COUPLESJay Leno 'Enjoys Taking Care' of Dementia-Stricken Wife Mavis Despite Spouse Sometimes 'Not Knowing' Who He Is as Her Cognitive Capacity Worsens
Jay Leno insisted taking care of wife Mavis 'isn't work.'
April 28 2026, Published 11:10 a.m. ET
Though Jay Leno had to become wife Mavis' conservator in 2024 due to her dementia battle, the comedian is as happy as ever in his personal life as he celebrates his 76th birthday on Tuesday, April 28.
According to a RadarOnline.com insider, Mavis has been "progressively losing" her cognitive capacity and "orientation to space and time" for a few years now.
Mavis Leno Doesn't Always Recognize Her Husband
Jay Leno became his wife Mavis' conservator in 2024 due to her dementia diagnosis.
In conservatorship documents, it was stated that Mavis, 79, "sometimes (did) not know her husband, Jay, nor her date of birth."
However, Jay still "loves Mavis deeply and always has since they first met at the Comedy Store back in the '70s," the source insisted.
'We Have Fun With It'
The comedian insisted he and Mavis have 'fun' together despite her health woes.
The former late-night host has been an open book about their situation, admitting to People he feels "lucky" in life.
"My wife is fighting dementia and all that, but it's not cancer. It's not a tumor, so I enjoy taking care of her," he expressed. "It's not work, because people come up, and say they feel so sorry. I understand the sympathy, because I know a lot of people are going through it, but it's okay."
"We have a good time," Jay added. "We have fun with it, and it is what it is."
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Jay Leno Reveals 'the Toughest Part' of Wife Mavis' Dementia
Jay Leno admitted there are 'tough' days with his spouse due to her memory loss.
Jay also admitted being her caretaker "makes you feel wanted. You got a purpose now. So it's good."
That being said, the star confessed some days are "trickier" than others.
"Probably the toughest part was, every day she’d wake up and realize someone had called today to tell her her mother had passed away," he explained on a previous episode of Today. "And her mother died every day for, like, three years. And it was not just crying, I mean, you’re learning for the first time. Each time was — and that was really tricky. Yeah, that makes it hard."
Jay and Mavis Leno married in 1980.
Jay confessed on an episode of Life Above the Noise With Maria Shriver that he's been surprised by some of the things people have asked him about their marriage.
"My favorite thing was — this is the most Hollywood thing," he recalled. "A guy said to me, ‘So, are you gonna get a girlfriend now?’ 'Well no, I have a girlfriend. I’m married. Married 45 years. We’re kinda in this together here.'"
"You take a vow when you get married and people are stunned," Jay continued. "They’re so shocked that you live up to it. Why?"
