Jerry Orbach
Encyclopedia
Jerome Bernard "Jerry" Orbach (October 20, 1935 – December 28, 2004) was an American actor and singer. He was well known for his starring role as Detective Lennie Briscoe
in the Law & Order
television series and as the voice of Lumière in Disney
's Beauty and the Beast
. As well, Orbach was a noted musical theatre
star. His prominent roles included originating the character of El Gallo in The Fantasticks
, the longest-running musical play in history; Chuck Baxter in the original production of Promises, Promises
(for which he won a Tony Award
); Julian Marsh in 42nd Street
; and Billy Flynn in the original production of Chicago
.
Olexy), a greeting card manufacturer and radio singer, and Leon Orbach, a restaurant manager and vaudeville
performer. His father was a Jewish immigrant from Hamburg
, Germany
, who was descended from Sephardic
refugees from the Spanish Inquisition
. His mother, a native of Pennsylvania
, was Polish American
and Catholic
, and Orbach was raised Catholic (a religious background later replicated in his character on Law and Order). Throughout his childhood, the Orbach family moved frequently, living in Mount Vernon, New York
; Wilkes-Barre
, Nanticoke
, and Scranton, Pennsylvania
; Springfield, Massachusetts
; and Waukegan, Illinois
. He studied drama at University of Illinois
and Northwestern University
and then went to New York
, where he studied with Lee Strasberg
at the Actors Studio
.
and Off Broadway actor. His first major role was El Gallo in the original cast of the decades-running hit The Fantasticks
. He also starred in The Threepenny Opera
, Carnival!
, the musical version of the movie Lili
(his Broadway debut), in a revival of Guys and Dolls (as Sky Masterson, receiving a Tony Award
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical), Promises, Promises
(as Chuck, receiving a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical), the original productions of Chicago
(as Billy Flynn, receiving a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical), 42nd Street
, and a revival of The Cradle Will Rock
. Orbach made occasional film and TV appearances into the 1970s.
In the 1980s, he shifted to film and TV work full-time. Prominent roles included a superb performance as tough, effective, but "allegedly corrupt" NYPD officer Gus Levy in Sidney Lumet
's Prince of the City
; he was the 1981 runner-up for the NSFC
Best Supporting Actor award. He also portrayed Jennifer Grey
's father in Dirty Dancing
and a gangster in the Woody Allen
drama Crimes and Misdemeanors
. He starred in the short-lived 1987 crime drama The Law and Harry McGraw, in a role he later reprised as a regular guest star on Murder, She Wrote
. He also appeared as a celebrity panelist on both What's My Line?
and Super Password, and guest starred on the sitcom The Golden Girls
.
In 1991, Orbach starred in the Academy Award-winning animated musical Beauty and the Beast
, as the voice of the candelabrum Lumière, a role he would reprise in the film's direct-to-video sequels. He also voiced the character for the video game spin-offs of the series. That same year, he played a NYPD police lieutenant of detectives in Steven Seagal
's Out for Justice
and appeared as a defense attorney in the Law & Order episode "The Wages of Love". In 1992, Orbach joined the main cast of Law & Order as world-weary, wisecracking, streetwise NYPD police detective Lennie Briscoe. He remained on the show until 2004 and became one of its most popular characters. TV Guide
named Briscoe one of their top 50 television detectives of all-time. Orbach was signed to continue in the role on Law & Order: Trial by Jury
, but appeared in only the first two episodes of the series. Both episodes aired in March 2005, after his death. The fifth episode of the series, "Baby Boom", and the Law & Order: Criminal Intent
episode, "View from Up Here", were dedicated to his memory.
; they divorce
d in 1975. Elder son Tony Is a crossword puzzle
constructor for The New York Times
. Younger son Chris Orbach, who is an actor and singer, played Lennie Briscoe's nephew Ken Briscoe on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
. In 1979, Jerry Orbach married Broadway dancer Elaine Cancilla, whom he met while starring in Chicago.
Orbach lived in a high-rise on 53rd Street
off Eighth Avenue
in Hell's Kitchen
and was a fixture in that neighborhood's restaurants and shops. His glossy publicity photo hangs in Ms. Buffy's French Cleaners, and he was a regular at some of the Italian restaurants nearby. As of 2007, the intersection of 8th Avenue and 53rd Street was renamed in honor of Orbach. The plans met with some resistance by local planning boards, but were overcome thanks to his popularity and his love of the Big Apple
.
. He died at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
in New York on December 28, 2004 at the age of 69. His agent, Robert Malcolm, announced at the time of his death that Orbach's prostate cancer had been diagnosed more than 10 years before. The day after his death, the marquees on Broadway were dimmed in mourning, one of the highest honors of the American theatre world.
In addition to his sons, wife and ex-wife, Orbach was survived by his mother Emily Orbach and two grandchildren, Peter and Sarah Kate Orbach, his older son Tony's children. The season 14 episode "C.O.D.", the last Law & Order episode featuring Orbach, was re-aired in his memory on December 29, 2004.
One of his wishes while he was alive was to have his eyes donated after his death. His wish was granted when two individuals — one who needed correction for a nearsighted eye and another who needed correction for a farsighted eye — received Orbach's cornea
s. Orbach's likeness has been used in an ad campaign for Eye Bank for Sight Restoration in Manhattan. His interment was at Trinity Church Cemetery
.
