Jimmy Kimmel Live! is currently taking a short pause following the tragic passing of a key member of the Live! family. On the Tuesday, November 11 episode, Jimmy Kimmel dedicated his opening monologue to a tearful tribute to Cleto Escobedo III, his childhood best friend and the bandleader for the show's in-house band, Cleto and the Cletones. Cleto passed away at the age of 59 after a long illness, although neither Jimmy nor the show clarified in any way what he'd been suffering from, but did mention he had been admitted to the hospital prior to his passing.
Jimmy, who turns 58 today, November 13, also posted a lengthy tribute to his friend the night before, writing: "Early this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III. To say that we are heartbroken is an understatement. Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old."
"The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true. Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto's wife, children and parents in your prayers," he concluded. In his monologue, he also mentioned the show will take a break, saying they're going to "take a couple nights off."
When does Jimmy Kimmel Live! return?
There is no official date yet for when Jimmy Kimmel Live! will restart production and airing brand new episodes. The show aired live on Tuesday night with Eddie Murphy, with Wednesday's show being a rebroadcast of Carol Burnett and Guillermo del Toro's appearances. Thursday and Friday, November 13 and 14 respectively, are also rebroadcasts.
The show has not shared when it will return from its filming hiatus, but it is expected that it will air anew on Monday, November 17. The schedules for the following shows have not yet been announced.
A previous cancellation
Just recently, the week before Cleto's passing, a taping of the show was also cancelled due to a "personal matter," due to feature guests David Duchovny and Joe Keery, with musical guest Madison Beer. While that matter was never clarified further, viewers now believe that it might've had to do with Cleto's declining health. The show has not yet confirmed when that episode will eventually be taped and aired.
Jimmy's tearful monologue
The late night host began his monologue with: "We've been on the air for almost 23 years and I've had to do some hard monologues along the way, but this one's the hardest because late last night, early this morning, we lost someone very special who was much too young," while fighting through tears.
Jimmy looked back on his friendship with Cleto, which began in 1977 when his family moved to Las Vegas from Brooklyn, and he met a boy "a little bit older than me," who was Cleto. The pair grew very close, often sleeping over at each other's homes, and their families became close as well. "Everyone loves Cleto... everyone here at the show. We are devastated by this. It's not... It's just not fair," he later said.