NEW YORK, NY – MAY 06: David Letterman speaks onstage at Spike TV’s ‘Don Rickles: One Night Only’ on May 6, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Spike TV)
Tony Mendez, who’s been David Letterman’s cue card holder at “The Late Show” since 1993, has been fired following an altercation with staff writer Bill Scheft. According to the New York Post, Mendez says he’s had issues with Scheft for years. Apparently, on Oct. 8, Scheft gave Mendez just a bit too much feedback while he was rehearsing with Letterman, and after Mendez sparred with him, Letterman said, “Tony, your sour disposition isn’t helping.” Mendez’s response, according to him, was to reply “You’re the one who has the sour disposition, motherf-cker.”
Though Mendez swears coarse language was common between him and Letterman, something about the interaction didn’t sit right with him, and the next day, he grabbed Scheft by the shirt and threw him into a wall. After that, “Late Show” producer Rob Burnett told him his employment was “officially terminated.”
Mendez says he doesn’t have hard feelings toward Letterman, however, saying he was “the best, the most generous boss I have ever had.”
