Jerome Bernard “Jerry” Orbach was born on the 20th October 1935, in The Bronx, New York City USA, of Jewish, Polish and Lithuanian ancestry. He was an actor and singer, and was described as a very talented, versatile film and stage actor. Moreover, he was a well known celebrity on television as well as in Broadway musicals. Jerry Orbach passed away in December 2004, having been active in the entertainment industry since 1955.
How rich was the actor and singer? Authoritative sources estimated that the overall size of Jerry Orbach’s net worth was as much as $10 million.
Jerry Orbach Net Worth $10 Million
To begin with, Jerry Orbach was raised in The Bronx. His father, Leon Orbach, ran a restaurant while also performing as an actor; his mother, Emily Olexy, was a singer. He attended Northwestern University, apparently without graduating.
He made his stage debut off-Broadway in 1955 in the English adaptation of “The Threepenny Opera” by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. The same year, he was cast in a small role in the film adaptation of “Guys and Dolls”. He was noticed for the creation of the role of El Gallo in the musical “The Fantasticks” by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones in 1960. In 1965, he performed the lead role in the musical “Guys and Dolls” for which he was nominated for Tony Award as the Best Featured Actor in a Musical. Afterwards, he starred in the television film “Annie Get Your Gun” in 1967. From 1968 to 1972, he appeared in the musical “Promises, Promises” by Neil Simon, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, the role of Chuck Baxter earning him a Tony Award for the Best Actor in a Musical and a Drama Desk Award for the Best Performance. Orbach was also nominated for Tony and Drama Desk Awards for his roles in the musicals “Chicago” (1975–1977) by Bob Fosse, Fred Ebb and John Kander as well as “42nd Street” (1980–1985) by Michael Stewart, Mark Bramble and Bradford Ropes. His net worth was growing steadily.
The interpretation of the episodic role of the private detective Harry MacGraw, a friend of Jessica Fletcher, in the television series “Murder, She Wrote” (1985–1991), encouraged producers to give him the lead role in the spin-off “The Law and MacGraw” (1987-1988), however, it was the role of Lennie Briscoe in the television series “Law & Order” (1992–2004) which brought him popularity. With Jerry winning the Screen Actors Guild Award for the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series, and a number of nominations.
Talking about the big screen, Orbach created more than 40 roles. To give examples, he played the role of the detective Gus Levy in the film “Prince of the City (1981) by Sidney Lumet, and the father of Jennifer Grey in “Dirty Dancing” (1987) by Emile Ardolino. Jerry also starred in the films “Universal Solder” (1992), “Chinese Coffee” (2000) among others. He also lent his voice to Light in the animated feature film “Beauty and the Beast” (1991) and its sequels.
Finally, in the personal life of the actor, he married twice, firstly to Marta Curro from 1958 to 1975, with whom he had two children. In 1979, he married Elaine Cancilla; they were married until his death. The actor died in December 2004 from prostate cancer at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
Full Name
Jerry Orbach
Net Worth
$10 Million
Date Of Birth
October 20, 1935, The Bronx, New York City, New York, United States
Died
December 28, 2004, New York City, New York, United States
Height
6' 1½" (1.87 m)
Profession
Actor, Singer, Broadway musical celebrity
Education
Northwestern University, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, Actors Studio
Nationality
American
Spouse
Marta Curro (1958–1975), Elaine Cancilla (1979–2004)
Children
Anthony Nicholas
Parents
Leon Orbach, Emily Olexy
Twitter
IMDB
Awards
American Theater Hall of Fame (1999), Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series (2005),
Nominations
Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical (1965), Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical, National Society of Film Critics Award and New York Film Critics Circle Award,Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for Best Supporting Actor, Primetime Emmy Awa...
Movies
“Guys and Dolls”, “Annie Get Your Gun” (1967), “Promises, Promises” (1968-1972), “Prince of the City (1981), “Dirty Dancing” (1987), “Universal Solder” (1992), “Chinese Coffee” (2000), “Beauty and the Beast” (1991)
TV Shows
“The Threepenny Opera”, “The Fantasticks”, “Chicago” (1975–1977), “42nd Street” (1980–1985), “Murder, She Wrote” (1985–1991), “The Law and MacGraw” (1987-1988), “Law & Order” (1992–2004)
#
Trademark
1
Best known for his role as Detective Lennie Briscoe in Law & Order (1990) (as well as several spin-offs)
#
Quote
1
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?"
