Calvert DeForest, who greeted the viewers in the debut episode of ‘Late Night With David Letterman’ in 1982, died on Monday at an age of 85, following a long illness.
Brooklyn-born Calvert died at a Long Island hospital, the Letterman show announced on Wednesday. The bespectacled actor made dozens of appearances on Letterman’s shows from 1982 through 2002, handling a variety of roles.
Letterman said in a statement,
Everyone always wondered if Calvert was an actor playing a character, but in reality he was just himself – a genuine, modest and nice man. To our staff and to our viewers, he was a beloved and valued part of our show, and we will miss him.
DeForest, who had acted in a New York University student’s film was working as a file clerk at a drug-rehabilitation center when show producers spotted him. DeForest had once said that Letterman Show was the greatest thing in his life. His character inevitably clad in an ill-fitting black suit behind thick black-rimmed glasses drew a lot of appreciation from the viewers. DeForest last appeared on ‘Late Show’ came in 2002, celebrating his 81st birthday.
DeForest also appeared in few other television shows and films, including ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’ with Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd.
