Jerry Orbach

Jerry Orbach

Age
69 (passed away Dec. 28th, 2004)
Birthday
Oct. 20th, 1935
Born in
New York City, New York, USA
Height
6' 2"

Jerry Orbach's Main TV Roles

Show Character(s)
Law & Order TV Show
Law & Order
Law & Order: Trial by Jury TV Show
Law & Order: Trial by Jury
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers TV Show
The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers
Later with Bob Costas TV Show
Later with Bob Costas
Diana TV Show
Diana
Our Family Honor TV Show
Our Family Honor
 

Main Movie Roles

1992 - Universal Soldier
1992 - Straight Talk
1991 - Toy Soldiers
1991 - Out For Justice
1991 - Beauty and the Beast
1991 - Delusion
1991 - Delirious
1989 - Last Exit to Brooklyn
1989 - Crimes and Misdemeanors
1987 - Dirty Dancing
1987 - Someone to Watch Over Me
1986 - FX
1985 - Brewster's Millions
1984 - Beverly Hills Cop
1981 - Prince of the City
1977 - The Sentinel
1961 - Mad Dog Coll
1955 - Marty

Guest TV Roles

Show Name
Characters Played
Ep Count
Lumiere (Voiced)
9
Harry McGraw
6
Det. Leonard 'Lennie' Briscoe
3
Detective Lennie Briscoe
3
Arthur
2
Cameron
1
J.P. Loring
1
Sal Scarlatti
1
[Complete List]



BIOGRAPHY:

Jerry was born in the Bronx. His father, Leon, was a former vaudevillian actor and his mother, Emily, was a radio singer. His family moved frequently and eventually settled in Waukegan, Illinois where he went to high school. The constant moving made him the new kid on the block and forced him to become "a chameleon" to blend in his new settings. He studied drama at the University of Illinois and at Northwestern. He then went to study acting in New York and got constant work in musicals. He slowly pushed to get acting roles in tv and movies, but was frequently overlooked because of his musical roots.


TRIVIA:
  • Is one of four cast members from _"Law & Order" (1990)_ (qv) whose character became a regular on a "Law & Order" spin-off. He played Det. Lennie Briscoe in both "Law & Order" and _"Law & Order: Trial by Jury" (2005)_ (qv). Although he was signed as a regular cast member in L&O:TBJ, he died unexpectedly after shooting only two episodes.
  • W 53rd St. in Manhattan has been named Jerry Orbach Way!.
  • In 1976, he was nominated for the Tony AwardŽ for "Best Actor in a Musical" for his performance in "Chicago."
  • His character _"Law & Order" (1990)_ (qv) and _"Law & Order: Trial by Jury" (2005)_ (qv) character, Detective Lennie Briscoe, was the longest running character on American prime time live action television from May 2004, when _"Frasier" (1993)_ (qv) ended, to March 2005. 'Kelsey Grammer' (qv) had played Dr. Frasier Crane in _"Cheers" (1982)_ (qv) and _"Frasier" (1993)_ (qv) since November 1984. 'Richard Belzer' (qv), who has played Detective John Munch in _"Homicide: Life on the Street" (1993)_ (qv) and _"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999)_ (qv) since January 1993, is the current holder of the title.
  • According to his book "Hollywood Animal", 'Joe Eszterhas' (qv) said that when he was down and out, Orbach would fill his station wagon with groceries and deliver them to his house.
  • Although he and 'Steven Hill (I)' (qv) appeared in 177 episodes of _"Law & Order" (1990)_ (qv) and the _"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999)_ (qv) episode "Entitled" together, the only time that they ever appeared on screen together was during one brief scene in the _"Law & Order" (1990)_ (qv) Season Seven episode "Corruption".
  • Appeared in episodes of four different series with 'Sam Waterston' (qv): _"Law & Order" (1990)_ (qv), _"Homicide: Life on the Street" (1993)_ (qv), _"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999)_ (qv) and _"Law & Order: Trial by Jury" (2005)_ (qv).
  • Received the Edith Oliver Award for Sustained Excellence at the 1999 Lucille Lortel Awards.


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