Kimmel Chokes Up On Air Over Cecil the Lion, Likens Hunter to Bill Cosby

Kimmel eviscerated "jackhole" Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer, who killed the much-loved lion.

Jimmy Kimmel weighed in on the Cecil the Lion issue during his monologue on Tuesday night and he didn't hold back, choking up a little as he made clear his disgust and likened the present hatred of hunter Walter Palmer to the public's feeling towards Bill Cosby.

The host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! recapped the story of Palmer, a Minnesota dentist and hunting enthusiast, who had paid $55,000 to hunt, track and kill an African lion. Palmer ended up illegally killing Cecil, a popular lion at a Zimbabwean national park who was tagged for scientific research by Oxford University.

Kimmel's passionate monologue was in part disgusted by Palmer's act, eviscerating the dentist's motivation and questioning whether he hunted for sexual thrills, saying "is it that difficult for you to get an erection that you need to kill things?"

He later said if Palmer took Viagra he could "save himself from being the most hated man in America who never advertised jell-o pudding," a clear reference to Cosby.

Toward the end of the monologue, the topic clearly got to Kimmel as he lost his composure momentarily when attempting to solicit donations for the research group that was tracking Cecil.

July 29, 2015, 5:00 pm Kimmel's appeal to donate to Oxford's Wildlife Conservation Research Unit resulted in 2,600 people donating more than $155,000.