Jimmy Kimmel recently opened up about when he first learned of his talk show’s temporary suspension from ABC on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. He revealed that before receiving a call from ABC about an important matter, he was at the office. Seeking some privacy for the call, he went to the bathroom, and it was there that he learned about the show’s indefinite hiatus.
Jimmy Kimmel talks about the moment ABC pulled his show
In a conversation on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Kimmel detailed the events of when he discovered that his talk show was about to go off the air.
He said, “It was about 3 o’clock, we tape our show at 4:30. I’m in my office, typing away as I usually do, I get a phone call. It’s ABC. They say they want to talk to me. This is unusual. They — as far as I knew — didn’t even know I was doing a show previous to this.” He further revealed that five people work at his office, so the only place he could seek privacy during the call was the bathroom. So, he spoke to the ABC executives on a call in the bathroom. They told him that they needed to “take the temperature down.”
Kimmel revealed that executives told him, “We’re concerned about what you’re going to say tonight, and we decided that the best route is to take the show off the air.” After hearing the story, the audience booed. Kimmel replied that he gave the same reaction as well when the executives informed him about the decision. He told them that it wasn’t a “good idea” to take the show down temporarily. Ultimately, there was a vote, which Kimmel lost, and the show was pulled off the air.
Explaining his reaction to ABC’s decision, he added, “I put my pants back on, and I walked out to my office, and I called in some of the executive producers. There are about nine people in there. And I said, ‘They’re pulling the show off the air.’ And I was — my wife said I was white, I was whiter than Jim Gaffigan when I came out of there.”
Colbert asked him what his first thought was after learning about the show’s suspension. Kimmel revealed that he thought, “It’s over,” and feared he might never return. (via PEOPLE)
Originally reported by Shazmeen Navrange on Mandatory.com.
