Jay Leno, 74, suffers nasty injuries after falling down hill
At 74, Jay Leno is no stranger to accidents, and his latest tumble is just another chapter in his growing collection of mishaps. This time, he took an ill-advised shortcut down a steep hill, leaving him battered, bruised, and sporting an eyepatch—but, as always, he refused to let it slow him down.
Leno was in Beverly Hills for the Comedy for Kobe event on November 18 when he arrived with visible bruises, a bandaged wrist, and the left side of his face swollen and marked with blue and black discoloration. Fans and fellow comedians were quick to notice, but true to form, Leno brushed it off as “no big deal.”
The Fall That Sent Him Rolling
The accident happened when Leno, staying at a hilltop hotel, decided to take a “shortcut” to a restaurant at the bottom. Rather than following the designated mile-and-a-half-long path, he attempted to walk straight down the steep 60-to-70-foot hill—a decision he quickly regretted.
“I fell down and rolled down the hill,” he told TMZ. At some point during the fall, he smashed his head against a rock, resulting in his eye swelling shut.
Despite the painful injuries, Leno kept his commitment to perform, stepping on stage just three hours later.
A History of High-Speed Mishaps
This latest incident is just one in a series of accidents Leno has endured over the past few years.
Earlier in 2023, he was clotheslined off his motorcycle by a wire strung across a parking lot. The crash left him with a broken collarbone, two broken ribs, and cracked kneecaps. Yet, even then, he found humor in the situation, joking, “Once a man hits 40, you can’t really teach him anything… luckily, I’m only 72.”
Just months before that, in November 2022, Leno suffered severe burns when a gasoline fire erupted while he was working on one of his beloved vintage cars. He was hospitalized with significant injuries but downplayed the situation, saying, “I got some serious burns, but I’m OK. Just need a week or two to get back on my feet.”
Unstoppable Resilience
Through every accident, every injury, and every close call, Jay Leno refuses to slow down. Whether it’s rolling down a hill, getting thrown from a motorcycle, or suffering burns from a fire, he remains as dedicated to comedy as ever.
His latest tumble may have left him bruised, but Leno’s spirit—and his sense of humor—remains completely intact.