Jimmy Kimmel was a joker in a suit. With Trump's election, he became politically

American satirist Jimmy Kimmel, 57, hosted his show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" for 22 years. He appeared on camera four times a week, for approximately 40 minutes. Kimmel made fun of just about everything and everyone, sometimes above the belt, occasionally below the belt. Now, it seems as if 61 seconds are proving to be his downfall.

The American television network ABC has indefinitely canceled "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" from its schedule. The reason: last Monday's broadcast.

In it, Kimmel addressed the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the head of the right-wing conservative movement Turning Point USA. Kimmel claimed that the assassin himself came from this camp, which is disputed. Kimmel then mocked Donald Trump, playing a video in which the American president was asked how he was feeling about the assassination attempt. "I think very well," Trump said and began boasting about the ballroom currently being built at the White House. Kimmel's punchline: "That's how a four-year-old grieves for a goldfish."

After the episode aired, the Trump administration put pressure on ABC. Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and a Trump confidant, criticized Kimmel, sounding like a sheriff in the Old West. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr said. The hard way: an investigation by his agency, with potential fines.

ABC apparently decided to take the easy route: cancel “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”

It's not the first late-night show to be canceled during Trump's second term. In July, CBS announced it would end "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" at the end of May 2026. The network cited financial considerations as the reason for the decision.

Observers, however, interpreted Colbert's dismissal as a charm offensive by CBS's parent company, Paramount. The company is dependent on the government's goodwill for a planned merger. Moreover, Paramount was sued by Trump for allegedly biased coverage in the run-up to the presidential election.

Late-night shows are part of everyday life for millions of Americans. They're an evening workout for the brain and abs, as the hosts wrap current events in cotton wool or jokes, providing both distraction and orientation.

The shows usually follow a similar pattern. Kimmel, Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, and Seth Meyers usually wear suits, perform stand-up comedy, sketches, and host celebrity guests.

David Letterman, who set the standard with his late-night shows, is considered a pioneer. It was also Letterman who inspired the young Kimmel. Because Letterman began his career in radio, Kimmel also went into radio. When Letterman retired, he gave Kimmel a cardboard box of old ties. It still sits in Kimmel's office today.

In the 1990s, Kimmel first appeared in television series. He soon made a name for himself as a jokester with a suit and a monotone voice, a sophisticated cheek with a ribald sense of humor.

Even when "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" premiered in 2003, he was still clowning around. He had a mock feud with actor Matt Damon that became a running joke. He showed videos of parents deliberately giving their children ugly gifts. At some point, Guillermo, who worked as a security guard at the production studio in Los Angeles, joined the cast. Kimmel promptly promoted him to a sidekick, awkwardly interviewing stars.

And there were plenty of stars on Kimmel's show: actors Brad Pitt and Jennifer Lawrence, musicians Chris Martin and Ariana Grande, sports stars LeBron James and Serena Williams – they all sat with Kimmel, who became a superstar himself. He hosted the Academy Awards in Los Angeles in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2023.

In addition to various Hollywood stars, Kimmel also invited many Democratic dignitaries, including presidents, vice presidents, and presidential candidates. In recent years, Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden have all appeared on his show.

With Trump's election, the show became more political and less slapstick. Since then, Kimmel has increasingly spoken out on socially critical topics.

In 2017, for example, he announced on air that his newborn son had undergone heart surgery. With tears in his eyes, he advocated for Obamacare, the affordable healthcare program initiated by Obama. That same year, 58 people died in a shooting in Las Vegas, where Kimmel spent many years of his life. At the beginning of the show, he began to cry and called for stricter gun laws – a traditional Democratic concern.

In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in April, Kimmel reminded himself: "I have to remind myself that this isn't an investigative show, it's a comedy show." He's free of that for now.