How old is Mavis Leno and why is Jay Leno seeking her conservatorship?

Former late-night megastar Jay Leno made headlines in January 2024 when it was announced that he had filed for the conservatorship of his wife, Mavis Leno. 

The filing, first reported by TMZ, was made on Jan. 26 and appears to be one of the rare cases in which a show business conservatorship is requested for non-shady reasons. 

The Jay Leno conservatorship, explained

According to TMZ, the 77-year-old Mavis’ conservatorship comes as a result of her deteriorating health, and particularly her diagnosis of Alzheimer ’s-related dementia. The details of the diagnosis haven’t been disclosed, though Jay Leno has stated as early as 2022 that Mavis no longer drives. The former The Tonight Show host and Mavis have both refrained from commenting on her condition, not even confirming publicly what she’s been diagnosed with.

Jay and Mavis first met in 1976, when the comedian was a regular at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles. The two were married in 1980, though they later acknowledged that pragmatism played a bigger role than romance, with Jay recalling in a 2014 LA Times interview that he had wanted to make sure that Mavis was “covered” if anything happened to him. He stated that he didn’t buy his wife an engagement ring until 2004, with Mavis adding that he’d “just bought a house” instead.

The two have remained married for more than 40 years, with Jay once claiming (to People) that the secret to a long marriage is to “marry the person you wish you could be.” Also, “not screwing around is a huge key. You can do a lot. You can leave your underwear on the doorknob for the rest of your life if you don’t screw around.” Words to live by.