Late night host Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday paid tribute to his lifelong friend and bandleader, Cleto Escobedo III, who died earlier in the day. He was 59. “We’ve been on the air for almost 23 years and I’ve had to do some hard monologues along the way,” Kimmel said as he fought his way through tears. “But this one’s the hardest.”

"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."

The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host has had a tough year following his recent suspension over his Charlie Kirk comment, but he declared the monologue he made last night his 'hardest'

The late-night host didn’t address his absence from last Thursday’s show, which was scheduled to feature guests David Duchovny, Joe Keery, and Madison Beer. In its place, ABC re-aired the October 28 episode featuring guests Tessa Thompson , Daymond John, and The Beths.

Jimmy Kimmel and his late night stomping ground have popped up in the news a lot recently, in part due to ABC's temporary suspension. But that controversy is no doubt preferable to the tragic news that shook everyone up this week.

Jimmy Kimmel has returned to the airwaves after an episode was unexpectedly pulled from ABC’s late-night lineup last week. Kimmel, 57, hosted a brand-new show on Monday, November 10, kicking off an '80s-themed week with guests George Clooney,

Jimmy Kimmel laid into Senate Democrats for compromising with Republicans on health care to end the government shutdown.

Jimmy Kimmel and his wife Molly McNearney opened up about the moment they told their children “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” had been suspended. In September, ABC temporarily pulled Kimmel off the air following comments he made in his monologue regarding the death of Charlie Kirk.