Jay Leno has finally opened up about his mystery illness, the one that caused the NBC "Tonight Show" host to call in sick two weeks ago for the first time in 17 years.
"Exhaustion," Leno told People, a bit embarrassed about having to cancel two shows. In the interview, Leno reportedly shook his head and joked that the affliction was "like a rich person's condition."
"Poor people that work – they don't get exhausted," he said. "Only rich people get exhausted."
Still, Leno said that his hectic schedule forced him check himself into a Burbank hospital -- Besides the talk show, the 59-year-old entertainer hits the road 160 days a year doing stand-up, and maintains writing gigs for London's Sunday Times, Popular Mechanics and a British magazine called Octane.
When Leno returned to the "Tonight Show" set last week, he made up a few sexier reasons to explain his absence.
"What happened was – and I think this was a mistake – I ate a raw pig a friend brought back from Mexico," was one of his excuses.
Leno -- who moves to prime-time in the Fall after Conan O'Brien takes the "Tonight Show" reins -- also joked about waking up in the hospital to find Conan smothering him with a pillow.
Don't worry Jay. We got your back.