Elaine Orbach, his widow, died on April 1, 2009, from pneumonia
at the age of 69.
, by the New York Landmarks Conservancy
in 2002. He quipped that the honor meant "that they can't tear me down". On February 5, 2005, he was posthumously awarded a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.
On September 18, 2007, a portion of 53rd Street, near Eighth Avenue, in New York City, was renamed in Orbach's honor as Jerry Orbach Way.
Also in 2007, the Jerry Orbach Theatre was named for him in the Snapple Theater Center
on 51st Street and Broadway, in New York City. The naming occurred as a tribute to him during a revival of The Fantasticks at the theatre.
, was quoted in the Wall Street Journal on May 21, 2010: "I always think about the show as before Jerry and after Jerry...You saw the weariness of 25 years of crime-fighting in New York written on his face."
Author Kurt Vonnegut
was a fan of Orbach, and during an Australian radio interview in 2005, he said, "People have asked me, you know, 'Who would you rather be, than yourself?', and he replied "Jerry Orbach, without a question...I talked to him one time, and he's adorable."
Patrick Swayze
once said in an interview:
Former co-worker Elisabeth Röhm
was asked about any crazy memories she had of Orbach at the 2007 Dragon Con
:
Off Broadway
Empty Nest (1992) 2 episodes
Lennie Briscoe
Leonard W. "Lennie" Briscoe is a fictional character on NBC's long running police procedural and legal drama television series Law & Order. He was featured on the show for 12 seasons, from 1992 to 2004. He was created by Walon Green and René Balcer, and was portrayed by Jerry Orbach...
in the Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
television series and as the voice of Lumière in Disney
Walt Disney Feature Animation
Walt Disney Animation Studios is an American animation studio headquartered in Burbank, California. The studio, founded in 1923 as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio by brothers Walt and Roy Disney, is the oldest subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
's Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
. As well, Orbach was a noted musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
star. His prominent roles included originating the character of El Gallo in The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones. It was produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who trick their children, Luisa and Matt, into...
, the longest-running musical play in history; Chuck Baxter in the original production of Promises, Promises
Promises, Promises
Promises, Promises is a musical based on the 1960 film The Apartment. The music is by Burt Bacharach, lyrics by Hal David, and book by Neil Simon. Musical numbers for the original Broadway production were choreographed by Michael Bennett; Robert Moore directed and David Merrick produced...
(for which he won a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
); Julian Marsh in 42nd Street
42nd Street (musical)
42nd Street is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble, lyrics by Al Dubin, and music by Harry Warren. The 1980 Broadway production, directed by an ailing Gower Champion and orchestrated by Philip J. Lang, won the Tony Award for Best Musical and became a long-running hit...
; and Billy Flynn in the original production of Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
.
Early life
Orbach was born in the Bronx, the only child of Emily (néeMarried and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Olexy), a greeting card manufacturer and radio singer, and Leon Orbach, a restaurant manager and vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
performer. His father was a Jewish immigrant from Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, who was descended from Sephardic
Sephardi Jews
Sephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
refugees from the Spanish Inquisition
Spanish Inquisition
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition , commonly known as the Spanish Inquisition , was a tribunal established in 1480 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile. It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy in their kingdoms, and to replace the Medieval...
. His mother, a native of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, was Polish American
Polish American
A Polish American , is a citizen of the United States of Polish descent. There are an estimated 10 million Polish Americans, representing about 3.2% of the population of the United States...
and Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, and Orbach was raised Catholic (a religious background later replicated in his character on Law and Order). Throughout his childhood, the Orbach family moved frequently, living in Mount Vernon, New York
Mount Vernon, New York
Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It lies on the border of the New York City borough of The Bronx.-Overview:...
; Wilkes-Barre
Nanticoke, Pennsylvania
Nanticoke is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,465 at the 2010 census.-History:The name Nanticoke was derived from Nantego, the Indian tidewater people who moved here when their Maryland lands were spoiled for hunting by the colonial settlement in...
, Nanticoke
Nanticoke, Pennsylvania
Nanticoke is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,465 at the 2010 census.-History:The name Nanticoke was derived from Nantego, the Indian tidewater people who moved here when their Maryland lands were spoiled for hunting by the colonial settlement in...
, and Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
; Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
; and Waukegan, Illinois
Waukegan, Illinois
Waukegan is a city and county seat of Lake County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 87,901. The 2010 population was 89,078. It is the ninth-largest city in Illinois by population...
. He studied drama at University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
and Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
and then went to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where he studied with Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg was an American actor, director and acting teacher. He cofounded, with directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed as "America's first true theatrical collective"...
at the Actors Studio
Actors Studio
The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights at 432 West 44th Street in the Clinton neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded October 5, 1947, by Elia Kazan, Cheryl Crawford, Robert Lewis and Anna Sokolow who provided...
.
Career
Orbach was an accomplished BroadwayBroadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
and Off Broadway actor. His first major role was El Gallo in the original cast of the decades-running hit The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks
The Fantasticks is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones. It was produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who trick their children, Luisa and Matt, into...
. He also starred in The Threepenny Opera
The Threepenny Opera
The Threepenny Opera is a musical by German dramatist Bertolt Brecht and composer Kurt Weill, in collaboration with translator Elisabeth Hauptmann and set designer Caspar Neher. It was adapted from an 18th-century English ballad opera, John Gay's The Beggar's Opera, and offers a Marxist critique...
