Life for Jay Leno and his wife Mavis Leno may not always be easy these days, but he is happy taking care of her. Last year, the former Tonight Show host’s wife’s dementia battle was revealed after he filed for a conservatorship for her, in an effort to assure Mavis, 77, has a living trust set up in the case that he passes away before her. And though he, 74, has kept details about her health largely private since, he has been candid about stepping up to the plate as her caregiver — and enjoying taking care of her.
Speaking with People this week, Jay candidly shared: “My wife’s got some problems, so it’s just her and I. But it’s always been her and I for the last 45 years anyway, so it’s fine. I enjoy taking care of her. It’s fun.” The couple has been married since 1980, and chose to not have kids together.
“I mean, I do enjoy it. People think, ‘Oh, it must be horrible.’ No, because she’s not in any pain. She’s not suffering,” the former comedian continued, noting: “It’s not like a tumor or cancer. It’s just a confusion that comes with Alzheimer’s and dementia. And that’s okay.” When Jay was granted the conservatorship over Mavis in order to better take care of her, and ensure she is set should something happen to him, a judge maintained: “She’s in very good care with Mr. Leno.”
“I enjoy being her rock. It makes you feel wanted. You got a purpose now. So it’s good,” Jay further shared with the outlet. He shared a similar sentiment speaking on In Depth with Graham Bensinger in April, explaining: “When you get married, you sort of take a vow: ‘Will I live up to this? Or will I be like a sleazy guy if something happens to my wife, I’m out banging the cashier at the mini mart?'” before maintaining: “No, I didn’t.”
“I enjoy the time with my wife. I go home, I cook dinner for her, watch TV and it’s okay,” he went on, adding: “It’s basically what we did before, except now I have to feed her and do all those things.” And though he described it as the first real challenge he has faced in his life — he turned 75 on April 28 — he emphasized: “I like it. I like taking care of her. She’s a very independent woman, so I like that I’m needed.”
© Monica SchipperFurther giving insight into how their relationship has changed, and taking on the heartbreaking task of caring for someone with dementia, Jay said of course “It’s a challenge” when you “have to feed someone and change them and carry them to the bathroom and do all that kind of stuff every day.” Still, he said: “It’s not that I enjoy doing it … But I guess I enjoy doing it.”
© Ron Galella“I mean, that’s really what love is. That’s what you do. I mean, I’m glad I didn’t cut and run. I’m glad I didn’t run off with some woman half my age or any of that silly nonsense. I would rather be with her than doing something else,” he further reflected. Mavis and Jay met in the 1970s at famed Los Angeles comedy club the Comedy Store, where the veteran television host was scheduled to do a stand-up show. They never had kids together, which Mavis previously said is something she decided on when she was a kid herself. In 2014, she told The Washington Post: “I remember telling my mother when I was 7 or 8 that I was never going to get married or have children.”
© GettyCiting the 1955 sitcom The Honeymooners as an influence, she further explained: “I would see a young woman who was very attractive and a thousand times smarter, and she’s living in this little tenement hovel with her husband,” adding: “These men spend all their time talking about what a drag the wives are and asking how can they get away from them. It’s perfectly obvious the women are the ones trapped.”
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