Jimmy Fallon Pays Tearful Tribute to His Late Mother in Tonight Show Return

On Monday, Jimmy Fallon returned to The Tonight Show for his first show since his mother Gloria Fallon died on Nov. 4. The host opened the show with an emotional remembrance of his "biggest fan."

"It's good to be back, guys," Fallon began. "As some of you know, my mother, Gloria, passed away recently. I canceled our shows last week to be with my family and make arrangements. She was the best audience, she was the one I was always trying to make laugh, and she was such a fan of the show and everything I did."

"When we were little, my mom would walk us to this store, me and my sister, and she would squeeze my hand three times and say, 'I love you,' and I would squeeze back, 'I love you, too," Fallon said, demonstrating how they would squeeze on each word. "And last week I was in the hospital and I grabbed her and squeezed 'I love you.' I just knew we were in trouble, you know? I feel so grateful to be able to do this every single night and I'm very appreciative of all the support from all of you that my family received over the past week."

"We're going to continue to work really hard to bring some light and some laughter into the world," he said. "Thank you for watching, thank you for helping me and my family recover from this loss. Mom, I'll never stop trying to make you laugh. I love you," he finished, squeezing his fist three times.

The Tonight Show airs weeknights at 11:35/10:35c on NBC.