Originally appeared on E! Online
Jimmy Kimmel is providing more insight into the passing of his dear friend.
Less than a week after Cleto Escobedo III died at age 59, the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host shared that his late band leader was undergoing treatment at a medical center leading up to his passing.
And while he didn’t specify what type of care his childhood friend was receiving, Kimmel revealed that he has taken steps to give back to Escobedo’s hard-working medical team in Los Angeles.
“Cleto was always kind and eager to help others. As we mourn his loss, we have started two fundraisers to celebrate his life and give back,” the comedian wrote on Intagram Nov. 14. “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.”
Closing out his message, he added that he will also donate to The Animal Foundation in his and Escobedo’s hometown of Las Vegas in order to “honor his love of animals.”
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This isn’t the first time Kimmel has spoken out about the passing of Escobedo, whose cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
Following his passing on Nov. 11, the TV personality shared a heartbreaking tribute to the instrumentalist — who served as the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” band leader since the show’s debut in 2003 — describing him as a “great friend, father, son, [and] musician.”
“Cleto and I have been inseparable since I was nine years old,” Kimmel wrote on Instagram at the time. “The fact that we got to work together every day is a dream neither of us could ever have imagined would come true.”
The 57-year-old added, “Cherish your friends and please keep Cleto’s wife, children and parents in your prayers.”
And Kimmel gave a deeper look into their decades-long friendship in an emotional monologue during his show’s Nov. 11 episode.
“We had so many adventures. We would laugh so hard,” Kimmel said through tears at the time. “We had our own language that almost no one else understood. We didn’t even have to say anything. We would sit here in rehearsal every day. We didn’t have to look at each other.”
Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and Seth Meyers are celebrating Jimmy Kimmel’s return to TV. On Sept 22, the Walt Disney Company announced in a statement that after “having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy” the decision was reached to bring back “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on Tuesday following the show’s suspension over comments the comedian made the about the man accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk.
