Jay Leno Nears Deal for CNBC Show

Primetime program will focus on Leno’s love for all things automobile

Jay Leno

Jay Leno is heading back to TV, and he’ll stay within the NBCUniversal family.

The former long-term “Tonight Show” host will take his talents to CNBC, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The show will air regularly and center around Leno’s much-publicized love affair with cars.

It will air in primetime, as opposed to the late-night landscape that Leno dominated for many years at parent network NBC. No start date has been decided at this point.

Also read: David Letterman vs. Jay Leno: A Timeline of Their Legendary Late-Night Rivalry

CNBC is not commenting on the reports, representatives told TheWrap. Leno’s personal rep, Dick Guttman, told us that he hasn’t been in touch with his client since the stand-up’s most recent USO Tour of Afghanistan. However, he said it would be a good get for the financial news channel based on the ratings for “Jay Leno‘s Garage: The Ultimate Car Week,” which aired earlier this year on CNBC.

Leno passed the “Tonight Show” torch to Jimmy Fallon in February, a succession that has gone significantly smoother than the hand-off to Conan O’Brien in 2009. Fallon has done Leno proud, staying atop the ratings and even growing from year-to-year.

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