For at least the next week, "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" will pay out of Leno's own pocket the 80 non-writing staff who were laid off Friday, according media reported today.

"Tonight Show" said that could be extended if the writers' strike is not resolved by then.

A couple of days after the Writers Guild of America strike began, the star of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" told about 80 of his staffers that they need not worry about their finances. Leno was so adamant about paychecks being safe, many didn't bother looking for new jobs even though NBC was forecasting layoffs.

So it came as quite a shock Friday when the entire staff was told that they were not only out of a job but also that they weren't guaranteed of being rehired once "The Tonight Show" returns.

However on Saturday, "Tonight Show" executive producer Debbie Vickers was said to decide to pay non-writing staff through next week and reportedly began calling laid-off employees.

The Writers Guild of America strike began Nov. 5 in a dispute over pay for work distributed via the Internet, video iPods, cellphones and other new media.