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Jerome Bernard Orbach (October 20, 1935 – December 28, 2004) was an American actor and singer, described at the time of his death as "one of the last'' bona fide'' leading men of the Broadway musical and global celebrity on television" and a "versatile stage and film actor." Over his career he received a
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
and
Screen Actors Guild Award Screen Actors Guild Awards (also known as SAG Awards) are accolades given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The award was founded in 1995 to recognize outstanding performances in movie an ...
as well as nominations for three
Emmy Awards The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
and a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
. Orbach's career began on the
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
stage, both on and
off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
, where he created roles such as El Gallo in the original off-Broadway run of ''
The Fantasticks ''The Fantasticks'' is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and book and lyrics by Tom Jones. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the 1894 play ''The Romancers'' (''Les Romanesques'') by Edmond Rostand, concerning two ne ...
'' (1960) where he was the first performer to sing that show's standard " Try to Remember." He won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for playing Chuck Baxter in the musical '' Promises, Promises'' (1968–1972). He was Tony-nominated for portraying Sky Masterson in ''
Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...
'' (1965) and Billy Flynn in the original ''
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
'' (1976). He also acted in '' Annie Get Your Gun'' (1966) and '' 42nd Street'' (1980). He gained worldwide fame for starring as
NYPD The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
Detective Lennie Briscoe on the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
legal drama ''
Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'' from 1992 to 2004. For the role he earned the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series as well as a nomination for the
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series is an award presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). Beginning with the 18th Primetime Emmy Awards, leading actors in drama have competed alone. However, ...
. He reprised the role across several series including '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' (1996–1999), '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' (1999–2000), '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' (2001), and '' Law & Order: Trial by Jury'' (2005). He also played private detective Harry McGraw in the
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
murder-mystery series ''
Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...
'' (1985–1991), and '' The Law & Harry McGraw'' (1987–1988). On film, Orbach often took numerous supporting roles such as a detective in the crime drama '' Prince of the City'' (1981), a coach in the comedy film ''
Brewster's Millions ''Brewster's Millions'' is a comedic novel written by George Barr McCutcheon in 1902, originally under the pseudonym of Richard Greaves. The plot concerns a young man whose grandfather leaves him $1 million in a will, but a competing will from ...
'' (1985), an overly protective father in romance film ''
Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romance film, romantic drama film, drama Dance in film, dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tel ...
'' (1987), and a mobster in the drama ''
Crimes and Misdemeanors ''Crimes and Misdemeanors'' is a 1989 American existential comedy drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who stars alongside Martin Landau, Mia Farrow, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, Sam Waterston, and Joanna Gleason. ...
'' (1989). He voiced Lumiere the Candlestick in the Walt Disney animated
musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serv ...
''
Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...
'' (1991).


Early life

Orbach was born on October 20, 1935, in
the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...
, the only child of Emily Orbach (née Olexy), a greeting card manufacturer and radio singer, and Leon Orbach, a restaurant manager and
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment which began in France in the middle of the 19th century. A ''vaudeville'' was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a drama ...
performer. His father was a
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
immigrant from
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Orbach said his father was descended from
Sephardic Jewish Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...
refugees from the
Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...
. His mother, a native of Luzerne County,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
, was a
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
of Polish-
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
n descent, and Orbach was raised in her faith (a religious background later replicated in his character on ''Law & Order''). The Orbach family moved frequently during his childhood, living in
Mount Vernon, New York Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, immediately to the north of the Borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Moun ...
; Wilkes-Barre, Nanticoke, and
Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...
;
Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is the most populous city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, and its county seat. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ea ...
; and
Waukegan, Illinois Waukegan ( ) is a city in Lake County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located north of Chicago, Waukegan is a satellite city within the greater Chicago metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, its population was 89,321, makin ...
. Orbach attended Waukegan High School and graduated in 1952 (having skipped two grades in elementary school due to his high IQ of 163). He played on the
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
team and began learning acting in a speech class. The summer after graduating from high school, Orbach worked at the theatre of Chevy Chase Country Club of
Wheeling, Illinois Wheeling is a village in Cook County, Illinois, Cook and Lake County, Illinois, Lake counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. A suburb of Chicago, it is primarily in Cook County, approximately northwest of downtown Chicago. Per the 2020 United St ...
, and enrolled at the
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...
in the fall. In 1953, Orbach returned to the Chicago area and enrolled at
Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
. Orbach left Northwestern before his senior year and moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 1955 to pursue acting and to study at the
Actors Studio The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors, theatre directors and playwrights located on West 44th Street in Hell's Kitchen in New York City. The studio is best known for its work refining and teaching method actin ...
, where one of his instructors was the studio's founder,
Lee Strasberg Lee Strasberg (born Israel Strassberg; November 17, 1901 – February 17, 1982) was an American acting coach and actor. He co-founded, with theatre directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed ...
.


