Silke Jasso
Grab the tissues for this one.
Videos by Rare
On Monday night, Jimmy Kimmel opened his show on a rather tearful note as he shared details of his new born son, William “Billy” Kimmel’s birth on April 21.
Kimmel seemed to get choked up early on in the story but assured the audience and viewers at home that though the story was “scary,” it has a happy ending. He explained that Billy’s delivery was easy but three hours later, when he and his wife Molly McNearney were in the recovery room with daughter Jane, 2 and their newborn, things took a drastic turn.
RELATED: Here are the newest photos from the set of “Raven’s Home,” spin-off from “That’s So Raven”
“My wife was in bed relaxing, a very attentive nurse at Cedars-Sinai heard a murmur in his heart and noticed he was a bit purple, which is not common,” Kimmel the audience. “[Nurses] determined he wasn’t getting enough oxygen in his blood, either in his heart or lungs. They did an x-ray that determined his lungs were fine but his heart wasn’t.”
Kimmel teared up, “It’s a terrifying thing, you know my wife is back in the recovery room, she has no idea what’s going on.”
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmWWoMcGmo0&w=560&h=315]
After more tests, McNearney and Kimmel were told their son was born with a congenital heart disease and that there was a “hole in the wall of the left and right side of his heart.”
The TV host explained on Monday morning Billy underwent a successful open heart surgery, adding, “it was the longest three hours of my life.”
“He will have another surgery in 3 to 6 months,” Kimmel said. “And, a third, hopefully non-invasive surgery in the future.”
Kimmel shared side-by-side comparisons a week apart, the day of surgery and just yesterday.
“Poor kid, not only did he get a bad heart, he got my face,” Kimmel joked.
Six days after the his birth, Billy is home and thriving.
Kimmel also took a moment to thank those who have been supportive throughout this difficult ordeal, including staff at the hospital and even frenemy Matt Damon got a shoutout.
“Every one of my friends was there 100%. We had atheists praying for us, okay? We had people who do not believe in God praying to him. And I hate to even say, but even that son-of-a-bitch Matt Damon sent flowers,” Kimmel said.
“Most of all, I want to thank my wife Molly. First of all, for allowing me to have sex with her in the first place,” he joked. “But also for being so strong and level-headed and positive and loving during the worst nightmare a new mother could experience. I couldn’t ask for a better partner and I’m so happy we had this baby together. I’m definitely getting a vasectomy after this.”
Kimmel will take the rest of his paternity leave for the remainder of the week.
