Jimmy Kimmel has launched two fundraisers to honor his late best friend and late night bandleader Cleto Escobedo III.
The “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host announced on his Instagram Friday that two fundraisers were opening up to causes close to Escobedo to “celebrate his life and give back.” The bandleader died earlier this week.
“Cleto was always kind and eager to help others,” Kimmel wrote. “As we mourn his loss, we have started two fundraisers to celebrate his life and give back. The first is for UCLA Medical Center where he received such incredible care. Together we can help vulnerable patients and families in need of financial assistance during hard times. And to honor his love of animals, The Animal Foundation in our hometown of Las Vegas.”
Kimmel spoke tearfully and passionately about his friendship with Escobedo during Tuesday night’s monologue of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” before announcing the show would be taking some time off.
“We’ve been on the air for almost 23 years and I’ve had to do some hard monologues along the way,” Kimmel began the monologue. “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.”
He then explained how the two had been virtually inseparable since they were nine years old. Kimmel remembered that he once went 33 nights in a row sleeping at Escobedo’s when they were kids, and when they grew up and he got the late show slot at ABC he knew that he didn’t just want his best friend to lead the band but his friend’s father to be a part of it too.
“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,” the host added.
Escobedo was 59 when he died.