Career


1960–1979: Broadway debut and theatre roles

Orbach became an accomplished Broadway and
off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...
actor. His first major role was El Gallo in the original 1960 cast of the decades-running hit ''
The Fantasticks ''The Fantasticks'' is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt and book and lyrics by Tom Jones. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the 1894 play ''The Romancers'' (''Les Romanesques'') by Edmond Rostand, concerning two ne ...
,'' and Orbach became the first to perform the show's signature song and pop standard " Try To Remember". He also starred in ''
The Threepenny Opera ''The Threepenny Opera'' ( ) is a 1928 German "play with music" by Bertolt Brecht, adapted from a translation by Elisabeth Hauptmann of John Gay's 18th-century English ballad opera, '' The Beggar's Opera'', and four ballads by François V ...
''; ''
Carnival! ''Carnival'' is a musical theatre, musical, originally produced by David Merrick on Broadway in 1961, with the book by Michael Stewart (playwright), Michael Stewart and music and lyrics by Bob Merrill. The musical is based on the 1953 film ''Lil ...
'', the musical version of the movie '' Lili'' (his Broadway debut); in revivals of ''Annie Get Your Gun'' and ''
Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...
'' (as Sky Masterson, receiving a
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical); '' Promises, Promises'' (as Chuck Baxter, winning a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical); the original productions of ''
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
'' (as Billy Flynn, receiving another Tony Award nomination); '' 42nd Street''; and a revival of ''
The Cradle Will Rock ''The Cradle Will Rock'' is a 1937 Musical theater, play in music by Marc Blitzstein. Originally a part of the Federal Theatre Project, it was directed by Orson Welles and produced by John Houseman. Set in Steeltown, U.S.A., the Bertold Brecht, ...
''. Orbach made occasional film and TV appearances into the 1970s and appeared as a celebrity panelist on both ''
What's My Line? ''What's My Line?'' is a Panel show, panel game show that originally ran in the United States, between 1950 and 1967, on CBS, originally in black and white and later in color, with subsequent American revivals. The game uses celebrity panelists ...
'' and '' Super Password''.


1980–1991: Film roles and ''Beauty and the Beast''