, Carnival!
Carnival!
Carnival is a 1961 musical with the book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Bob Merrill. The musical is based on the 1953 film Lili.-Background:...
, the musical version of the movie Lili
Lili
Lili is an American film. An MGM release, it stars Leslie Caron as a touchingly naïve French girl, whose emotional relationship with a carnival puppeteer is conducted through the medium of four puppets...
(his Broadway debut), in a revival of Guys and Dolls (as Sky Masterson, receiving a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical), Promises, Promises
Promises, Promises
Promises, Promises is a musical based on the 1960 film The Apartment. The music is by Burt Bacharach, lyrics by Hal David, and book by Neil Simon. Musical numbers for the original Broadway production were choreographed by Michael Bennett; Robert Moore directed and David Merrick produced...
(as Chuck, receiving a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical), the original productions of Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
(as Billy Flynn, receiving a Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical), 42nd Street
42nd Street (musical)
42nd Street is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble, lyrics by Al Dubin, and music by Harry Warren. The 1980 Broadway production, directed by an ailing Gower Champion and orchestrated by Philip J. Lang, won the Tony Award for Best Musical and became a long-running hit...
, and a revival of The Cradle Will Rock
The Cradle Will Rock
The Cradle Will Rock is a 1937 musical by Marc Blitzstein. Originally a part of the Federal Theatre Project, it was directed by Orson Welles, and produced by John Houseman. The show was recorded and released on seven 78-rpm discs in 1938, making it the first cast album recording.The musical is a...
. Orbach made occasional film and TV appearances into the 1970s.
In the 1980s, he shifted to film and TV work full-time. Prominent roles included a superb performance as tough, effective, but "allegedly corrupt" NYPD officer Gus Levy in Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his credit. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for 12 Angry Men , Dog Day Afternoon , Network and The Verdict...
's Prince of the City
Prince of the City
Prince of the City is an American crime drama film about an NYPD officer who chooses to expose police corruption for idealistic reasons. The character of Daniel Ciello was based on real-life NYPD Narcotics Detective Robert Leuci and the script was based on Robert Daley's 1978 book of the same name...
; he was the 1981 runner-up for the NSFC
National Society of Film Critics
The National Society of Film Critics is an American film critic organization. As of December 2007 the NSFC had approximately 60 members who wrote for a variety of weekly and daily newspapers.-History:...
Best Supporting Actor award. He also portrayed Jennifer Grey
Jennifer Grey
Jennifer Elise Grey is an American actress. Her first major roles came in the 1984 war film Red Dawn and the 1986 comedy Ferris Bueller's Day Off. In 1987 she starred as Frances "Baby" Houseman in the hit film Dirty Dancing for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe. In the early 1990s, Grey...
's father in Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing
Dirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
and a gangster in the Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
drama Crimes and Misdemeanors
Crimes and Misdemeanors
Crimes and Misdemeanors is a 1989 black comedy written, directed by and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Martin Landau, Mia Farrow, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, Sam Waterston and Joanna Gleason....
. He starred in the short-lived 1987 crime drama The Law and Harry McGraw, in a role he later reprised as a regular guest star on Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
. He also appeared as a celebrity panelist on both What's My Line?
What's My Line?
What's My Line? is a panel game show which originally ran in the United States on the CBS Television Network from 1950 to 1967, with several international versions and subsequent U.S. revivals. The game tasked celebrity panelists with questioning contestants in order to determine their occupations....
and Super Password, and guest starred on the sitcom The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
.
In 1991, Orbach starred in the Academy Award-winning animated musical Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)
Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
, as the voice of the candelabrum Lumière, a role he would reprise in the film's direct-to-video sequels. He also voiced the character for the video game spin-offs of the series. That same year, he played a NYPD police lieutenant of detectives in Steven Seagal
Steven Seagal
Steven Frederic Seagal is an American action film star, producer, writer, martial artist, guitarist and reserve deputy sheriff. A 7th-dan black belt in Aikido, Seagal began his adult life as an Aikido instructor in Japan...
's Out for Justice
Out for Justice
Out for Justice is a 1991 action film directed by John Flynn and starring Steven Seagal.- Plot :Gino Felino is an NYPD detective from Brooklyn who has strong ties within his neighborhood...
and appeared as a defense attorney in the Law & Order episode "The Wages of Love". In 1992, Orbach joined the main cast of Law & Order as world-weary, wisecracking, streetwise NYPD police detective Lennie Briscoe. He remained on the show until 2004 and became one of its most popular characters. TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
named Briscoe one of their top 50 television detectives of all-time. Orbach was signed to continue in the role on Law & Order: Trial by Jury
Law & Order: Trial by Jury
Law & Order: Trial by Jury is an American television drama about criminal trials set in New York City. It was the third spin-off from the long-running Law & Order. The show's almost exclusive focus was on the criminal trial of the accused, showing both the prosecution's and defense's preparation...
, but appeared in only the first two episodes of the series. Both episodes aired in March 2005, after his death. The fifth episode of the series, "Baby Boom", and the Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent
Law & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...
episode, "View from Up Here", were dedicated to his memory.
Personal life
Orbach was married in 1958 to Marta Curro, with whom he had two sons, Anthony Nicholas and Christopher BenjaminChris Orbach
Christopher Ben Orbach is an actor-singer/songwriter who is the son of late Law & Order star Jerry Orbach and his first wife Marta Curro...
