Pained Ellen DeGeneres: I’ll ‘never make sense’ of Stephen ‘tWitch’ Boss’ death
Ellen DeGeneres is still struggling to understand longtime friend and colleague Stephen “tWitch” Boss’ tragic death, and wants fans to know they’re not alone in their “pain.”
“Hey everybody, I just wanted to say that the past 11 days have been really tough for everyone,” the former talk show host said in a tearful Instagram video posted Friday. “Everyone is in pain and trying to make sense of it — we will never make sense of it.”
The 64-year-old comedian continued, “And the holidays are hard, I think, anyway, but I think the best thing we can do to honor tWitch is to laugh, and hug each other and to play games and dance and sing. That’s the way we honor him … we do the things he loved to do.”
DeGeneres — who acknowledged that it seems “impossible” to put on a happy face at the moment — encouraged viewers to check in and tell “each other we love them.”
“I know it’s not a happy holiday, but he was pure light as everybody in the comments said, if you knew him you knew that, if you didn’t know that you saw it,” she concluded.
Boss was found dead in a Los Angeles motel room on Dec. 13 at the age of 40. His official cause of death was later ruled suicide by a gunshot to the head.
Although motel staffers said the famed dancer did not appear “visibly upset” when he checked into the establishment the day before his death, law enforcement officials told TMZ he left behind a suicide note which alluded to past struggles he was still dealing with.
Following the news of the “Ellen DeGeneres Show” DJ’s passing, which left the entire world stunned, the “heartbroken” comedian took to Instagram to mourn the loss of her longtime friend.
“tWitch was pure love and light,” DeGeneres captioned a photo of the pair hugging. “He was my family, and I loved him with all my heart. I will miss him.”
Boss — who started deejaying on DeGeneres’ now-canceled talk show in 2014 — is survived by wife Allison Holker, with whom he shared three children: Weslie, 14, Maddox, 6, and Zaia, 3.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.