In the 1980s, Orbach shifted to film and TV work full-time. Prominent roles included tough, corrupt NYPD narcotics detective Gus Levy in
Sidney Lumet Sidney Arthur Lumet ( ; June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American film director. Lumet started his career in theatre before moving to film, where he gained a reputation for making realistic and gritty New York City, New York dramas w ...
's '' Prince of the City''; he was the 1981 runner-up for the NSFC Best Supporting Actor award. He also portrayed gangsters in both the action-thriller '' F/X'' and the
Woody Allen Heywood Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many List of awards and nominations received by Woody Allen, accolade ...
drama ''
Crimes and Misdemeanors ''Crimes and Misdemeanors'' is a 1989 American existential comedy drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, who stars alongside Martin Landau, Mia Farrow, Anjelica Huston, Jerry Orbach, Alan Alda, Sam Waterston, and Joanna Gleason. ...
'' (the latter of which also featured his future ''Law & Order'' co-star
Sam Waterston Samuel Atkinson Waterston (born November 15, 1940) is an American actor. Waterston is known for his work in theater, television, and film. He has received numerous accolades including a Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actor ...
). In 1985, Orbach became a regular guest star on ''
Murder, She Wrote ''Murder, She Wrote'' is an American crime drama television series, created by Peter S. Fischer, Richard Levinson and William Link, starring Angela Lansbury, and produced and distributed by Universal Television for the CBS network. The series f ...
'' as private detective Harry McGraw, which led to him starring in the short-lived spin-off series '' The Law & Harry McGraw''. In 1987, he was featured in the hit film ''
Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romance film, romantic drama film, drama Dance in film, dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tel ...
'' as Dr. Jake Houseman, the father of
Jennifer Grey Jennifer Grey (born March 26, 1960) is an American actress. She made her acting debut with the film Reckless (1984 film), ''Reckless'' (1984), and had her breakthrough with the teen comedy film ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986). She earned wo ...
's character "Baby". He made further TV appearances on popular shows such as ''
The Golden Girls ''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. The show's ensemble cast stars Beatrice Arthur, Betty ...
'' (for which he received his first
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
nomination), and ''
Who's the Boss? ''Who's the Boss?'' is an American sitcom television series created by Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter, that aired on ABC from September 20, 1984, to April 25, 1992, with a total of 196 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. It was produce ...
''. In 1991, Orbach starred in
Steven Seagal Steven Frederic Seagal ( ; born April 10, 1952) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter, martial artist, and musician. A 7th-Dan (rank), dan Black belt (martial arts), black belt in aikido, he began his adult life as a martial arts instru ...
's action film '' Out for Justice'' as police captain Ronnie Donziger, and starred in
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
's
Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
-winning animated musical ''
Beauty and the Beast "Beauty and the Beast" is a fairy tale written by the French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in (''The Young American and Marine Tales''). Villeneuve's lengthy version was abridged, rewritten, and publish ...
'' as the
voice The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal tract, including talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, shouting, humming or yelling. The human voice frequency is specifically a part of human sound produ ...
(both singing and speaking) of the French-accented candelabrum Lumière, which he played "halfway between
Maurice Chevalier Maurice Auguste Chevalier (; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor, and entertainer. He is best known for his signature songs, including " Livin' In The Sunlight", " Valentine", " Louise", " Mimi", and " Thank Heaven f ...
and Pepé Le Pew". At the 64th Academy Awards, Orbach performed a live-action stage rendition of the Oscar-nominated song, "
Be Our Guest "Be Our Guest" is a song written by lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken for Walt Disney Pictures' animated film ''Beauty and the Beast (1991 film), Beauty and the Beast'' (1991). Recorded by American actor Jerry Orbach, English actre ...
", that he sang in ''Beauty and the Beast''. He later reprised his voice role of Lumière for the film's direct-to-video sequels, multiple episodes of ''
House of Mouse ''Disney's House of Mouse'' (or simply ''House of Mouse'') is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation that originally aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC and Toon Disney from January 13, 2001 ...
'', and the previously-deleted song (" Human Again") that was added to the ''Beauty and the Beast'' 2002
IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...
re-release.


1992–2004: ''Law & Order'' and stardom

In 1992, Orbach joined the main cast of ''
Law & Order ''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise. ''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'' during its third season as the world-weary, wisecracking NYPD homicide detective Lennie Briscoe. He had previously guest-starred as a defense attorney on the series, and was subsequently cast as the new "senior detective" following
Paul Sorvino Paul Anthony Sorvino (, ; April 13, 1939 – July 25, 2022) was an American actor. He often portrayed authority figures on both the criminal and the law enforcement sides of the law. Sorvino was particularly known for his roles as Lucchese cri ...
's departure. Orbach's portrayal of Briscoe was based on his similar role from ''Prince of the City'' years before, which ''Law & Order'' creator
Dick Wolf Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946) is an American billionaire and television producer, best known for his ''Law & Order'' franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. ...
had personally suggested to him at the time of his casting. Orbach starred on ''Law & Order'' for seasons, ultimately becoming the third longest-serving main cast member (behind
S. Epatha Merkerson S. Epatha Merkerson (born Sharon Epatha Merkerson; November 28, 1952) is an American actress. She has received accolades for her work, including an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, four NAACP Image Awards, two Obie ...
and
Sam Waterston Samuel Atkinson Waterston (born November 15, 1940) is an American actor. Waterston is known for his work in theater, television, and film. He has received numerous accolades including a Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Screen Actor ...
) in the show's 20-year-run history, as well as one of its most popular. During Orbach's tenure on ''Law & Order'', the series won the 1997
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series is an award presented since 1951 by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). The award goes to the producers of the series. The award is often cited as one of the "main awards" at th ...
among other accolades, made multiple crossover episodes with fellow
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
series '' Homicide: Life on the Street'', and spawned a franchise that included the TV film '' Exiled: A Law & Order Movie'', the spin-off series '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' and '' Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' (both of which featured Orbach in guest appearances), and three video games. Orbach himself was nominated for a 2000
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series is an award presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). Beginning with the 18th Primetime Emmy Awards, leading actors in drama have competed alone. However, ...
(losing to
James Gandolfini James John Gandolfini (; September 18, 1961June 19, 2013) was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, the Italian-American American Mafia, Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007 ...
for ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
''). ''
TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...
'' named Lennie Briscoe one of their top-25 greatest television detectives of all time. Also during his time on ''Law & Order'', Orbach provided the voice of the main antagonist Sa'luk in the 1996 direct-to-video film ''
Aladdin and the King of Thieves ''Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' (also known as ''Aladdin 3: The King of Thieves'') is a 1996 American direct-to-video animated musical fantasy adventure film produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. It is the second sequel to Disney's 19 ...
'', and co-starred with
Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino ( ; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Known for his intense performances on stage and screen, Pacino is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. His career spans more than five decades, duri ...
in the
independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is film production, produced outside the Major film studios, major film studio system in addition to being produced and distributed by independ ...
'' Chinese Coffee'', which was filmed in the summer of 1997 and released three years later.


