Leno a hit at the PAC 10th anniversary event
Jay Leno with the members of the PAC staff: Tom Flood, left, Velda Lyness, Marsha Judy, David Mitchell and Bartolo Cannizzaro.
KSU Tuscarawas dean Brad Bielski said it couldn’t be done, but David Mitchell, general manager of the Performing Arts Center at Kent State University Tuscarawas, proved him wrong and signed comedian Jay Leno to entertain at the 10th anniversary celebration of the PAC.
Known as the hardest-working man in show business, Leno entertained the sell-out crowd with stories about the differences between men and women when it comes to a number of things like shopping and the dress code at parties, being embarrassed by his parents, and stories from his career.
The lights went up at the end of the show, and Leno took questions from the audience with most being related to his car collection and his car show, Jay Leno’s Garage.
One answer had a connection to New Philadelphia — an astronaut who learned to fly at Harry Clever Field, which is near the Performing Arts Center.
“One of my favorite guests, and he’s from the area, was John Glenn. It’s interesting because when I was in the fifth grade, I remember I had to write a paper about John Glenn, and I got like a C-. I asked John Glenn to come on ‘The Tonight Show’ after he had just got back from space. I think that was in 1998, so I called my fifth-grade teacher and I said, ‘Hey, remember that C-. That (interview) is now part of my report.’ He upgraded me to an A, so that was a lot of fun.”
Meeting real people on “The Tonight Show” was a favorite.
“John Glenn was impressive,” Leno said. “You normally don’t meet Batman. You meet the guy playing Batman, but with John Glenn you got to meet a real hero, so that was a thrill. He was exactly who I thought he was, a real nice man.”
Through “The Tonight Show,” Leno met and became friends with former presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush.
“It’s fun. You don’t get into this business if you don’t like people,” he said. “I enjoyed politicians only because it was somewhat real compared to actors.”
On one of his most recent projects, Leno enjoyed working on the television show, “Last Man Standing,” with comedian Tim Allen.
“Tim and I have known each other for years. ‘Last Man Standing’ was a lot of fun to do because we could do inside jokes on the show,” Leno said. “One day Tim threw out a line. He said, ‘Maybe if you weren’t a mechanic and you’d been on a late night talk show,’ and I said, ‘Oh, I wouldn’t do that because then I’d wind up on some crappy sitcom.’ They kept them all in so that’s what made it fun.”
Leno also addressed reports of a feud between himself and David Letterman.
“We started out together, and everybody thinks it’s some horrible cutthroat business, but it’s not. We always help one another, but the press always makes it to be like everybody fights,” Leno said. “It gets competitive, but it’s no different than quarterbacks who went to school together and wind up on different teams. I mean you always want to beat the other person. You want to do the best you can, but I wouldn’t say there’s been bad blood. We always got along pretty good.”
Leno thanked everyone and wished the PAC a happy anniversary before he left the stage.
After the show Leno took time to answer a few more questions. He served as guest host on a Kelly Clarkson show that aired the day before his appearance at the PAC, but it isn’t something he does regularly.
“She was just sick and asked me to come in,” Leno said. “I did that about a month and a half ago.”
Leno enjoys his new show, “You Bet Your Life.”
“It’s basically the old Groucho (Marx) show, ‘You Bet Your Life.’ It’s a lot of fun to do. It’s just a comedy game show. It’s kind of like Jaywalking that we used to do on the street,” Leno said.
Leno enjoys being able to ad lib on the new show.
“We have fun with people. We’re not being mean to anybody; we’re just having some laughs, and it’s easier to do the ad libs stuff than write material. It’s like talking to the audience here,” Leno said.
Leno’s material is relatable to the average person.
“I think because I’m always out among regular people, that’s the trick,” Leno said. “I live in California, but I’m on the road a lot. I meet people from all walks of life, so I don’t end up with a rather skewed version of how things should be.”
Favorite comedians that influenced Leno when he was starting out included Jack Benny, Groucho Marx, Bob Newhart and, of course, Johnny Carson.
“I like guys that look normal but were funny as opposed to (comedians in) crazy costumes and stuff like that,” Leno said.
Just as the PAC tries to help students through their educational outreach, Leno had some advice for young comedians just starting out.
