James Jackson "Biff" Henderson, Jr. (born October 3, 1946) is an American

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

and

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group due to the attention given to them by mass media. The word is also used to refer to famous individuals. A person may attain celebrity status by having great w ...

best known for his work on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...

''. He was the show's stage manager and appeared in occasional humorous segments, which often involved interviewing people at public places and events.

Early life and education

Henderson was born in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

, in the Hayti District. He acquired the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

"Biff" from his mother when her friend had a dream involving a boy named "Biff". Henderson played tennis in his school years. One of his friends and opponents was tennis legend Arthur Ashe. Henderson graduated from Hillside High School in Durham, and earned a degree in

business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

from Hampton Institute. He also served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and deployed to

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

Career

In 1970, Henderson had been in New York to interview with The Hertz Corporation, which at the time had been co-owned with NBC by the Radio Corporation of America. His need for a restroom in the RCA Building led to a chance encounter with a janitor who introduced him to an NBC sales executive. He would join NBC, working first for the NBC Radio Sales Services and Station Clearances Department and then as stage manager during NBC's coverage of the

World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...

, coverage of various

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

missions, plus shows such as '' Today'' and '' To Tell the Truth''. His association with David Letterman, which spanned 35 years, began in 1980 as a stage manager on '' The David Letterman Show'' (NBC). He rejoined Letterman with the launch of '' Late Night with David Letterman (NBC)'' in 1982, remaining with it and ''

'' (CBS) for their entire runs. Henderson frequently participated in the on-screen antics and sometimes was the star of short segments recounting his humorous adventures in New York. Henderson's "theme" music on the show was " Milestones" by

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

. Henderson took part in a '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' skit honoring ''

Back to the Future ''Back to the Future'' is a 1985 American science fiction film directed by Robert Zemeckis and written by Zemeckis and Bob Gale. It stars Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, and Thomas F. Wilson. Set in 1985 ...

'' during a Kimmel broadcast from

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

in October 2015. When Michael J. Fox (as Marty McFly) and Christopher Lloyd (as Emmett Brown) ask Kimmel what became of their nemesis Biff, Henderson came onstage, prompting "Marty" to tell Kimmel, "no, not that Biff."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Biff 1946 births Living people African-American television personalities United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War American television personalities People from Durham, North Carolina Hillside High School (Durham, North Carolina) alumni United States Army soldiers 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people African-American history of Westchester County, New York