Jimmy Kimmel Tearfully Tributes Band Leader & Longtime Friend Cleto Escobedo III (VIDEO)

Jimmy Kimmel broke down on Tuesday night (November 11) as he paid tribute to his long-time friend and bandleader, Cleto Escobedo III (aka Junior), who passed away earlier that day. He was 59 years old. A cause of death hs not been announced but Page Six reports that it was due to complications stemming from a liver transplant.

During the opening monologue on Tuesday’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the late-night host fought back tears as he told the audience, “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 to go. And I’d like to tell you about him, if you don’t mind.”

Earlier in the day, Kimmel had announced Escobedo’s passing on social media. “Early this morning, we lost a great friend, father, son, musician and man, my longtime bandleader Cleto Escobedo III,” Kimmel wrote on Instagram. “To say that we are heartbroken is an understatement.”

On Tuesday’s show, Kimmel shared how he became friends with Escobedo when he was nine years old, growing up in Las Vegas. He said they were more than just regular friends but “like 24/7, ‘Mom, please let me sleep over,’ kind of friends.”

“One summer, I slept over at the Escobedo house 33 nights in a row. For real,” Kimmel explained. “My mother used to make me get down on my knees and beg to sleep at his house in front of him. And I would gladly do it, cause we were never bored. We were always up to something.”

The comedian recalled making crank calls, boxing each other, and playing pranks on the neighbors. He also said he copied Escobedo’s style, blow-drying his hair like John Travolta.

“We had so many adventures. We would laugh so hard,” Kimmel added. “We had our own language that almost no one else understood. We didn’t have to say anything. We’d sit here at rehearsal every day. We didn’t have to look at each other.”

When Kimmel landed his ABC late-night show, he was determined to bring Escobedo on board as his bandleader. “I knew, ‘My best friend from growing up plays the saxophone. He could lead the band,’ wasn’t a great pitch,” Kimmel stated. “But it had to happen. And, not only did I want Cleto to lead the band, I wanted his dad to be in the band.”

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Escobedo and his father went on to nail their audition and secure their position in the Jimmy Kimmel Live! house band. “I’ve often said that the single best thing about doing this show was getting the opportunity to allow Cleto Senior to pick up where he left off in 1966 and become a musician again with his son,” Kimmel noted.

Kimmel broke down as he paid tribute to Escobedo’s family, stating he would always be there to remind Escobedo’s kids how much their dad loved them. He also expressed his gratitude to the medical staff who cared for Escobedo in his final days.

“Cherish your friends. We’re not here forever,” Kimmel concluded before revealing he and the show would be taking “the next couple of nights off” to grieve.

According to Variety, Escobedo’s condition was the reason Kimmel unexpectedly canceled last Thursday’s (November 6) show. At the time, it was reported that Kimmel did not tape a new episode due to a “personal matter.”

Escobedo’s cause of death has not been revealed.