Skitch Henderson(1918-2005)
- Music Department
- Composer
- Actor
Composer, conductor, band leader, arranger, pianist, jazz expert and
accompanist to Judy Garland on tour, Skitch Henderson was educated at
Juilliard and the University of Califonia and was a student of Malcolm
Frost, Roger Aubert, Albert Coates, Fritz Reiner, and Arnold Schönberg. He was a pianist in
dance bands, and then theater orchestras, and in films and radio on the
West Coast. He served in the US Air Force during World War II, then
became Bing Crosby's music director on radio. Between 1947 and 1949, he
toured with his own dance band, and from 1961 was the musical director
for The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962) and a guest conductor for a number of symphony orchestras
including the New York Philharmonic and the London Philharmonic. He was
also music director for the New York opera "Street Scene" and made many
recordings. Joining ASCAP in 1958, his instrumental compositions
include "Skitch's Blues," "Minuet on the Rocks," "Skitch in Time,"
"Come Thursday," and "Curacao."
