his network's name and then jumped from the burning wreckage, saving himself, but not his trustworthy passenger, Coco. Sometimes brave decision makers end up looking dumb, and that is certainly the case for Jeff Zucker and associates. But let's focus on the positive with these nine moments that will forever live on in our memories, even after The Jay Leno Show has been disassembled and sold for parts.
9. Kanye West's Apology
It's hard to believe now, but 50% more viewers tuned into the Jay Leno Show premiere in September than Leno's Tonight Show finale, thanks mostly to this fortuitous talent booking.
8. Jaywalking With Jersey Shore
Leno only had a few opportunities to use his Jaywalking All-Stars set during his primetime term. The best edition featured Jersey Shore breakouts Pauly D., the Situation and (three-time Jay Leno Show visitor) Snooki.
7. Eerie ConanGate Foreshadowing
Deep in the Jay Leno Show's archives, Movieline found this clip, in which Leno joked about being the cause of Conan's frightening Tonight Show wipe-out.
6. Ping Pong Pow
A December episode proved that some of The Jay Leno Show's most exciting moments came courtesy of disaster. Like the time that Susan Sarandon's six-foot tall ping-pong teammate fell victim to Leno's wicked backhand.
5. Wendy's Lesson In Shameless Product Placement
Who could forget the Wendy's bit that launched the Edrants.com investigation into after hours product-whoring? Here, Jay Leno grills the pig-tailed Wendy's mascot, played by The Office's Kate Flannery.
4. Inpromptu Gaga
Ripping a page from the Kanye playbook, Jay Leno pulled Lady Gaga aside for an unplanned sit-down after her performance in November, resulting in one of the freshest Jay Leno Show interviews.
3. Kinking Chelsea
After learning that he'd be retaking the helm of the Tonight Show, our trusty Lenosman ratcheted up the creep factor in his "Earn This Plug Segment" with this memorable motel room bit. [Scroll ahead to 2:34]
2. Jimmy Kimmel's Late Crime
Never before has one late night host so viciously attacked a colleague -- on the latter's own show -- via satellite. Relive the sucker punch here.
1. Jay Leno, the Master
Amazingly, Jay Leno hit his peak last month -- without guests, random Carrot Top cameos or gimmicky "Earn Your Plug" segments -- when addressing the ConanGate disaster. If we remember Jay Leno as anything during his five-month primetime stint, it should be as a master communicator bogged down by expensive sets and network controversy. Hopefully the late night statesman seen below will be returning to the Tonight Show in March.