Cleto Escobedo III, the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the talk show host's childhood friend, has died at 59.
November 12, 2025 at 12:45 AM
Cleto Escobedo III, the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the talk show host's childhood friend, has died at 59.
Cleto Escobedo III, the bandleader of Cleto and The Cletones, the house band for #JimmyKimmelLive has died. The musician and lifelong friend of Kimmel was 59.
Jimmy Kimmel's band leader and longtime friend Cleto Escobedo III dies at 59
Cleto Escobedo III, the bandleader on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," died Tuesday, according to the late-night host. The pair were close friends, having grown up together.
www.latimes.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Cleto Escobedo III, the bandleader of Cleto and The Cletones, the house band for #JimmyKimmelLive has died. The musician and lifelong friend of Kimmel was 59.
Jimmy delivered a heartfelt, tearful, and joyful remembrance of his lifelong best friend, Best Man, Sax wizard & show Bandleader Cleto Escobedo IIII -- with Cleto II sitting in his own nightly #Cletones band seat. 💚🫂😭
Tonight we remember our dear friend and bandleader Cleto 💙
Jimmy Kimmel Remembers His Best Friend and Bandleader Cleto Escobedo III
YouTube video by Jimmy Kimmel Live
www.youtube.com
November 12, 2025 at 8:56 AM
Jimmy delivered a heartfelt, tearful, and joyful remembrance of his lifelong best friend, Best Man, Sax wizard & show Bandleader Cleto Escobedo IIII -- with Cleto II sitting in his own nightly #Cletones band seat. 💚🫂😭
Jimmy Kimmel’s life long friend and band leader has died at 59. Cleto Escobedo died from complications of a liver transplant. Cleto and the Cletones have been an integral part of Jimmy Kimmel live since the shows inception. Cleto and Jimmy have been “inseparable“ since they were 9. Very sad news
November 12, 2025 at 2:42 AM
Jimmy Kimmel’s life long friend and band leader has died at 59. Cleto Escobedo died from complications of a liver transplant. Cleto and the Cletones have been an integral part of Jimmy Kimmel live since the shows inception. Cleto and Jimmy have been “inseparable“ since they were 9. Very sad news
I’d just lost a close friend & associate of nearly 25 years.
Lung Cancer
Nonsmoker so probably a result of Midwest Radon, or his service with the Squids.
Until tonight when I heard “Cleto & the Cletones” I just thought it was a quirky name
Tonight I cried softly
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xlV...
Lung Cancer
Nonsmoker so probably a result of Midwest Radon, or his service with the Squids.
Until tonight when I heard “Cleto & the Cletones” I just thought it was a quirky name
Tonight I cried softly
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xlV...
Jimmy Kimmel Remembers His Best Friend and Bandleader Cleto Escobedo III
YouTube video by Jimmy Kimmel Live
www.youtube.com
November 12, 2025 at 8:19 AM
I’d just lost a close friend & associate of nearly 25 years.
Lung Cancer
Nonsmoker so probably a result of Midwest Radon, or his service with the Squids.
Until tonight when I heard “Cleto & the Cletones” I just thought it was a quirky name
Tonight I cried softly
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xlV...
Lung Cancer
Nonsmoker so probably a result of Midwest Radon, or his service with the Squids.
Until tonight when I heard “Cleto & the Cletones” I just thought it was a quirky name
Tonight I cried softly
www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xlV...
Paula Abdul Honors Late ‘Jimmy Kimmel’ Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones
Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ... honoring him with a heartfelt tribute post on social media. Cleto toured with Paula, as well as…
Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ... honoring him with a heartfelt tribute post on social media. Cleto toured with Paula, as well as…
Paula Abdul Honors Late ‘Jimmy Kimmel’ Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones
Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ... honoring him with a heartfelt tribute post on social media. Cleto toured with Paula, as well as Earth, Wind and Fire, and had his own… Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ...
worldbytenews.com
November 12, 2025 at 2:24 AM
Paula Abdul Honors Late ‘Jimmy Kimmel’ Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones
Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ... honoring him with a heartfelt tribute post on social media. Cleto toured with Paula, as well as…
Paula Abdul is remembering late "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" band leader Cleto Escobedo III of Cleto and the Cletones ... honoring him with a heartfelt tribute post on social media. Cleto toured with Paula, as well as…
Kimmel said that he and Escobedo, who led Cleto and the Cletones on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” had been “inseparable since I was 9 years old.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/a...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/a...