“Try to get as much stage time as you can. That’s really the trick, whether it’s at a church group or whatever it might be. Just try to get in front of people. Because the more you do it, the more second nature it becomes,” Leno said. “If you do it, you don’t get nervous, and you don’t worry. Because if you do it a lot — four times a week — it does become second nature.”
Starting out today is not easier compared to when Leno started his career.
“I think it’s exactly the same. Before, if you did ‘The Tonight Show,’ the whole country saw you. Now you have to do dozens of TV shows because there’s so many other places,” Leno said.
When asked if there was anything still on his bucket list that he wanted to do, Leno seemed to want to keep a more relaxed pace.
“No, I’m trying to get out of stuff actually. I’m not trying to do more stuff,” Leno said.
Mitchell was pleased with how the evening turned out.
“It was just absolutely amazing. You could feel the excitement in the air from the audience,” Mitchell said. “Jay put on a fabulous show, and that anticipation was there before the show, which we’ve been missing. When you’re excited about something and it’s finally happening, the whole night was just thrilling.”
Mitchell thinks the role of the PAC is an important one.
“It’s quality entertainment. It’s a night out and a chance to have fun. It’s also exposing the community to new ideas, new forms of art, and it elevates the entire community. It makes it a great place to live. The educational stuff that we do is vital to our local schools, and the PAC plays a very important role in that for the community,” Mitchell said, adding they will continue the emphasis on educational outreach while striving to bring in the top names in entertainment to New Philadelphia.
Bielski said the anniversary program had been in the works for about 2 ½ years when they first started looking for an artist.
“We’ve had contact with (Jay Leno) and his agent throughout the last really two years now, and I think it says volumes for (Leno). He stuck with us,” Bielski said. “We had him lined up really last year at this time when we were starting to plan the celebration, and he stuck with us. We’re thrilled that he did and just really excited about tonight.”
In attendance for the evening was former dean Gregg Andrews, whose vision was to build the PAC.
“The progress of the campus, in general, as well as the Performing Arts Center has just been terrific, and I’m very proud of the future that the campus has, and I’m very proud of what we were able to accomplish while I was here,” Andrews said.
Andrews does have a favorite show, although that’s a tough question.
“I think probably my all-time favorite show ever is ‘Riverdance,’ and it’s been here several times. If it came back, I would see it again and again,” Andrews said. “I think that ‘Mama Mia’ was a terrific show. We had Michael Bolton, Vince Gill, Darius Rucker as musicians. The list could go on and on, but I think this has just been a really good run for the Performing Arts Center for the last decade.”
The PAC has been good for the community.
“We’ve been coming here since the very beginning,” Rick Hinig of New Philadelphia said. “It’s a terrific place. The staff here and David Mitchell, they do a great job.”
Hinig and his wife, Bethann, attend about one show each month. Their favorites include Broadway shows, rock music and different variety shows.
They appreciate the convenience of the PAC.
“It’s made it easier; we don’t have to drive to Cleveland,” Bethann Hinig said. “We have easy access in and out, and we get to go to a local restaurant.”
“It’s added a lot of culture to our lives,” Rick Hinig said.
Ten years of economic impact
The Performing Arts Center at Kent State Tuscarawas is well-known for its artistic and cultural impact, yet its role as an economic driver to the Tuscarawas County economy is often overlooked.
Spending by visitors to the Performing Arts Center generates economic activity throughout the county. For arts-related events, the average event expenditure per person is $31.47. This average does not include the cost of event admission. The Performing Arts Center’s season of shows annually draws a combined audience of approximately 18,000 — 40% of these attendees reside outside Tuscarawas County. These audiences serve as a catalyst for economic growth and vitality within the community.
The direct operations of the Performing Arts Center also generate significant revenue, spending and employment. Annually, the Performing Arts Center’s activities support 74 full-time-equivalent jobs, generate $1,535,401 in household income and contribute $99,550 in local government revenue.
The combined effects of operations and visitor spending associated with the Performing Arts Center generate an estimated $2.52 million annually in business activity for Tuscarawas County.
The economic impact numbers were estimated utilizing the Arts & Economic Prosperity 5 Calculator from Americans for the Arts.
Ten years by the numbers
—267 national and international touring shows.
—65 weddings.
—894 total events including shows, weddings, conferences, reunions, proms, business expos and more.
—89 Class Acts Series educational performances.
—53,650 students reached through educational programming.
—430,951 people experienced something special at the Performing Arts Center.
—Countless smiles, laughs and memories created.