Part of the joy of creating a character comes from being able to flesh out his background.
I think most players actually go with the tried and true bandit murder story that left them all alone.
I think this is the one part that should be left up to the imaginations of the players rather than random die rolls.
However, to answer your question you can check out some of the stuff that was available for Rolemaster. The number of rolls was determined by the race. There were dozens of different charts, many of which would not be directly usable within 3.5 but which could be adapted.
Here's some thoughts:
You might roll a few times on the 100 story ideas in the DMG to come up with the key plot points of your character's prehistory and how he got started adventuring.
There's a section, also in the DMG, on NPC statistics that lets you generate random class and alignment.
For race you might roll to see the size town your character is from, and then again on the racial breakdown of the town--that way races exist in the proportions they really would rather than everyone being the really really rare stuff. Possibly allow yourself to pick something really out there (like a monster race, or a templated character) on a natural 01 roll or whatever you find fair.
No shortage of random tables in 3rd edition. Just find clever uses for them and I'm sure you can get what you're looking for.
Try this:
http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/buildingCharacters/characterBackground.ht m
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Personally, I like to go with an general background and then a specific reason as to why my character has taken up adventuring.
For instance, in our latest Iron Heroes campaign, my character was the child of peasant farmers. His village was wiped out by bandit-slavers, and he was captured. Enroute to a slave market, the slaver troop was ambushed by members of a we-take-the-fight-to-evil monk order. My character was then taken in, raised, and trained by the monks. As part of their order, he has now been sent into the world to seek a fellow member who has gone missing.
Gods know that I love to roll dice, but when it comes to character creation I am definately against it. Personally I think if you can't come up with a basic backstory without the aid of random generation charts you need to read a book...a modern realistic fiction, biographical or autobiographical book. I love the fantasy genre, but it has a way of stunting one's down-to-earth imagination. A tragic lead-in to an adventuring life is great once in a while, but when every character is the result of a bandit raid or an earthbound demon or some such, the game starts to feel like a saturday morning cartoon. (animes comes to mind...) Right now, I'm playing an obese hillbilly fighter. He is of noble family who are not dead but he doesn't get a weekly allowance from pop nor can he run home crying to be saved. He may have killed his brother (he doesn't know) after being physically threatened by him (his brother isn't evil, just prone to teenage hormones), which is why he now adventures. There's my simple, semi-dramatic backstory; I didn't roll on any chart to get it or my character's personality. Hell, I didn't even roll for random height and weight and age (yes, I voluntarily WANT to play a fat character)!
I do a combo of both. I usually start with Central Casting's Heroes of Legend and rolling randomly. When the pieces start to fall together I do less random rolling and more picking of things off the charts. My current character rolled unually large for its race and working with my DM I ended up being 9' 2" tall and considered size large. It came along with all the benifits and challenges associated with that size (I also used a feat slot for it).
I love making the backstory for my characters. I never do orphans or village was destroyed by orcs because they seem too overused. I am currently playing a human cleric of Pelor. (I wanted to play a kobold cleric, but the DM disallowed it.) He was unemployed and refused to help out at home, so his parents threw him out. One night he was out drinking until dawn. Drunk as a skunk, he witnessed the most magnificant sunrise and immediately pledged himself to Pelor. He has no wealth and little gear. He has no contacts within the church and just makes up scripture as he goes. Quite funny really. He is tall and muscular like an average NBA basketball player. It helps me to look at real people to visualize physique. Random charts take the fun out of character gen for me, but most people do not get into back story as much as I do.
There was a game supplement from Central Casting named Heroes of Legend that had dozens of tables you could use to come up with interesting character backgrounds. It sort of guided you through a bunch of elements - you'd roll a few events of childhood, and the first might take you to the "Something Wonderful Happens" table, the next might give you a mysterious gift (roll for what the item is, who the mysterious stranger was that game it to you, etc.). You can sometimes find copies on Ebay.
Has anyone done d100 table for things like background, craft skill, profession, personality, scars.
There's a table in the Dungeon Master's Guide for 100 random NPC traits (page 128); it's actually 99 traits though (see number 100).
As for background, there are a number of tables in the Unearthed Arcana that cover that. I think there might also be something in the Dungeon Master's Guide II.
Hope this helps,
TK
Drunk as a skunk, he witnessed the most magnificant sunrise and immediately pledged himself to Pelor.
Sounds like Martin Luther (the protestant, not the activist) getting hit by lightning and in the instant promises his life to God, if only he lives thru it. Great beginnings, both!