; they divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
d in 1975. Elder son Tony Is a crossword puzzle
Crossword Puzzle
For the common puzzle, see CrosswordCrossword Puzzle was the second to last album made by The Partridge Family and was not one of the most popular albums. It was released in 1973 and did not produce a U.S. single. This album was finally released on CD in 2003 on Arista's BMG Heritage label...
constructor for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. Younger son Chris Orbach, who is an actor and singer, played Lennie Briscoe's nephew Ken Briscoe on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
. In 1979, Jerry Orbach married Broadway dancer Elaine Cancilla, whom he met while starring in Chicago.
Orbach lived in a high-rise on 53rd Street
53rd Street (Manhattan)
53rd Street is a midtown cross street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, that contains buildings such as the Citicorp Building. It is 1.83 miles long. The street runs westbound from Sutton Place across most of the island's width, ending at DeWitt Clinton Park at Eleventh Avenue...
off Eighth Avenue
Eighth Avenue (Manhattan)
Eighth Avenue is a north-south avenue on the West Side of Manhattan in New York City, carrying northbound traffic. Eighth Avenue begins in the West Village neighborhood at Abingdon Square and runs north for 44 blocks through Chelsea, the Garment District, Hell's Kitchen's east end, Midtown and the...
in Hell's Kitchen
Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan
Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton and Midtown West, is a neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City between 34th Street and 59th Street, from 8th Avenue to the Hudson River....
and was a fixture in that neighborhood's restaurants and shops. His glossy publicity photo hangs in Ms. Buffy's French Cleaners, and he was a regular at some of the Italian restaurants nearby. As of 2007, the intersection of 8th Avenue and 53rd Street was renamed in honor of Orbach. The plans met with some resistance by local planning boards, but were overcome thanks to his popularity and his love of the Big Apple
Big Apple
"The Big Apple" is a nickname for New York City. It was first popularized in the 1920s by John J. Fitz Gerald, a sports writer for the New York Morning Telegraph...
.
Death
In early December 2004, it was announced that Orbach had been receiving treatment for prostate cancerProstate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...
. He died at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center is a cancer treatment and research institution founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital...
in New York on December 28, 2004 at the age of 69. His agent, Robert Malcolm, announced at the time of his death that Orbach's prostate cancer had been diagnosed more than 10 years before. The day after his death, the marquees on Broadway were dimmed in mourning, one of the highest honors of the American theatre world.
In addition to his sons, wife and ex-wife, Orbach was survived by his mother Emily Orbach and two grandchildren, Peter and Sarah Kate Orbach, his older son Tony's children. The season 14 episode "C.O.D.", the last Law & Order episode featuring Orbach, was re-aired in his memory on December 29, 2004.
One of his wishes while he was alive was to have his eyes donated after his death. His wish was granted when two individuals — one who needed correction for a nearsighted eye and another who needed correction for a farsighted eye — received Orbach's cornea
Cornea
The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye that covers the iris, pupil, and anterior chamber. Together with the lens, the cornea refracts light, with the cornea accounting for approximately two-thirds of the eye's total optical power. In humans, the refractive power of the cornea is...
s. Orbach's likeness has been used in an ad campaign for Eye Bank for Sight Restoration in Manhattan. His interment was at Trinity Church Cemetery
Trinity Church Cemetery
Trinity Church Cemetery consists of three separate burial grounds associated with Trinity Church in Manhattan, New York, USA. The first was established in the Churchyard located at 74 Trinity Place at Wall Street and Broadway...
.
Elaine Orbach, his widow, died on April 1, 2009, from pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
at the age of 69.
Honors
In addition to his Tony Award and nominations, Orbach was named a "Living Landmark", along with fellow Law & Order castmate Sam WaterstonSam Waterston
Samuel Atkinson "Sam" Waterston is an American actor and occasional producer and director. Among other roles, he is noted for his Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Sydney Schanberg in 1984's The Killing Fields, and his Golden Globe- and Screen Actors Guild Award-winning portrayal of Jack McCoy...
, by the New York Landmarks Conservancy
New York Landmarks Conservancy
The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization "dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and reusing New York’s architecturally significant buildings." It provides technical assistance, project management services, grants, and loans, to owners of historic properties in New York State...
in 2002. He quipped that the honor meant "that they can't tear me down". On February 5, 2005, he was posthumously awarded a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.
On September 18, 2007, a portion of 53rd Street, near Eighth Avenue, in New York City, was renamed in Orbach's honor as Jerry Orbach Way.
Also in 2007, the Jerry Orbach Theatre was named for him in the Snapple Theater Center
Snapple Theater Center
The Snapple Theater Center is a multi-theater entertainment complex located on the corner of 50th Street and Broadway in New York City.-History:The complex opened on May 22, 2006 and is sponsored by the beverage company Snapple...
on 51st Street and Broadway, in New York City. The naming occurred as a tribute to him during a revival of The Fantasticks at the theatre.
From others
Law & Order executive producer, René BalcerRené Balcer
René Balcer is a Canadian television writer, director and producer.-Early life:He was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and attended Lower Canada College in Montreal. He earned his B.A. Magna Cum Laude in Communication Studies from Concordia University in 1978. He began his career as a journalist,...
, was quoted in the Wall Street Journal on May 21, 2010: "I always think about the show as before Jerry and after Jerry...You saw the weariness of 25 years of crime-fighting in New York written on his face."
