'His Heart Gave Out': Howard Stern's Close Friend Ralph Cirella Dead at 58 After Battle With Rare Lymphoma
Ralph Cirella spoke with Howard Stern the night before he died at 58.
Dec. 6 2023, Updated 1:49 p.m. ET
Howard Stern's close friend and recurring radio show guest Ralph Cirella has died at 58 after a battle with a rare lymphoma, RadarOnline.com has learned.
Stern revealed Cirella passed away during a routine procedure on Tuesday morning. "The illness he got was curable and was treatable, but he had some complications of waiting too long," Stern shared on Wednesday's episode of The Howard Stern Show.
Stern's longtime friend Cirella has died at 58 after a battle with a rare lymphoma.
The radio jockey said he was not ready to lose his stylist pal, who is 11 years his junior. "I just have been so sad and so angry," Stern added. "He didn't take care of himself."
"[His] heart gave out," a devastated Stern said, revealing they last spoke on the night before his death when he was admitted to the hospital. Cirella was emotional, according to the media personality.
"He's gone, and I'm gonna miss Ralph terribly," Stern confessed. Their friendship spanned four decades.
Actor John Stamos was among those who shared their condolences in the wake of Cirella's death.
Stern described Cirella as a loyal member of his inner circle, and someone who never once gossiped about him over the years. "Ralph was a trustworthy, dear friend who made me laugh every time I was with him," he continued.
The broadcaster said his late friend would help in times of despair and be his greatest "cheerleader," noting the admiration between them was genuine.
"Ralph was so talented. He could sew, he could make shirts, he could do all kinds of things. The guy was really like a macgyver, a jack of all trades."
Stern revealed Cirella passed away during a routine procedure on Tuesday morning.
Stern revealed that his now-wife, Beth Ostrosky, woke up at 4 a.m. to help out Cirella's family this morning.
The New York City native praised Cirella for being the "reason" why he met Ostrosky, whom he married in 2008.
"He was really profoundly sad that he didn't have a great love in his life," said Stern about their last phone call. "He felt very alone. He felt he had made a mistake not putting more effort into attaching himself to someone."
"Ralph was a trustworthy, dear friend who made me laugh every time I was with him," Stern fondly shared.
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Actor John Stamos was among those who shared their condolences in the wake of Cirella's death. "When met in the old days where he worked his magic as a makeup artist for Howard Stern's Channel 9 show," the Full House actor wrote in his tribute.
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"Ralph possessed an abundance of untapped potential, but he grappled with finding the motivation to fully realize it — a painful reality that we all witnessed," Stamos continued. "It serves as a poignant reminder of life's unpredictability and the importance of not only pursuing our dreams but also seeing them through to the end."
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