Chelsea Handler shared an emotional tribute to Chuy Bravo, the actor who played her sidekick on her E! Network late night talk show Chelsea Lately. Handler praised Bravo for giving viewers “so much laughter” and said she “loved this nugget in a big way.” Bravo died on Sunday at age 63.
“I loved this nugget in a big way, and I took great pleasure in how many people loved him as much as I did and do,” Handler wrote, alongisde a collage of photos of Bravo. “[Bravo] gave us so much laughter and I’ll never forget the sound of his laughter coming from his office into mine. Or his ‘business calls’ with his ‘business manager,’ or his shoe rack with all his children-sized shoes.”
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Handler continued that she would “never forget him coming to Christmas with [her] family one year in the Florida keys,” going on to detail a memorable event shared between the two.
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“When my niece who was 5 or 6 at the time — saw him, she ran in the other direction saying she was scared,” Handler wrote. “My sister and I were mortified and were apologizing to Chuy, who told us, ‘it’s ok, lots of little kids get scared when they see big kids coming their way.’ I love you, Chuy!”
After spotting Handler’s tribute, many of her famous friends offered their condolences.
“Im so sorry!!!!!” The Big Bang Theory star Kaley Cuoco wrote, alongside several crying emojis.
“Oh I’m so sorry Chelsea,” stylist Karla Welch wrote.
“He adored you,” comedian Fortune Feimster wrote.
Bravo, born Jesus Melgoza, died on Sunday in Mexico City. His family told TMZ he was hospitalized after coming down with a “terrible stomach ache.”
Bravo’s death came just a few days after he celebrated his birthday. Handler marked the occasion with a picture from their Chelsea Lately days, and wished him a happy birthday on Instagram.
Although Bravo and Handler did not work together professionally after Chelsea Lately ended in 2014, he told Radar Online just last week he was still in contact with the stand-up comedian. “She is very busy,” Bravo told the outlet on Dec. 11. “We have both been busy trying to do our thing that we haven’t seen each other since. But we text, we call each other. She called me last week actually before my birthday.”
Bravo later said he would love to work with her again if she offered him another gig. “When the show ended, we already knew what was going to happen by then,” Bravo explained. “But it’s okay. Of course I was sad, because the whole crew, we are like a family.”
Photo credit: Michael Tullberg/Getty Images
