After making his first "Tonight Show" appearance in 1977, Jay Leno continued to perform at comedy clubs around America. While nothing could diminish his love of performing, Jay did not particularly enjoy having to handle unruly hecklers. On one memorable occasion, a ringsider shouted, "I hate you!" "How can you hate me? You don't even know me," Jay replied, leaning down to ask the man a friendly question: "Where are you from?" The man's reply? He laid Jay out with a single punch.

[While opening for Muddy Waters one night, Jay was hit in the head with a ketchup bottle. The club's owner was hardly sympathetic. "You're a professional," he said. "You should have seen it coming."]