Monday's Jimmy Kimmel Live opening monologue was a far more sombre experience than usual -- for a serious reason.
Kimmel dedicated a 15 minute bit to a story about his newborn son, William (or Billy), who had a heart issue detected by a nurse hours after he was born 10 days ago.
"It's a terrifying thing," Kimmel, told the audience while looking close to tears. "You know my wife is back in the recovery room, she has no idea what's going on. And I'm standing in the middle of a lot of very worried people."
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
It turns out William was born with a heart defect, which required emergency open heart surgery. He'll also require another operation in six months' time.
Kimmel made sure to thank the nurses and doctors that helped, and those who sent well-wishes while dealing with family issues -- "even that son of a bitch Matt Damon sent flowers," he said.
Finally, Kimmel plead for Congress to not cut US$6 billion to the National Institutes of Health.
"If your baby is about to die, it shouldn't matter how much money you make," Kimmel said. "This isn't football. There are no teams. We are the team -- it's the United States. Don't let their partisan squabbles divide us."
Topics Jimmy Kimmel Live
