Skitch Henderson
Skitch Henderson (born Lyle Russell Cedric Henderson, January 27, 1918-
November 1, 2005 at his home in New Milford, Connecticut) was an American pianist, conductor, and composer. "Skitch" was a nickname said to derive from his ability in his early career to quickly "re-sketch" a song in a different key.
Early life
Both of his parents, Joseph and Josephine Henderson, were of Scandinavian descent. Early details of Henderson's life are unclear. Official biographies and many obituaries described him as having been born in Birmingham, UK, to have been taught piano by his mother, and to have moved to the U.S. in the 1930s. But according to census and other sources, he was born in Halstad, Minnesota, his mother died when he was two, and he was brought up in Minnesota by his aunt, Hatty Gift.
Education
Henderson said he received classical training under Fritz Reiner, Albert Coates, Arnold Schoenberg, Ernst Toch and Arturo Toscanini, who invited him to conduct the NBC Symphony Orchestra. However, there is nothing in the archives of Schoenberg, whose life was extremely well-documented, reflecting the slightest association with Henderson. In the same vein, there is no readily available documentation of any study with Coates, who moved to South Africa the 1940s and died there in 1953.
Early career
He started his professional career in the 1930s playing piano in the roadhouses of the American Midwest, his major break being as an accompanist on a 1937 MGM promotional tour featuring Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney.
Henderson later said that as a member of MGM’s music department, he worked with Garland to learn "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" during rehearsals for "The Wizard of Oz" and played piano for her first public performance of the song at a local nightclub before the film was finished. However this account is at odds with the memoirs of the tune's composer, Harold Arlen, who first performed the song for the 14-year-old Garland.
World War II
Although his official biography states that he joined the Royal Air Force when World War Two began and served as a fighter pilot before becoming a US citizen and joining the U.S. Army Air Corps as a bomber pilot, this cannot be confirmed in the historic record. No official biography lists the precise RAF or U.S. unit in which he claimed to have served.
The Los Angeles Times of Sept. 17, 1940, Part I, Page 19, lists Skitch Henderson and Ben Gage performing Sept. 18, 1940, at the Victor Hugo in Beverly Hills. Tickets $2.
The Los Angeles Times of Dec. 1, 1940, Part IV, Page 7, says Skitch Henderson performed at Jackie Cooper's home.
"Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood," appearing in The Los Angeles Times of Sept. 23, 1941, Part II, Page 9, says Skitch Henderson and Ann Rutherford are rumored to be on the verge of matrimony. They think each other is swell but it ain't love, he says.
Hedda Hopper, appearing in the Los Angeles Times of Jan. 1, 1943, Part II, Page 11, says Skitch Henderson was at Ciro's with Bonita Granville.
Hedda Hopper, appearing in the Los Angeles Times of Sept. 25, 1946, Part II, Page 7, says Anita Colby is doing the furnishings for Skitch Henderson's new apartment.
Edwin Schallert, appearing in the Los Angeles Times of Sept. 27, 1946, Part II, Page 3, says Skitch Henderson is coaching Jimmy Stewart on how to play the piano for "A Miracle Can Happen."
Radio
After the war, he worked for NBC Radio, where he was the musical director for Frank Sinatra's Lucky Strike Show and The Philco Hour with Bing Crosby. Henderson also played on Bob Hope’s Pepsodent Show.
The origin of his nickname is often traced to this period, with Henderson crediting the invention to Bing Crosby. However, he was using the name as early as 1940, before he met Crosby in 1946. In 1953, in an interview for the Canadian publication Saturday Night, he said he had no recollection of its origin.
His radio work included:
 California Melodies debuted 1940, Mutual, KHJ (He was already using the nickname "Skitch" at this point).
Songs by Sinatra 1946
I Deal in Crime 1946, ABC
Philco Radio Time starring Bing Crosby 1946, ABC
Best of All 1954, NBC
United States Air Force Presents 1969
Skitch Henderson With the Music Makers
Television
In a career at NBC spanning 1951 to 1966, he succeeded Toscanini as music director for NBC Television and was the original conductor of the orchestras for The Tonight Show and The Today Show.
Match Game 1962-1963
Films
Skitch Henderson and His Orchestra 1948
Skitch Henderson and His Orchestra 1950
1952
He wrote Baby Made a Change in Me for the 1948 movie On Our Merry Way.
Legal problems
He was indicted on July 2, 1974, on charges of tax evasion for the years of 1969 and 1970 for claims about the value (allegedly $350,000) of a music library he donated to the University of Wisconsin. He further claimed that he had consulted on the value of his collection with Leonard Bernstein and Henry Mancini, both of whom denied the claims. A signature on an acceptance letter from the library director was also deemed a forgery.
Henderson was sentenced January 17, 1975 to 6 months in prison and fined $10,000. He began serving his sentence at a minimum-security Federal prison on April 9, 1975 and was released on August 4 of that year.
Conducting career
In 1983 he founded the New York Pops Orchestra. He conducted numerous symphonic orchestras throughout the world.
Recordings
Among his hundreds of recordings, spanning the era of 78s to DVDs, were two recent releases as pianist for Arbors Records, and also as conductor of The New York Pops with Maureen McGovern on With a Song in My Heart: The Great Songs of Richard Rodgers for Reader's Digest and Centaur Records.
He conducted a 1963 recording for RCA of George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess with Leontyne Price and William Warfield that won a Grammy.
Personal life
Henderson married Ruth Einsiedel in 1958 and raised two children, Hans and Heidi. They owned and operated "The Silo," a renowned store, art gallery, and cooking school in New Milford, Connecticut from 1972 until his death. In 2003 Ruth and Skitch Henderson co-founded the Hunt Hill Farm Trust, an effort to preserve their farm’s land and buildings and to celebrate Americana in music, art and literature through the creation of a living museum.
Awards and honors
An affiliation with the Smithsonian Institution resulted in the Trust's inaugural exhibit: Skitch Henderson: A Man and His Music. On January 29, 2005, the Smithsonian awarded him the James Smithson Bicentennial Medal in recognition of his contributions to American culture.
Henderson was honored for the vital role he played in the cultural life of New York, including receiving New York City’s Handel Medallion. He was also the recipient of three honorary degrees – from St. Thomas Aquinas College, the University of South Florida, and Western Connecticut State University.
Miscellaneous
The Retro Swing Band at the University of Wisconsin plays arrangements from "The Tonight Show" and the BBC Dance Band included in the Skitch Henderson Collection at the Mills Music Library.
References
Skitch Henderson, Obituaries, Los Angeles Times, Nov 02, 2005.
Skitch Henderson, Halstad boy who became noted bandleader, dies at 87 Grand Forks Herald, Nov. 03, 2005.
Ol' Blue Eyes and me. Patrice, John, Evening Mail (Birmingham, England), Feb 2, 2005.
Skitch Henderson The New York Pops biography
The Road From Vaudeville to Carnegie Hall
Associated Press: Skitch Henderson Dies at 87
Hunt Hill Farm Trust
Internet Movie Database
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