Obituaries

Legendary Broadway Stage Manager Samuel "Biff" Liff Dies at 96

Liff’s Broadway career began in 1949.

Broadway jack-of-all-trades Samuel "Biff" Liff has died at the age of 96.
Broadway jack-of-all-trades Samuel "Biff" Liff has died at the age of 96.
(© Tristan Fuge)

Samuel "Biff" Liff, the legendary Broadway stage manager/producer/talent agent, has died at the age of 96, according to Deadline.com.

Liff's theatrical career began in 1949 when he served as the stage manager for the musical revue Along Fifth Avenue. That same year, he moved over to the original production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes the same year. As a production stage manager and production supervisor, he worked on the original productions of My Fair Lady, starring Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews, both Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker and Hello, Dolly!, the Jerry Herman/Michael Stewart musical it inspired, among many others.

He served as associate producer on scores of productions, including noted plays Cactus Flower, The Persecution and Assassination of Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. For 35 years, he served as an agent at William Morris.

Liff was awarded a 2006 Tony Honor for Excellence in Theatre.

Samuel "Biff" Liff gets a kiss from Chita Rivera at Primary Stages' 2010 Gala, where he was honored for his work.
Samuel "Biff" Liff gets a kiss from Chita Rivera at Primary Stages' 2010 Gala, where he was honored for his work.
(© Tristan Fuge)