Author Kurt Vonnegut
Kurt Vonnegut
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. was a 20th century American writer. His works such as Cat's Cradle , Slaughterhouse-Five and Breakfast of Champions blend satire, gallows humor and science fiction. He was known for his humanist beliefs and was honorary president of the American Humanist Association.-Early...
was a fan of Orbach, and during an Australian radio interview in 2005, he said, "People have asked me, you know, 'Who would you rather be, than yourself?', and he replied "Jerry Orbach, without a question...I talked to him one time, and he's adorable."
Patrick Swayze
Patrick Swayze
Patrick Wayne Swayze was an American actor, dancer and singer-songwriter. He was best known for his tough-guy roles, as romantic leading men in the hit films Dirty Dancing and Ghost, and as Orry Main in the North and South television miniseries. He was named by People magazine as its "Sexiest...
once said in an interview:
With Jerry Orbach, his life in many ways has paralleled mine. We were on a certain level, born into musical theatre. And as time goes on... for my training in musical theatre, I considered that was the school of presentational acting. When I was gonna transition into film acting, all of sudden I had to learn what organic looked like. Jerry Orbach has been one of the most successful actors who ever lived to make that transition from musical theatre into real, organic, break-your-heart kinds of reality in his work as a film actor, but transition back and forth seamlessly. I just did Billy Flynn in ChicagoChicago (musical)Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
, which Jerry Orbach originated, which felt like a legacy to me. But it was a very interesting to me for me, when I was shooting Dirty DancingDirty DancingDirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
, I think probably the eyes I trusted if I was real, and it worked, and I had nailed it, was Jerry Orbach's eyes. I would go over to him and under my breath 'What did you think?' and he goes "No, go there further, I think there's more you can get'. He would say little things like "courage", and it gives me goosebumps to say that. I really, really respected that man. I watched his career from the time I was little. I think it was a great loss when he passed.
Former co-worker Elisabeth Röhm
Elisabeth Röhm
Elisabeth Röhm is a German-born American television actress. She is known for playing Assistant District Attorney Serena Southerlyn in the American TV series Law & Order, and as Detective Kate Lockley in the TV series Angel....
was asked about any crazy memories she had of Orbach at the 2007 Dragon Con
Dragon Con
Dragon*Con is a North America multigenre convention, founded in 1987, which takes place once each year in Atlanta, Georgia...
:
You know, it's hard to say a specific, kind of crazy story, because Jerry was all about golf. The first day I showed up to work, he was like "Hey kid, I got a golf game, so I hope you're gonna get it done quick," and I was like "Alright...". But that was one of the great things I learned from Jerry, is to like... number one, no matter how lucky or how special we are to do what we do, Jerry taught me it's a job. And so I went from being like "I'm an actress" to "I've had a great job and I love my job and I'm lucky that I got a job that I love with all my heart and I didn't wimp out and say I'm not gonna go after my dreams, but my job isn't any better than anyone else's job." That's what I learned from Jerry. Jerry was a human being first, and he loved his job and it paid him well... better than me... he was not better than anyone else because he was famous or because he was an actor and he touched people's hearts, he was just a regular guy. That's why the show is good. Because, here he was, this regular guy. you believed he was this regular guy. You believed he was a cop. He was just somebody you felt like if you sat down and had coffee with him, he wouldn't be like "I don't have time for this"... he wouldn't be like that, he was so warm and so charming. You know what's interesting about Jerry and I, and I have to say I have put this in my back pocket and from everybody I have ever worked with I've learned something really important is everybody has their disappointment and pain and nobody's life is perfect. And I suppose that's a good thing so you don't feel bad about the things that are going on or aren't working out and taking them too seriously. For instance, just like with Sam WaterstonSam WaterstonSamuel Atkinson "Sam" Waterston is an American actor and occasional producer and director. Among other roles, he is noted for his Academy Award-nominated portrayal of Sydney Schanberg in 1984's The Killing Fields, and his Golden Globe- and Screen Actors Guild Award-winning portrayal of Jack McCoy...
, he has his sob story about why he's not Robert RedfordRobert RedfordCharles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
. Jerry's is why he's not Al PacinoAl PacinoAlfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
and the grass is always greener and it looks like somebody else's life worked out tons better, but he'd be the first to say this is what's meant for me. He worked his ass off and he was in the right movies, and he did all the right things, even a little bit for him, some of his dreams he didn't achieve. So it's never perfect. He was really real in that way. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHxE4PVmRVw
Stage
Broadway- Carnival!Carnival!Carnival is a 1961 musical with the book by Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Bob Merrill. The musical is based on the 1953 film Lili.-Background:...
(1961) - Guys and Dolls (1965)
- CarouselCarousel (musical)Carousel is the second stage musical by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II . The work premiered in 1945 and was adapted from Ferenc Molnár's 1909 play Liliom, transplanting its Budapest setting to the Maine coastline...
(1965 revival) - Annie Get Your GunAnnie Get Your Gun (musical)Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Herbert Fields and his sister Dorothy Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley , who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.The 1946 Broadway production...
(1966) - The Natural Look (1967)
- Promises, PromisesPromises, PromisesPromises, Promises is a musical based on the 1960 film The Apartment. The music is by Burt Bacharach, lyrics by Hal David, and book by Neil Simon. Musical numbers for the original Broadway production were choreographed by Michael Bennett; Robert Moore directed and David Merrick produced...