Cleto Escobedo III, Jimmy Kimmel’s Bandleader, Dies at 59
www.nytimes.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:03 AM
Kimmel said that he and Escobedo, who led Cleto and the Cletones on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” had been “inseparable since I was 9 years old.”
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/a...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/11/a...
Just saw Jimmy Kimmel's tribute to his best friend, Cleto, of Cleto and the Cletones. So profoundly sad and beautiful. I had a best girlfriend like that all during childhood and my teen years, and we're still close, though we haven't lived in the same place since high school. Best friends. Whoof!
a black dog is standing next to a white dog on a window sill .
Alt: a black dog is standing next to a white dog on a window sill. The black dog hugs the white dog.
media.tenor.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:09 AM
Just saw Jimmy Kimmel's tribute to his best friend, Cleto, of Cleto and the Cletones. So profoundly sad and beautiful. I had a best girlfriend like that all during childhood and my teen years, and we're still close, though we haven't lived in the same place since high school. Best friends. Whoof!
Set your DVR’s and tune in October 2nd, as we’ll be on Jimmy Kimmel Live
Thursday nights guests include: Jeremy Allen White & Bruce Springsteen (“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”);
Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#LivingColour #KimmelInBrooklyn
Thursday nights guests include: Jeremy Allen White & Bruce Springsteen (“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”);
Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#LivingColour #KimmelInBrooklyn
September 30, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Set your DVR’s and tune in October 2nd, as we’ll be on Jimmy Kimmel Live
Thursday nights guests include: Jeremy Allen White & Bruce Springsteen (“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”);
Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#LivingColour #KimmelInBrooklyn
Thursday nights guests include: Jeremy Allen White & Bruce Springsteen (“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”);
Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#LivingColour #KimmelInBrooklyn
I think my favorite bit from Jimmy Kimmel, who is on the left, he belongs to us and us to him, the left, is his community defense segments where Cousin Sal teaches trans kids defensive rifle tactics but I also like it when Cleto and the Cletones go into the break with their hit "Abolish the Police"
September 21, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I think my favorite bit from Jimmy Kimmel, who is on the left, he belongs to us and us to him, the left, is his community defense segments where Cousin Sal teaches trans kids defensive rifle tactics but I also like it when Cleto and the Cletones go into the break with their hit "Abolish the Police"
Just heard the sad news that saxophone player and bandleader of the Cleto and the Cletones on Kimmel's show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Cleto Escobedo III passed away this morning at the age of 59. RIP
November 12, 2025 at 6:31 AM
Just heard the sad news that saxophone player and bandleader of the Cleto and the Cletones on Kimmel's show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Cleto Escobedo III passed away this morning at the age of 59. RIP
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
Jimmy Kimmel tearfully pays tribute to best friend, bandleader Cleto Escobedo
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
www.wusa9.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
September 18, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Cleto & the cletones!
Saxophonist Cleto Escobedo III, the longtime musical director of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and childhood friend of the late-night host, died early Tuesday morning. He was 59.
latenighter.com/news/cleto-e...
latenighter.com/news/cleto-e...
Cleto Escobedo III, Jimmy Kimmel’s Bandleader, Dies at 59 - LateNighter
Saxophonist Cleto Escobedo III, the longtime musical director of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and childhood friend of the late-night host, died early Tuesday morning. He was 59.
latenighter.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:48 AM
Cleto & the cletones!
I had not realized Cleto and Jimmy were friends since age 8. I had not realized that Cleto's dad was in the Cletones. It's so sad.
November 12, 2025 at 2:20 AM
I had not realized Cleto and Jimmy were friends since age 8. I had not realized that Cleto's dad was in the Cletones. It's so sad.
Kimmel shared on Tuesday that Cleto Escobedo III, the leader of Cleto and the Cletones, the house band on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” has died. He was 59. https://www.wtoc.com/2025/11/11/jimmy-kimmels-longtime-friend-bandleader-cleto-escobedo-iii-dies-59/
November 11, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Kimmel shared on Tuesday that Cleto Escobedo III, the leader of Cleto and the Cletones, the house band on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” has died. He was 59. https://www.wtoc.com/2025/11/11/jimmy-kimmels-longtime-friend-bandleader-cleto-escobedo-iii-dies-59/
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
Jimmy Kimmel tearfully pays tribute to best friend, bandleader Cleto Escobedo
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
www.kare11.com
November 12, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Cleto Escobedo III was Kimmel's best friend growing up, and was the bandleader for Cleto and the Cletones throughout the show's 22-year run.
