The Late Show's famous cue-card holder, who was often given air-time between jokes, was removed last week from the show when he assaulted a fellow staff writer while on set at the Ed Sullivan Theater.
In the report by the New York Post, Mendez, 69, confirmed about the incident and the truth that he was fired. The assault happened on October 9 with Bill Scheft, a staff writer of the show. It was heated up by a verbal squabble a day before the assault in Letterman's dressing room. According to Letterman's cue-card guy of two decades, he somehow knew that this situation is coming as Scheft always "encroaches" on his work.
Mendez recalled that most of the time, Scheft will try to command him on what to do with the cue-cards. On October 8, Wednesday, in the show's rehearsal Mendez said he just reacted to one of Scheft's interruptions. "As Dave is giving me a change, Bill will start yelling the same change - but his own version - because he'll think it's funnier." But at that moment, Letterman growled at him and told Mendez that he isn't helping to make the situation better.
In the same report by New York Post, Mendez confessed that he was "pissed off" when Letterman snapped at him even though they often exchanged insults in the 21 years span of his service at the show. But he realized that it was what Scheft was trying to do and that he knows that it is not about Letterman. "He was trying to create a wedge between us so Dave would think I was an a-hole."
Mendez was immediately kicked out of the theater after he grabbed Scheft by the shirt and the two got literally face to face.
A former professional dancer who appeared on several Broadway shows and worked on "Saturday Night Live", Mendez ended a career in The Late Show just before Letterman retires in 2015.