(1968) - 6 Rms Riv Vu6 Rms Riv Vu6 Rms Riv Vu is a play by Bob Randall, who also wrote The Magic Show.6 Rms Riv Vu derives its title from shorthand used by realtors in classified advertising. In this case, a six-room apartment with a view of the Hudson River, located on Manhattan's Riverside Drive, serves as the comedy-drama's...
(1972) - ChicagoChicago (musical)Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
(1975) - 42nd Street42nd Street (musical)42nd Street is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart and Mark Bramble, lyrics by Al Dubin, and music by Harry Warren. The 1980 Broadway production, directed by an ailing Gower Champion and orchestrated by Philip J. Lang, won the Tony Award for Best Musical and became a long-running hit...
(1980)
Off Broadway
- The Threepenny OperaThe Threepenny OperaThe Threepenny Opera is a musical by German dramatist Bertolt Brecht and composer Kurt Weill, in collaboration with translator Elisabeth Hauptmann and set designer Caspar Neher. It was adapted from an 18th-century English ballad opera, John Gay's The Beggar's Opera, and offers a Marxist critique...
(1955) (replacement for Rome Smith) - The FantasticksThe FantasticksThe Fantasticks is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones. It was produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two neighboring fathers who trick their children, Luisa and Matt, into...
(1960) - The Cradle Will RockThe Cradle Will RockThe Cradle Will Rock is a 1937 musical by Marc Blitzstein. Originally a part of the Federal Theatre Project, it was directed by Orson Welles, and produced by John Houseman. The show was recorded and released on seven 78-rpm discs in 1938, making it the first cast album recording.The musical is a...
(1964 revival) - Scuba Duba
Filmography
- Cop HaterCop HaterCop Hater is the first 87th Precinct police procedural novel by Ed McBain. The murder of three detectives in quick succession in the 87th Precinct leads Detective Steve Carella on a search that takes him into the city's underworld and ultimately to a .45 automatic aimed straight at his...
(1958) - Mad Dog CollMad Dog CollVincent "Mad Dog" Coll was an Irish mob hitman in 1920s New York City. Coll gained notoriety for the accidental killing of a young child during a mob kidnap attempt.-Early years:...
(1961) - Ensign PulverEnsign PulverEnsign Pulver is a 1964 American film and a sequel to the 1955 film Mister Roberts. The movie features Robert Walker Jr., Burl Ives, Walter Matthau, Tommy Sands, Millie Perkins, Kay Medford, Peter Marshall, Jack Nicholson, Richard Gautier, George Lindsey, James Farentino, and James Coco.- Synopsis...
(1964) - John Goldfarb, Please Come HomeJohn Goldfarb, Please Come HomeJohn Goldfarb, Please Come Home is a 1963 novel by William Peter Blatty that was adapted as a film by the same title, released in 1965.-Synopsis:...
(1965) - The Gang That Couldn't Shoot StraightThe Gang That Couldn't Shoot StraightThe Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight is a 1969 novel written by Jimmy Breslin and a film of the same name based on the book and released in 1971 starring Robert De Niro. The novel is a roman à clef of the life of Joey Gallo whose fictional counterpart, Kid Sally Palumbo, is played by Jerry Orbach...
(1971) - A Fan's NotesA Fan's Notes (film)A Fan's Notes is a 1972 Canadian comedy film directed by Eric Till, based on the novel of the same name. It was entered into the 1972 Cannes Film Festival.-Cast:* Jerry Orbach – Fred* Patricia Collins – Patience* Burgess Meredith – Mr. Blue...
(1972) - Fore PlayFore PlayFore Play is a 1975 comedy film co-directed by future Academy Award-winner John G. Avildsen. It is currently being distributed by Troma Entertainment...
(1975) - The Sentinel (1977)
- Underground AcesUnderground AcesUnderground Aces is a 1981 film directed by Robert Butler. It stars Dirk Benedict and Melanie Griffith.-Cast:*Dirk Benedict as Pete Huffman*Melanie Griffith as Lucy*Rick Podell as Joe*Randy Brooks as Ollie*T. K. Carter as Dee Jay...
(1981) - Prince of the CityPrince of the CityPrince of the City is an American crime drama film about an NYPD officer who chooses to expose police corruption for idealistic reasons. The character of Daniel Ciello was based on real-life NYPD Narcotics Detective Robert Leuci and the script was based on Robert Daley's 1978 book of the same name...
(1981) - The Special Magic of Herself the Elf (1983) (voice)
- Brewster's MillionsBrewster's Millions (1985 film)Brewster's Millions is a 1985 comedy film starring Richard Pryor and John Candy based on the 1902 novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon. It is the seventh film based on the story, with a screenplay by Herschel Weingrod & Timothy Harris...
(1985) - The Imagemaker (1986)
- F/XF/XF/X is a 1986 American action-thriller film about Rollie Tyler , an expert in the art of special effects with a reputation built by his work on many low-budget hack-and-slash films such as I Dismember Mama...
(1986) - Dirty DancingDirty DancingDirty Dancing is a 1987 American romantic film. Written by Eleanor Bergstein and directed by Emile Ardolino, the film features Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the lead roles, as well as Cynthia Rhodes and Jerry Orbach...
