Jimmy Kimmel’s tribute to Cleto Escobedo III wasn’t the kind of monologue anyone tuned in expecting. Instead of jokes or late-night banter, Kimmel walked out looking like a man trying to keep it together. The band was silent. The crowd waited. And then he said it — Cleto Escobedo III, his childhood friend and the heartbeat of the Jimmy Kimmel Live band, had died at 59.
What followed was one of the rawest moments in Jimmy Kimmel Live history. Kimmel admitted right there on camera that it was the hardest monologue he’d ever delivered.
He didn’t just talk about Cleto as a co-worker — he talked about him like family. The two first met as kids in Las Vegas, after Kimmel’s family moved into the neighborhood. Cleto lived across the street, and from day one, they were in sync — laughing, getting into trouble, and sharing a love for music that would eventually become the foundation of Kimmel’s show.
If you’ve ever watched Jimmy Kimmel Live, you’ve felt that connection. The quick looks between them. The effortless back-and-forth. The little musical riffs that felt like private jokes between old friends. That chemistry wasn’t made for TV — it was decades deep.
When Kimmel spoke about Cleto, you could hear the history. This wasn’t just a tribute to a bandleader; it was a love letter to a friend who helped him build something that changed both their lives.
How Cleto Became the Soul of the Show
Before Jimmy Kimmel Live, Cleto was already touring with major artists like Paula Abdul and Marc Anthony. He released a solo work in the mid-90s and made a reputation for himself as a serious saxophonist long before television found him. Kimmel chose him as a band leader in 2003, not just because he loved his talent, but because he trusted him. Kimmel said there was nobody he had better chemistry with, and that shaped the personality of the show for more than 20 years.
During Jimmy Kimmel’s tribute to Cleto Escobedo III, he talked about their bond with the kind of warmth and tears that made the audience go quiet. He said Cleto was a one-of-a-kind friend, never carrying baggage, only love. The single line explained why viewers always felt something warm and familiar between them on the air.
The Monologue That Stopped Late Night in Its Tracks
This wasn’t a polished comedy bit. It was one childhood friend talking about another. Kimmel asked viewers to keep Cleto’s family in their thoughts, especially his wife Lori, their children Jesse and Cruz, and his parents, Cleto Sr. and Sylvia. In fact, Sylvia often sat in the audience with her rosary beads, something Kimmel mentioned with a softness that caught people off guard.
Cleto had reportedly been ill for months, although the specific cause hasn’t been made public. Even so, the loss hit fast and hard. During Jimmy Kimmel’s tribute to Cleto Escobedo III, he told viewers it simply wasn’t fair. He paused numerous times, trying to hold it together, and the cameras never looked away.
The show then announced it would take a short hiatus to honor Cleto. Two nights off may sound small, but in the world of nightly television, it could symbolize how deep Kimmel felt the loss.
What Loss Means for the Show Going Forward
House bands often blend into the background, but Cleto never did. His style created the sound of the show, and his personality was the tone. Even celeb guests and other television hosts noticed the closeness between him and Kimmel. Paula Abdul and several other musicians shared tributes of their own, describing Cleto as pure light and one of the kindest people they’d ever met.
This is why Jimmy Kimmel’s tribute to Cleto Escobedo III feels like a turning point. While Cleto is gone, the spirit he brought to the show remains. It lives in every laugh Kimmel and the band shared, in every warm musical cue, and in the memory of two kids from Las Vegas who formed a decades-long friendship.