2
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.
3
[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.
4
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.
#
Fact
1
Jerry went to a New York acting school (Lee Strasberg - Actor's Studio) with fellow aspiring student, Marilyn Monroe.
His mother Emily Orbach died on July 28, 2012 at the age of 101.
6
He has three grandchildren. Sarah Kate Orbach and Peter Orbach who are his oldest son Tony's kids and Aaron Orbach born in 2014 to his youngest son Chris Orbach and daughter-in-law Nicole.
7
In 2007 Jerry's oldest son Tony and grandson Peter appeared on the tv-show Cash Cab together.
8
His widow Elaine Orbach died on April 1st 2009 from pneumonia at the age of 69.
9
Jerry Orbach was an animal-rights activist.
10
Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume 7, 2003-2005, pages 405-407. Farmington Hills, MI: Thomson Gale, 2007.
11
W 53rd St. in Manhattan has been named Jerry Orbach Way!.
12
Made his Broadway stage debut as Smith, the Police Constable, in "The Threepenny Opera".
13
Was an organ donor and upon his death he gave his eyes as a gift of sight.
According to his book "Hollywood Animal", Joe Eszterhas said that when he was down and out, Orbach would fill his station wagon with groceries and deliver them to his house.
Is one of four cast members from Law & Order (1990) 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). Although he was signed as a regular cast member in L&O:TBJ, he died unexpectedly after shooting only two episodes.
18
The Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005) episode "Baby Boom" was dedicated to his memory. At the end, a message was shown that said "For Jerry".
19
Before joining the cast of Law & Order (1990) in 1992, he played a defense attorney named Frank Lehrman in the Season Two episode "The Wages of Love". Detective Lennie Briscoe, the character he later played on the series for twelve seasons, hated defense attorneys for defending "the scum of the earth."
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".
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).
Received the Edith Oliver Award for Sustained Excellence at the 1999 Lucille Lortel Awards.
29
His father, Leon Orbach, was a German Jewish immigrant, who was born in Hamburg, Germany. His mother, Emily (Olexy), was born in Pennsylvania, to immigrant Polish-Lithuanian Catholic parents, Alexander Olexy and Susanna (Klauba).
His manager, Robert Malcolm, announced in December 2004 that he has prostate cancer. However, Malcolm said, "We expect he'll be fine. He's been playing golf, shooting his episodes (of Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005)) and doing real well".
33
The New York Landmark Conservancy declared him a Living Landmark.
34
In 1969, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor (Musical) for his 1968 role of Chuck Baxter in the Burt Bacharach/Hal David musical "Promises, Promises", a stage adaptation of Billy Wilder's The Apartment (1960). This was preceded by a 1965 Tony nomination as Best Supporting or Featured Actor (Musical) for a revival of "Guys and Dolls," and followed by a 1976 Best Actor (Musical) nomination for the original production of "Chicago."
35
Announced on March 26, 2004, that he would be leaving Law & Order (1990) after 12 years on the series.
36
In 1976, he was nominated for the Tony Award® for "Best Actor in a Musical" for his performance in "Chicago."
37
Had read for the roles of Max Greevey and Phil Cerreta on Law & Order (1990) before finally being cast as Det. Lennie Briscoe.
Created the roles of El Gallo in "The Fantasticks," Billy Flynn in "Chicago" and Julian Marsh in "42nd Street" on the New York stage.
43
Spent part of his childhood in Nanticoke, PA.
44
On Monday, 20th March 2000 he sued online auctioneer eBay Inc. in Manhattan (New York) Federal Court for displaying his Social Security number on the Internet. The suit alleges that eBay began broadcasting the confidential information on its website on Wednesday, March 15, 2000, when it advertised the sale of two of Orbach's contracts from 1958.
