Vanessa Williams
American actress, singer and former Miss America
Jerry Orbach was an acclaimed American actor and singer, best known for his roles on stage and as Detective Lennie Briscoe on the hit TV series Law & Order. Over his illustrious career, he won a Tony Award and Screen Actors Guild Award, and received multiple Emmy and Grammy nominations.
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About the Jerry Orbach
Jerome Bernard Orbachwas 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 and Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for three Emmy Awards and a Grammy Award.
Orbach’s career began on the New York stage, both on and off-Broadway, where he created roles such as El Gallo in the original off-Broadway run of The Fantastickswhere 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, Promisesand Billy Flynn in the original Chicagoand 42nd Street (1980).
He gained worldwide fame for starring as NYPD Detective Lennie Briscoe on the original NBC legal series Law & Order series 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. He reprised the role across several series including Homicide: Life on the Street (1996-99), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999-00), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001), and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005). He also played private detective Harry McGraw in the CBS murder-mystery series Murder, She Wrote (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 (1985), an overly protective father in romance film Dirty Dancing (1987), and a mobster in the drama Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989). He voiced Lumiere the Candlestick in the Walt Disney animated musical film Beauty and the Beast (1991).
Frequently Asked Questions
Jerry Orbach was an American actor and singer born on October 20, 1935. He started his career on the New York stage, both on and off-Broadway, and won a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for the role of Chuck Baxter in Promises, Promises.
Jerry Orbach is best known for playing NYPD Detective Lennie Briscoe on the long-running TV series Law & Order from 1992 to 2004. He won a Screen Actors Guild Award for this role and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy.
In addition to his stage and TV work, Jerry Orbach also appeared in several films, often in supporting roles. Some of his notable film credits include Prince of the City, Brewster’s Millions, Dirty Dancing, and Crimes and Misdemeanors. He also voiced the character of Lumiere the Candlestick in the Disney animated film Beauty and the Beast.
Over the course of his career, Jerry Orbach won a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for Promises, Promises. He also received a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series for Law & Order, and was nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards and a Grammy Award.
Before becoming a TV and film star, Jerry Orbach had a successful career on the stage. He created roles such as El Gallo in the original off-Broadway run of The Fantasticks, and was Tony-nominated for playing Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls and Billy Flynn in the original Chicago.
10 Quotes by Jerry Orbach
- 1.
‘Home Alone’ was a movie, not an alibi.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 2.
There’s a pace in TV I like.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 3.
Big feature films are another world.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 4.
All my life, since I was 16, I’ve been wondering where that next job was gonna come from.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 5.
I like to work fast.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 6.
I don’t like to dwell all day over one scene as you do in a big feature.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 7.
I think the choice of actors that we have is a little more varied and rich here in New York than in L.A.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 8.
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.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 9.
Now I take the summer off, relax, and I know that at the end of July we’re gonna start another season.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)
- 10.
It’s a lot more fun for actors to cry and rant and rave, or have a drug problem or a drinking problem.
Jerry OrbachAmerican actor and singer (1935-2004)