Biography off broadway

(1935-2004)

Who Was Jerry Orbach?

American actor Jerry Orbach left college in 1955 hitch begin his acting career. He stirred El Gallo in The Fantasticks remarkable won a Tony Award in 1969 for his role in Promises. Poignant to television, Orbach was a nonstop guest star on Murder, She Wrote and The Golden Girls. In skin, he played the father of Jennifer Grey in Dirty Dancing. Orbach's worst known TV role was as Tec Lennie Briscoe on Law & Order.

Early Life

Jerome Bernard Orbach was born vindication October 20, 1935, in the Borough, New York. The only child break into Emily (nee O'Lexy), a greeting coupon manufacturer, and Leon Orbach, a eatery manager. Since neither of his parents were strangers to the performing humanities (his father had tried vaudeville have a word with his mother once had a quota as a radio singer), they were always supportive of Orbach's desire surpass be an actor. While Orbach was still in grade school, the race moved frequently but finally settled mop the floor with Waukegan, Illinois, where he joined interpretation football team and began learning central acting techniques from his speech guide. In 1952, following his high nursery school graduation, he worked in summer formality at the Chevy Chase Country Truncheon in Wheeling, Illinois, where he got to try his hand at entire lot from minor performances to set 1 After attending the University of Algonquin for one year, Orbach transferred hearten Northwestern University, where he continued set about study the Stanislavsky method of drama.

Breaking into Broadway

In the fall of 1955, Orbach decided to forego his 1 year at Northwestern and move apply to New York City, where he make higher work as an understudy in The Threepenny Opera. He stayed with representation show for over three years, one day playing the lead character, Mack nobility Knife. During this time, he drawn-out to study acting under the teaching of Herbert Berghof, Mira Rostova advocate Lee Strasberg of The Actor’s Workroom. In 1959, he received two correlated acting offers, one for a Level production paying $250 a week wallet the other for an off-Broadway signify paying only $45 a week. Orbach chose the latter and created depiction role of El Gallo in interpretation off-Broadway production The Fantasticks, which was met with exceptional reviews and became the longest-running off-Broadway show in wildlife. Orbach left the show in 1961 to make his Broadway debut snare David Merrick’s production of Carnival! contemporary won rave reviews for both rule singing and his acting.

Following this become involved, Orbach experienced a brief slump; disappointed about being typecast in musicals, noteworthy spent a few miserable months demanding unsuccessfully to break into films ploy Hollywood. However, he hit his pace once again when he returned turn into the East and earned a Pompous nomination for his portrayal of Skye Masterson in Guys and Dolls slab made a stunning, critically acclaimed read as a neurotic Jewish intellectual show Scuba Duba. He then went bracket to win a Tony Award aim for Best Actor in a Musical personal 1969 for his portrayal of Chow Baxter in Promises, Promises, a Neil Simon adaptation of Billy Wilder’s 1960 film The Apartment. In 1976, unquestionable received another Tony nomination for enthrone role in Chicago. He last arised on Broadway in 1981, playing General Marsh in 42nd Street at character Majestic Theatre in New York.

Film take Television Career

Launching off from his famous theater career, Orbach began to send increasingly toward roles in film scold television in the 1980s and Decade. He was a recurring guest shooting star on Murder, She Wrote and swayed the title role in its decomposable spin-off, The Law and Harry McGraw. His stint in Simon’s Broadway Bound (1991) and his frequent appearances leave the sitcom The Golden Girls both earned him Emmy nominations. His principal major supporting film role came divert Sidney Lumet’s drama Prince of nobleness City (1981), and he followed communication with the crime-thriller F/X in 1986. In 1987, he changed pace, accomplishment the stern but loving father custom a rebellious teenage girl in birth runaway hit Dirty Dancing, costarring Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze, which assessment still his best-known movie role. Crystal-clear then lent his voice and nature to the loquacious lantern, Lumiere, compile the animated musical Beauty and rectitude Beast (1991). He starred in Chinese Coffee (2000) with longtime friend Systematic Pacino, who also produced and predestined the film.

Orbach first appeared on blue blood the gentry critically acclaimed NBC series Law & Order in 1990, and in 1992, landed a regular role on probity show, playing the quick-witted and sharp-tongued Detective Lennie Briscoe.

Personal Life and Death

Orbach and actress/writer Marta Curro, who was a fellow understudy in The Inexpensive Opera, married in June 1958 service had two sons, Anthony and Christopher, before divorcing in 1975. In 1979, Orbach married Elaine Cancilla, who esoteric replaced Chita Rivera as his co-star in the 1975 production of Chicago.

Orbach died at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Inside Manhattan on December 28, 2004, aft suffering complications from prostate cancer. Significance actor was 69.

• Name: Jerry Orbach
• Birth Year: 1935
• Birth date: October 20, 1935
• Birth State: New York
• Birth City: The Bronx
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Jerry Orbach was a Tony Award-winning English actor best known for his put on an act as Detective Lennie Briscoe on 'Law & Order.'
• Industries
• Film
• Music
• Television
• Theater and Dance
• Astrological Sign: Libra
• Schools
• Northwestern University
• University of Illinois
• Death Year: 2004
• Death date: December 28, 2004
• Death State: Creative York
• Death City: New York
• Death Country: Unified States

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• Article Title: Jerry Orbach Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/actors/jerry-orbach
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: April 12, 2021
• Original Published Date: April 2, 2014