Jay Leno tells the story of his dramatic rescue by a close friend when he was badly burned in a horrific freak accident last month.
The funny guy and car fanatic has revealed the cause of the fiery explosion in the 72-year-old former Tonight Show host’s garage, where the accident occurred on November 12.
“It was a white 1907 steam car. The fuel line was clogged, so I was under it,” he said of working on the vintage car — along with his close friend David Clakai — during a talk With “Today” host Hoda Kotb. “It sounded clogged and I said, ‘Blow some air through the line,’ and so he did.”
The fuel line made a noise, Leno said, “And suddenly, boom, my face is full of gas.
“Then the pilot light jumped out and my face was on fire,” he recalled.
Fortunately, Leno said, Kelaki acted quickly.
“I said to my friend, ‘Dave, I’m on fire.’ And Dave is like, ‘Okay.’ I said, ‘No, Dave, I’m on fire.’ And then, ‘Oh my God.’ My friend Dave pulled me outside and jumped on me and kind of put out the fire,” he recalls. lino.
Leno was taken to the Grossman-Bern Center in Los Angeles, where he was treated for third-degree burns to his face, chest, and hands during his 10-day stay. Lino too Received skin grafts And another surgical procedure.
Any scars weren’t immediately apparent, during the new “Today” interview.
But it was All smiles in the photo With the clinic staff on November 21 when he was released from the center. Leno wasted no time getting back to his classic cars as they were He is seen walking around Los Angeles in his many swords the next day.
He even performed in front of a sold-out crowd at the Comedy & Magic Club in Hermosa Beach, California two weeks after the accident. He had some problems with parking, though, and I hit a police car in processing.
Leno and Kotb’s full conversation will air Wednesday on “Today.”
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