Jerry Orbach dies of prostate cancer at 69

OMG! This is shocking (at least to me anyway). Though Jerry had left Law & Order last year, I had recently read where Law & Order was developing a 4th spin off from the original series, and Jerry was to star in that series as none other than Detective Lenny Briscoe. Certainly no one was expecting his death to occur. :(
 
Jerry Orbach certainly was a friend to our pool world!

The results of a brief News Search on AzBillards Home page: Jerry Orbach Plays Pool on Tonight's "Law & Order", Jerry Orbach brings "Law & Order" to BCA Expo

Article on AOL:
Updated: 12:54 PM EST
'Law & Order' Star Jerry Orbach Dies at 69
By FRAZIER MOORE, AP

NEW YORK (Dec. 29) - Actor Jerry Orbach, who played a sardonic, seen-it-all cop on TV's "Law & Order" and scored on Broadway as a song-and-dance man, has died of prostate cancer at 69, a representative of the show said Wednesday.

Orbach died Tuesday night in Manhattan after several weeks of treatment, Audrey Davis of the public relations agency Lippin Group said.

When his illness was diagnosed, he had begun production on NBC's upcoming spinoff "Law & Order: Trial By Jury," after 12 seasons playing Detective Lennie Briscoe in the original series. His return to the new show had been expected early next year.

On Broadway, the Bronx-born Orbach starred in hit musicals including "Carnival," "Promises, Promises" (for which he won a Tony Award), "Chicago" and "42nd Street."

Earlier, he was in the original cast of the off-off-Broadway hit "The Fantasticks," playing the narrator. The show went on to run for more than 40 years.

Among his film appearances were roles in "Dirty Dancing," "Prince of the City" and "Crimes and Misdemeanors."

Orbach is expected to appear in early episodes of "Law & Order: Trial by Jury," for which he continued as Briscoe in a secondary role, when the series premieres later this season, Davis said.

"I'm immensely saddened by the passing of not only a friend and colleague, but a legendary figure of 20th Century show business," said Dick Wolf, creator and executive producer of the "Law & Order" series, in a statement. "He was one of the most honored performers of his generation. His loss is irreplaceable."

In a 2000 Associated Press interview, Orbach said the role in the acclaimed "Law & Order" brought him "wonderful security" rare in the life of an actor.

"All my life, since I was 16, I've been wondering where that next job was gonna come from," he explained. "Now I take the summer off, relax, and I know that at the end of July we're gonna start another season."

He said he didn't know "where I stop and Lennie starts, really. ... I know he's tougher than me and he carries a gun. And I'm not an alcoholic."

"I know I wouldn't want to be him," Orbach sums up. "I guess THAT'S where I stop and he starts."

In 1987-88, he starred in the series "The Law and Harry McGraw," a spinoff featuring a character he created in "Murder, She Wrote." In 1990, a shot on "The Golden Girls" brought him an Emmy nomination as best guest actor in a comedy series.

"There's a pace in TV I like," he said in a 1993 interview. "I like to work fast. I don't like to dwell all day over one scene as you do in a big feature. Big feature films are another world."

12/29/04 11:13 EST

JAM
 
I love pool and Law & Order too! Jerry's loss will be mourned by many.

As said by Dick Wolf in JAM's post, he is irreplaceable.

-pigo :(
 
Here is another article that I found on Mr. Orbach.

http://www.golfonline.com/golfonline/features/18holeswith/article/0,17742,470765,00.html

It was kind of weird hearing this because just yesterday I was reading one of Robert Byrne's books for the 100th time and I noticed on the back cover it had Mr. Orbach's endorsement saying that "Byrne's book is the bible -- the definitive and complete work on all the games of pool and billiards (games I've been playing for fifty years)!"
 
Jerry loved pool about as much as it can be loved, and he played it well. He could ceretainly run 60 or 70 in straight pool on his best day. I had the pleasure of shooting a few racks with him in 1992 during a charity event, before he became an immortal on Law & Order. He also graced the 2000 US Open 14.1 at the Roseland in NYC with his presence. Quality guy who'll be missed.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top