Toronto DEC-JAN 49-64_Layout 1 12-11-28 2:26 PM Page 61
Sports In 1992, the legendary Johnny Carson surprised everyone when he picked Jay Leno to replace him as host of The Tonight Show. After years as a night club performer, and within a short time span, Leno became the most popular comedian on American TV — and one of the highest paid.
Garage and Art Gallery If comedy made him rich and famous, the automobile remains his one true passion, starting with his 1955 restored Buick, which is powered by a huge 600-horsepower Corvette V8 engine. “This is the one car that Jay will never sell,” explained the guide during our visit to Leno’s garage. The collection now holds cars, motorcycles and even steam machines covering the entire history of the automobile from the early 1900s till today. One would need an entire book to describe every vehicle in this amazing private collection. Fortunately a great number of Leno’s magnificent machines can be viewed online at www.jaylenosgarage.com. The site will impress visitors with Leno’s vast knowledge of all things automotive and his passion for unusual machinery. Each showroom boasts countless period posters, paintings and billboards decorating the walls and ceilings — a true testament to the automobile’s influence on society and its place in history.
The “Bugatti Room”… wouldn’t you call it an “art gallery” rather than a “garage”?
1938 Tatra T87 designed by visionary Tchek engineer Hans Ledwinka.
The Immortal Topolino Among the many outstanding cars featured, we were particularly impressed by the 1909 electric-driven Baker, the humongous Tank Car powered by a 30-litre twin-turbocharged M47 Patton tank motor producing about 1,600 horsepower. And at the other end of the scale was the ever-so tiny and immortal Fiat Topolino. Leno, a true automobile connoisseur, expressed his satisfaction about the Fiat-Chrysler merger. “Fiat is returning to America, and I’m glad,” he said. “The merger of Fiat and Chrysler will elevate the Italian brand in this country and create some great cars…” His classic Fiats include a 1937 Topolino coupé, with a tiny 569-cc 13.5-hp four-cylinder. Fiat introduced the Topolino (little mouse) in 1936, and ultimately sold half a million of them. “It was really the first ‘people’s car,” reveals Leno, adding, “The Volkswagen Beetle didn’t come out until after the war. The car has brilliant packaging. It’s tiny, yet there’s so much headroom that someone 6 feet tall wearing a top hat could sit inside. It’s one of the few cars in which the generator is bigger than the engine...” In fact, the Topolino was not powerful. Its top speed was only 53 miles per hour, but it could carry a small family, and could get close to 50 miles per gallon. “Here’s the best part,” Leno says jokingly, “How many car engines can you remove, bring inside the house, put in your kitchen sink and clean? The Topolino is like a big toy, and it has a sense of style that the VW Beetle never had.” Like a big toy, indeed. As for Leno, who is always seen wearing his signature jeans and a big smile, wouldn’t you say he’s just like a kid in a huge toy room?
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This 1918 Stutz Bearcat was discovered as a basket case in a barn in 1996. The talented craftsmen working in Jay Leno’s Garage brought it back to life.
The “crown jewels” of the Leno Collection, two automotive treasures from the golden age of the French automobile: the 1937 Bugatti 57 SC Atlantique and the 1935 Delahaye 135 S Grand Prix racer.
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