Heartbroken Jimmy Kimmel has announced the death of his childhood friend and Jimmy Kimmel Live! bandleader, Cleto Escobedo III.
Writing on Instagram, Kimmel shared: ‘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 late night host said in a statement. ‘The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true,’ Kimmel added. ‘Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto’s wife, children and parents in your prayers.’
Escobeda’s death Tuesday aged, 59, explains the reason why Kimmel abruptly canceled his show last Thursday.Kimmel was reportedly seen at a hospital after missing that show, exchanging emotional hugs outside a Los Angeles hospital, with his long-time friend’s father Cleto Escobedo Jr., a musician in his house band Cleto and the Cletones, outside a hospital in Los Angeles on November 6.