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead
https://www.fxoxo.com/237307/
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead by IntelligentYinzer
https://www.fxoxo.com/237307/
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead by IntelligentYinzer
Jimmy Kimmel's Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead
Jimmy Kimmel's Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Deadby IntelligentYinzer
www.fxoxo.com
November 11, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead
https://www.fxoxo.com/237307/
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead by IntelligentYinzer
https://www.fxoxo.com/237307/
Jimmy Kimmel’s Band Leader Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones Dead by IntelligentYinzer
How Did Cleto Escobedo Die? Jimmy Kimmel Announces Death of Cleto & the Cletones Bandleader
#celebrity news #news
#celebrity news #news
How Did Cleto Escobedo Die? Jimmy Kimmel Announces Death of Cleto & the Cletones Bandleader
Kimmel paid tribute to his lifelong friend and bandleader, who died at the age of 59.
postgoo.com
November 12, 2025 at 1:01 AM
How Did Cleto Escobedo Die? Jimmy Kimmel Announces Death of Cleto & the Cletones Bandleader
#celebrity news #news
#celebrity news #news
Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones died. Jimmy Kimmel’s house band.
November 11, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Cleto of Cleto and the Cletones died. Jimmy Kimmel’s house band.
Guests on Jimmy Kimmel Live -- Sept. 29-Oct. 3 -- abc.com/show/9bfe2f4...
Thursday, Oct. 2
1. Jeremy Allen White 2. Bruce Springsteen 3. Musical Guest Living Colour 4. Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#JimmyKimmelLive #IvanNeville #BruceSpringsteen #nolamusic
Thursday, Oct. 2
1. Jeremy Allen White 2. Bruce Springsteen 3. Musical Guest Living Colour 4. Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#JimmyKimmelLive #IvanNeville #BruceSpringsteen #nolamusic
September 29, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Guests on Jimmy Kimmel Live -- Sept. 29-Oct. 3 -- abc.com/show/9bfe2f4...
Thursday, Oct. 2
1. Jeremy Allen White 2. Bruce Springsteen 3. Musical Guest Living Colour 4. Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#JimmyKimmelLive #IvanNeville #BruceSpringsteen #nolamusic
Thursday, Oct. 2
1. Jeremy Allen White 2. Bruce Springsteen 3. Musical Guest Living Colour 4. Ivan Neville sits in with Cleto and the Cletones
#JimmyKimmelLive #IvanNeville #BruceSpringsteen #nolamusic
Escobedo has been a part of Cleto and the Cletones, the house band for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," since 2003.
Cleto Escobedo, Jimmy Kimmel's longtime friend and late-night show band leader, has died
Escobedo has been a part of Cleto and the Cletones, the house band for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," since 2003.
www.wusa9.com
November 12, 2025 at 11:00 AM
Escobedo has been a part of Cleto and the Cletones, the house band for "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," since 2003.
Cleto Escobedo III, the Cleto and the Cletones leader who's performed on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" for 22 years, has died, childhood friend Kimmel said.
Cleto Escobedo III, 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' bandleader of 22 years, dies at 59
Cleto Escobedo III, the Cleto and the Cletones leader who's performed on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" for 22 years, has died, childhood friend Kimmel said.
bit.ly
November 11, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Cleto Escobedo III, the Cleto and the Cletones leader who's performed on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" for 22 years, has died, childhood friend Kimmel said.
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" bandleader Cleto Escobedo III has died at 59. Cleto and the Cletones have been with the show since its debut in 2003. Kimmel will address his passing on Tuesday's show.
#CletoEscobedo #CletoAndTheCletones #JimmyKimmelLive #Entertainment #Television #TV #Streaming #Music
#CletoEscobedo #CletoAndTheCletones #JimmyKimmelLive #Entertainment #Television #TV #Streaming #Music
November 11, 2025 at 10:22 PM
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" bandleader Cleto Escobedo III has died at 59. Cleto and the Cletones have been with the show since its debut in 2003. Kimmel will address his passing on Tuesday's show.
#CletoEscobedo #CletoAndTheCletones #JimmyKimmelLive #Entertainment #Television #TV #Streaming #Music
#CletoEscobedo #CletoAndTheCletones #JimmyKimmelLive #Entertainment #Television #TV #Streaming #Music