Jerry Orbach

Overview

Born
October 20, 1935 · New York City, New York, USA
Died
December 28, 2004 · Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA (prostate cancer)
Birth name
Jerome Bernard Orbach
Height
6′ 1¼″ (1.86 m)

Biography

Family

Spouses
Children
Parents

Trademarks

Best known for his role as Detective Lennie Briscoe in Law & Order (1990) (as well as several spin-offs)
Tall, slightly hunched frame
Thick gravelly voice

Trivia

On Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005), when he was so ill that he couldn't speak above a whisper, they rewrote the scene so that he and the other characters around him all had reason to whisper (outside of a courtroom door).
W. 53rd St. in Manhattan has been named Jerry Orbach Way.
He appeared in 274 episodes of Law & Order (1990), more than anyone else except for S. Epatha Merkerson and Sam Waterston.
Jesse L. Martin performed the song "Razzle Dazzle" from the musical "Chicago" at the 2005 Tony Awards just as the "In Memoriam" section of the show was finishing. The last photo shown during the memorial was that of Orbach, who was both Martin's costar on Law & Order (1990) and the first person to perform "Razzle Dazzle" in the original Broadway production of "Chicago".
Played the uncle of his real-life son, Chris Orbach, in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999).

Quotes

I used to say when I was working in the theater that if I ever had five seasons of a hit TV show I'd never have to worry about money and wouldn't have to do anything I didn't want to do . . . The 12 seasons on Law & Order (1990) really made that possible.
[on working on Law & Order (1990)] It's a lot more fun for actors to cry and rant and rave, or have a drug problem or a drinking problem. Once in a while I get jealous of people who get to do real histrionics. But that's all right. That stuff's only about awards. It's not about people watching. People are very loyal to our show and they want to see the case resolved in an hour.
It may sound a little off the wall to say this, but having the opportunity to do this in this long an arc has given me - and is continuing to give me - a feeling that I'm doing something for the city and for the people of it and for the cops. I see it every day on the street. The profile of Law & Order (1990) has gotten bigger and bigger. And the way the city feels about us . . . it's like we're part of the good things that happen in the city.
When I first began in this business I was doing a lot of musical theater but the problem was that people wouldn't hire me outside of that. I wasn't being taken seriously as an actor so I started taking more dramatic roles and serious acting jobs and eventually it got to the point where people were saying, "I really like his stuff. Does he sing?"
[on why he decided to join the cast of "Law & Order" (1990)] Back in the early '60s my pal David Janssen was doing The Fugitive (1963). He used to come home eight, nine o'clock at night, having gotten up at five in the morning, have one drink and boom! He'd fall asleep on the couch and we'd carry him to bed. I told myself, "I will never do an hour drama. It's just too hard". But then, as you get older . . .