(1987) - Someone to Watch Over MeSomeone to Watch over Me (film)Someone to Watch Over Me is a 1987 film starring Tom Berenger and Mimi Rogers and directed by Ridley Scott. The film's soundtrack includes the George and Ira Gershwin song from which the film takes its title, here sung by Sting, and Vangelis' Memories of Green, originally from Scott's Blade...
(1987) - I Love N.Y. (1988)
- Last Exit to BrooklynLast Exit to BrooklynLast Exit to Brooklyn is a 1964 novel by American author Hubert Selby, Jr. The novel has become a cult classic because of its harsh, uncompromising look at lower class Brooklyn in the 1950s and for its brusque, everyman style of prose....
(1989) - Crimes and MisdemeanorsCrimes and MisdemeanorsCrimes and Misdemeanors is a 1989 black comedy written, directed by and co-starring Woody Allen, alongside Martin Landau, Mia Farrow, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, Sam Waterston and Joanna Gleason....
(1989) - Dead Women in Lingerie (1991)
- California Casanova (1991 film) (1991)
- Out for JusticeOut for JusticeOut for Justice is a 1991 action film directed by John Flynn and starring Steven Seagal.- Plot :Gino Felino is an NYPD detective from Brooklyn who has strong ties within his neighborhood...
(1991) - Toy Soldiers (1991)
- Delusion (1991)
- DeliriousDelirious (film)Delirious is a romantic comedy film starring John Candy, Mariel Hemingway, Emma Samms and Raymond Burr . It was released in 1991, but it did not achieve commercial success at the box offices.-Plot:...
(1991) - Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast (1991 film)Beauty and the Beast is a 1991 American animated fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. The thirtieth film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series and the third film of the Disney Renaissance period...
(1991) (voice) - A Gnome Named Gnorm (1992)
- Straight TalkStraight TalkStraight Talk is an 1992 American comedy-film distributed by Hollywood Pictures, directed by Barnet Kellman and starring Dolly Parton and James Woods. Parton did not receive star-billing in any other theatrically-released films until the 2012 film Joyful Noise, alongside Queen Latifah...
(1992) - Universal SoldierUniversal Soldier (1992 film)Universal Soldier is a 1992 American science fiction action film directed by Roland Emmerich and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren as soldiers who kill each other in Vietnam but are reanimated in a secret Army project along with a large group of other previously dead...
(1992) - Mr. Saturday NightMr. Saturday NightMr. Saturday Night is a 1992 film that marks the directorial debut of its star, Billy Crystal.It focuses on the rise and fall of Buddy Young Jr., a fictional stand-up comedian. Crystal produced and co-wrote the screenplay with the writing duo Babaloo Mandel and Lowell Ganz...
(1992) - The Cemetery ClubThe Cemetery Club-Plot:Based on the play by Ivan Menchell, this drama concerns three friends, Doris , Lucille , and Esther . All three live in the same Jewish community in Pittsburgh, are in their mid-to-late 50s, and have become widows within the past few months...
(1993) - Aladdin and the King of ThievesAladdin and the King of ThievesAladdin and the King of Thieves is a 1996 animated film that is the second direct-to-video sequel to the Disney animated feature Aladdin...
(1996) (voice) - Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted ChristmasBeauty and the Beast: The Enchanted ChristmasBeauty and The Beast: The Enchanted Christmas is a 1997 animated holiday special produced by The Walt Disney Company. It is a midquel that takes place within the timeline of the original Beauty and the Beast...
(1997) (voice) - Belle's Magical WorldBelle's Magical WorldBelle's Magical World is a 1998 direct-to-video Disney midquel film and the third installment in the Beauty and the Beast trilogy. It was originally released on February 17, 1998, and features the voices of Paige O'Hara as Belle, Robby Benson as The Beast, Jerry Orbach as Lumiere, David Ogden...
(1998) (voice) - Temps (1999)
- The Acting ClassThe Acting ClassThe Acting Class is a 2000 American independent film directed by and starring Jill Hennessy and Elizabeth Holder. The film's supporting cast includes many of Hennessy's former Law & Order castmates, including Chris Noth, Jerry Orbach, and Benjamin Bratt. The film also features Alec Baldwin....
(2000) (cameo) - Chinese CoffeeChinese CoffeeChinese Coffee is a play by Ira Lewis which was made into an independent film and released in New York as part of the Tribeca Film Festival, starring Al Pacino and Jerry Orbach...
(2000) - Prince of Central Park (2000)
- Manna from HeavenManna from Heaven (film)Manna from Heaven is a 2002 film written by Gabrielle B. Burton and co-directed by her daughter Gabrielle and her sister Maria. The film won awards at four film festivals. It was actor Jerry Orbach's final film.-Principal cast:-Critical reception:...
(2002) - Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were ThereBroadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were ThereBroadway: The Golden Age is a 2004 documentary by Rick McKay, telling the story of the "golden age" of Broadway by the oral history of the legendary actors of the 40s and 50s, incorporating rare lost footage of actual performances and never-before-seen personal home movies and photos.-The Cast:The...
(2003) (documentary) - Try to Remember: The Fantasticks (2003) (documentary)
- Mickey's PhilharMagicMickey's PhilharMagicMickey's PhilharMagic is a 4-D film attraction found at the Magic Kingdom theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, Hong Kong Disneyland and at Tokyo Disneyland. The film was directed by George Scribner, who is best known for directing Disney's 1988 animated film, Oliver and Company...
(2003) (short subject) (voice) - Kingdom Hearts IIKingdom Hearts IIis an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and published by Buena Vista Games and Square Enix in 2005 for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console...