Personal life


Marriages and family

Orbach was married in 1958 to Marta Curro, with whom he had two sons, Anthony Nicholas and Christopher Benjamin. They
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...
d in 1975. Elder son Tony is a construction manager and an accomplished
crossword puzzle A crossword (or crossword puzzle) is a word game consisting of a grid of black and white squares, into which solvers enter words or phrases ("entries") crossing each other horizontally ("across") and vertically ("down") according to a set of cl ...
constructor who has published more than 25 puzzles in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''. Younger son Chris Orbach is an actor and a singer; he played Lennie Briscoe's nephew Ken Briscoe during the first season of ''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 Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, or Midtown West on real estate listings, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, ...
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.


Illness and death

In January 1994, less than two years into his stint on ''Law & Order'', Orbach was diagnosed with
prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...
. He was treated with
radiation therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy (RT, RTx, or XRT) is a therapy, treatment using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of treatment of cancer, cancer therapy to either kill or control the growth of malignancy, malignant cell (biology), ...
, but by December 1994, the cancer had returned and metastasized. At that point, he went on
hormone therapy Hormone therapy or hormonal therapy is the use of hormones in medical treatment. Treatment with hormone antagonists may also be referred to as hormonal therapy or antihormone therapy. The most general classes of hormone therapy are hormonal therap ...
, on which he remained over the next decade while he continued to star on ''Law & Order''. After he left the series at the end of the 2003–04 season, Orbach underwent
chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated chemo, sometimes CTX and CTx) is the type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (list of chemotherapeutic agents, chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) in a standard chemotherapy re ...
, but he ultimately succumbed to the cancer on December 28, 2004, at the
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in Manhattan in New York City. MSKCC is one of 72 National Cancer Institute– designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Its main campus is ...
in New York at age 69. Orbach's decade-long illness was not revealed to the general public until just weeks before he died. Orbach was signed to continue in the role of Lennie Briscoe on the new spin-off '' Law & Order: Trial by Jury'', which gave him a lighter schedule than the original series, but he was only featured in the first two episodes, both of which aired after his death. The day after Orbach's death, the marquees on Broadway were dimmed in mourning, one of the highest honors of the American theatre world, while NBC re-aired the ''Law & Order'' episode " C.O.D." (the last episode of the original series to feature Orbach) in honor of him. The ''Criminal Intent'' episode "View from Up Here" and the ''Trial by Jury'' episode "Baby Boom" were dedicated to Orbach, and the ''Law & Order'' episode "Mammon" featured a pictorial memorial of him. In addition to his sons, wife, and former wife, Orbach was survived by his mother and two grandchildren, Peter and Sarah Kate Orbach, children of his older son Tony. His mother died on July 28, 2012, at the age of 101. His wife Elaine died in 2009 at age 69, and his former wife Marta died in 2012 at age 79. Having had perfect 20/20 vision his whole life, Jerry Orbach requested that his eyes be donated after his death. His wish was granted when two people – one who needed correction for a nearsighted eye and another who needed correction for a farsighted eye – received Orbach's
cornea The cornea is the transparency (optics), transparent front part of the eyeball which covers the Iris (anatomy), iris, pupil, and Anterior chamber of eyeball, anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and Lens (anatomy), lens, the cornea ...
s. His likeness has been used in an ad campaign for Eye Bank for Sight Restoration in Manhattan. Orbach was interred at
Trinity Church Cemetery The parish of Trinity Church (Manhattan), Trinity Church has three separate cemetery, burial grounds associated with it in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The first, Trinity Churchyard, is located in Lower Manhattan at 74 Trinity Place, n ...
and Mausoleum in upper Manhattan.


