Music producer Hal Willner, a veteran of Saturday Night Live, has died from COVID-19 complications, and Jimmy Fallon just offered a touching tribute.
The Tonight Show host and former SNL cast member on his Tuesday show-from-home choked up while mourning Willner, describing the late producer as a "creative genius" who was loved by all.
"I loved him so much," Fallon said. "Everyone loved him, every cast member loved him. And we'll miss him so much."
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In addition to producing SNL musical sketches, Willner throughout his career also produced music from artists like Lou Reed and Marianne Faithfull and worked on tribute albums like Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films. Variety reports he died from coronavirus complications at 64.
Fallon on The Tonight Show noted that many Americans now either know someone who had the novel coronavirus and recovered from it or someone who had it and passed away, and "sadly, for me, today was my first passing."
The Tonight Show host's observation that "everyone loved" Willner is clearly the case, as tons of tributes for him poured in from comedy legends this week. Adam Sandler mourned "an incredible person who so many of us will miss," while Julia Louis-Dreyfus said she was "heartbroken" by the news about her "weird and lovely pal." John Mulaney also wrote in a tweet addressed to Willner, "You loved life completely and lived it intensely and I know you would find it funny that it took a global pandemic to take you away. I am going to miss you a lot." Brendan Morrow
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