(2005) (video game) (archive recording).
Television
- Twenty-Four Hours in a Woman's Life (1961)
- Annie Get Your GunAnnie Get Your Gun (musical)Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Herbert Fields and his sister Dorothy Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley , who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.The 1946 Broadway production...
(1967) - Buck Rogers in the 25th CenturyBuck Rogers in the 25th Century (TV series)Buck Rogers in the 25th Century is an American science fiction adventure television series produced by Universal Studios. The series ran for two seasons between 1979–1981, and the feature-length pilot episode for the series was released as a theatrical film several months before the series aired....
(1980) (guest star) - Lars Mangros - Neil Simon's Plaza Suite (1982)
- The Special Magic of Herself the Elf (1983)
- An Invasion of Privacy (1983)
- Murder, She WroteMurder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
(1985–1991) – Harry McGraw - Dream West (1986) (miniseries)
- The Adventures of the Galaxy RangersThe Adventures of the Galaxy RangersThe Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers was an American animated Space Western television series created by Robert Mandell and Gaylord Entertainment Company....
(1986) (animated) - Out on a LimbOut on a Limb (Shirley MacLaine book)Out on a Limb is an autobiographical book written by American film actress Shirley MacLaine in 1983. It details MacLaine's journeys through New Age spirituality. The book follows McLaine from California to various locations including New York, Hawaii, and Europe, culminating in a life-changing...
(1987) - Love Among ThievesLove Among ThievesLove Among Thieves is a made-for-television romantic-adventure motion picture that was produced by the ABC network in 1987.The film starred Audrey Hepburn as the Baroness and concert pianist Caroline DuLac, who steals three jewel-encrusted Fabergé eggs from a San Francisco museum. The eggs were...
(1987) - Tales from the DarksideTales from the DarksideTales from the Darkside is an anthology horror TV series produced by George A. Romero; it originally aired from 1983 to 1988. Similar to Amazing Stories, The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery, The Outer Limits, and Tales From The Crypt, each episode was an individual short story that ended with a plot...
(1987) (guest star) – Robert - The Law and Harry McGraw (1987–1988) – Harry McGraw
- Simon & SimonSimon & SimonSimon & Simon is an American detective television series starring Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker.-History:The original 1978 pilot called Pirate's Key was set in Florida...
(1988) (guest star) – Harrison / Malcolm Shanley III - Perry Mason: The Case of the Musical Murder (1989)
- The Flamingo KidThe Flamingo KidThe Flamingo Kid is a 1984 comedy film directed by Garry Marshall, written by Marshall, Neal Marshall and Bo Goldman. It stars Matt Dillon, Richard Crenna, Hector Elizondo, and Janet Jones...
(1989) - Kojak: None So Blind (1990)
- The Golden GirlsThe Golden GirlsThe Golden Girls is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris, which originally aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992. Starring Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty, the show centers on four older women sharing a home in Miami, Florida...
(1990) – Glen O'Brien - In Defense of a Married Man (1990)
- Perry Mason: The Case of the Ruthless Reporter (1991)
- Law & OrderLaw & OrderLaw & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
Episode:The Wages of Love - Defense Attorney Frank Lehrmann - Guest Star (1991) - Neil Simon's Broadway Bound (1992)
- Quiet Killer (1992)
- Mastergate (1992)
Empty Nest (1992) 2 episodes
- Law & OrderLaw & OrderLaw & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
(cast member from 1992–2004) - Homicide: Life on the StreetHomicide: Life on the StreetHomicide: Life on the Street is an American police procedural television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Homicide Unit. It ran for seven seasons on NBC from 1993 to 1999, and was succeeded by a TV movie, which also acted as the de-facto series finale...
(1996, 1997, 1999) (guest star) - Exiled: A Law & Order MovieExiled: A Law & Order MovieExiled: A Law & Order Movie is a 1998 television film that is based on the Law & Order police procedural and legal drama television series; it originally aired on NBC. Written by Charles Kipps and Chris Noth, the movie revolves around Noth's Det. Mike Logan character...
(1998) - Encounters With the UnexplainedEncounters With the UnexplainedEncounters With the Unexplained is a television show dealing with various alleged paranormal events such as crop circles and the Bermuda Triangle...
(1999) - Law & Order: Special Victims UnitLaw & Order: Special Victims UnitLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
(1999) (guest star) - Law & Order: Criminal IntentLaw & Order: Criminal IntentLaw & Order: Criminal Intent is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it was also primarily produced. Created and produced by Dick Wolf and René Balcer, the series premiered on September 30, 2001, as the second spin-off of Wolf's successful crime drama...
(2001) (guest star) - The HuntThe Hunt"The Hunt" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone.-Synopsis:Hyder Simpson lives with his wife and his hound-dog Rip in the backwoods. Mrs. Simpson does not like having the dog indoors, but Rip saved Hyder's life once, and Hyder won't be parted from him. Mrs...
(2001) - Broadway: The American Musical (2004)
- Law & Order: Trial by JuryLaw & Order: Trial by JuryLaw & Order: Trial by Jury is an American television drama about criminal trials set in New York City. It was the third spin-off from the long-running Law & Order. The show's almost exclusive focus was on the criminal trial of the accused, showing both the prosecution's and defense's preparation...
(cast member in 2005) (filmed up to episode #1.6)