Honors and legacy

In addition to his Tony Award and nominations, Jerry Orbach is also a member of the
American Theater Hall of Fame The American Theater Hall of Fame was founded in 1972 in New York City. The first head of its executive committee was Earl Blackwell. In an announcement in 1972, he said that the new ''Theater Hall of Fame'' would be located in the Uris Theatre, ...
, having been inducted in 1999. In 2002, Orbach was named a "Living Landmark" by the
New York Landmarks Conservancy The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a non-profit organization "dedicated to preserving, revitalizing, and reusing" historic structures in New York (state), New York state. It provides technical and financial skills to owners of historic propert ...
, along with his ''Law & Order'' co-star Sam Waterston. Orbach quipped that the honor meant "that they can't tear me down." On February 5, 2005, he was
posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...
awarded a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series for his longtime role on ''Law & Order''. His wife Elaine accepted the award on his behalf. In 2007, the Jerry Orbach Theatre was named for him in the Snapple Theater Center at 50th Street and Broadway in New York City. At the time, the theater was mounting a revival of ''The Fantasticks''. On September 18, 2007, a portion of New York City's 53rd Street near Eighth Avenue was renamed "Jerry Orbach Way" in his honor. After ''Law & Order'' was cancelled in 2010, executive producer René Balcer told ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'': "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 ( ; November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American author known for his Satire, satirical and darkly humorous novels. His published work includes fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and five nonfict ...
, a fan of Orbach, said during an Australian radio interview in 2005, "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." ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' writers
Ben Brantley Benjamin D. Brantley (born October 26, 1954) is an American theater critic, journalist, editor, publisher, and writer. He served as the chief theater critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1996 to 2017, and as co-chief theater critic from 2017 t ...
and Richard Severo analyzed the breadth and scope of Orbach's career, and ''Dirty Dancing'' co-star
Patrick Swayze Patrick Wayne Swayze ( ; August 18, 1952 – September 14, 2009) was an American actor, singer, songwriter, and dancer. Known for his romantic, tough, and comedic roles in blockbusters and cult films, Swayze was nominated for three Golden Glob ...
memorialized Orbach after his death.


Acting credits and accolades


Discography

Sources: *''Jerry Orbach: Off Broadway'' (
MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...
, 1963). *''Annie Get Your Gun - Original Cast Album'' (
RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...
, 1966) *'' Promises, Promises - Original Cast Album'' (
United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1958 ...
, 1967) *''
Alan Jay Lerner Alan Jay Lerner (August 31, 1918 – June 14, 1986) was an American lyricist and librettist. In collaboration with Frederick Loewe, and later Burton Lane, he created some of the world's most popular and enduring works of musical theatre bot ...
Revisited'' (Crewe, 1974) *'' Chicago - Original Cast Album'' (Airsta, 1975) *''The Fantasticks - Original Cast Album'' (MGM Records, 1979)


Bibliography

*''Remember How I Love You: Love Letters from an Extraordinary Marriage'' (Touchstone, 2009). *''Jerry Orbach, Prince of the City: His Way from the Fantasticks to Law & Order'' by John Anthony Gilvey, was published on May 1, 2011.


References


External links

* * * * * * * * *
Jerry Orbach obituary (''The Washington Post'')



"Law and Order Star Jerry Orbach Dies" (MSNBC)

Jerry Orbach Memorial, Richard Rodgers Theater, March 24, 2005
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orbach, Jerry 1935 births 2004 deaths 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American Sephardic Jews 20th-century American singers 21st-century American male actors Actors from Scranton, Pennsylvania Actors from Springfield, Massachusetts Actors from Waukegan, Illinois Actors from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania American male film actors American male musical theatre actors American male television actors American male voice actors American people of German-Jewish descent American people of Polish descent American people of Sephardic-Jewish descent Burials at Trinity Church Cemetery Deaths from prostate cancer in New York (state) Jewish American male actors Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute alumni Male actors from Manhattan Male actors from the Bronx Musicians from Manhattan Musicians from Scranton, Pennsylvania Northwestern University School of Communication alumni Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners People from Greenwich Village People from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan Tony Award winners University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni