Jerry Orbach Movies
Jerry Orbach often commented, without false modesty, that he was fortunate indeed to have been a steadily working actor since the age of 20. Such was an understatement: graced with not only formidable dramatic instinct but one of American theater's top singing voices, Orbach resisted others' attempts to peg him as a character actor time and again and established himself as one of the most unique talents in entertainment per se. Television producer Dick Wolf perhaps put it best when he described Orbach as "a legendary figure of 20th century show business" and "one of the most honored performers of his generation."
A native of the Bronx, Orbach was born to an ex-vaudevillian father who worked full time as a restaurant manager and a mother who sang professionally on the radio. The Orbachs moved around constantly during Jerry's youth, relocating from Gotham to Scranton to Wilkes-Barre to Springfield, Massachusetts and eventually settling in Chicago - a mobility that gave the young Orbach an unusual ability to adapt to any circumstance or situation, and thus presaged his involvement in drama. Orbach later attended Northwestern University, trained with Herbert Berghof and Lee Strasberg, and took his Gotham theatrical bow in 1955, as an understudy in the popular 1955 revival of Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera, eventually playing the lead role of serial killer Macheath.
During the Threepenny run, Orbach made his first film appearance in the Manhattan-filmed low budgeter Cop Killer (1958). In 1960, Orbach created the role of flamboyant interlocutor El Gallo in the off-Broadway smash The Fantasticks, and later starred in such Broadway productions as Carnival (1961), Promises Promises (1966), Chicago (1975) and 42nd Street (1983). By day, Orbach made early-1960s appearances in several New York-based TV series, notably The Shari Lewis Show.
In the early years, Orbach's film assignments were infrequent, but starting around 1981, with his pivotal role as officer Gus Levy in Sidney Lumet's masterful urban epic Prince of the City, the actor generally turned up in around one movie per year. His more fondly remembered screen assignments include the part of Jennifer Grey's father in Dirty Dancing (1987), Martin Landau's shady underworld brother in Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) the voice of the Chevalieresque candellabra in the Disney cartoon feature Beauty and the Beast (1990), and Billy Crystal's easily amused agent in Mr. Saturday Night (1992). Orbach perhaps made his most memorable contribution to television, however. After headlining a brief, short-lived detective series entitled The Law and Harry McGraw from September 1987 to February 1988 (a spinoff of Murder, She Wrote), Orbach landed a role that seemed to draw heavily from his Prince of the City portrayal: Detective Lennie Briscoe, a sardonic, mordant police investigator on Wolf's blockbuster cop drama Law & Order.Orbach carried the assignment for twelve seasons, and many attributed a large degree of the program's success to him.
Jerry Orbach died of prostate cancer at the age of 69 on December 28, 2004. Three years later, Orbach turned up, posthumously, on subway print advertisements for the New York Eye Bank. As a performer with nearly perfect vision, he had opted to donate his eyes to two women after his death - a reflection on the remarkable humanitarian ideals that characterized his off-camera self. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 2005
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The jury is in! From creator Dick Wolf comes the most innovative Law & Order series yet: Law & Order: Trial by Jury - The Complete Series. Partner up with Jerry Orbach, Fred Dalton Thompson and Bebe Neuwirth to explore the judicial system like never before: not only from the point of view of police and prosecutors, but also the defense team, judges, jurors and the defendants themselves. This highly collectible three-disc DVD set contains all 13 original episodes of the entire series, including one never broadcast on network TV! Plus witness exciting deleted scenes, a landmark Law & Order: SVU cross-over episode starring Chris Meloni and Emmy winner Mariska Hargitay, the philosophy behind this unique show presented by the cast members, and powerful guest-star performances from Lorraine Bracco, Peter Coyote and Candice Bergen. You have the right to Law & Order: Trial by Jury!
- Starring:
- Bebe Neuwirth, Jerry Orbach, (more)
- 2005
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Experience the performances that made Broadway history in this release that compiles twenty-three unforgettable musical performances from the Tony Award broadcast archives. Featuring such stars as Harvey Fierstein, Robert Goulet, and Carol Channing in performances from Show Boat, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Kiss Me Kate, My Fair Lady and many more, this release brings the magic of the stage directly into your living room. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 2004
Broadway's Lost Treasures II contains 90 minutes of memorable moments and performances from the various Tony-award telecasts throughout the years. Included on this edition are performances from such famous productions as Man of La Mancha, Chicago, Guys and Dolls, and Anything Goes. Such notables as Gregory Hines, Patti LuPone, Michael Jeter, Nathan Lane, and Jerry Orbach take part in the proceedings. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Patti LuPone
Directed by Rick McKay, who traveled across five continents during the documentary's production, Broadway: The Golden Age is both a celebration of current Broadway stars and a tribute to Broadway legends past. Through a plethora of interviews and vast amounts of archival footage, McKay presents a variety of factoids, anecdotes, and memories from over 100 Broadway actors, writers, and directors. The careers of Laurette Taylor, Kim Hunter, Jessica Tandy, and Marlon Brando are all animatedly retold, as is some of the Broadway "lore of olde," such as Angela Lansbury's struggle to land a role in Mame and the shocked reaction to West Side Story on its opening night. In addition to footage and discussion regarding highly successful Broadway stars, a variety of actors recount their experiences and struggles in finding even a small amount of critical recognition. The cast includes Shirley MacLaine, Bea Arthur, Edie Adams, Alec Baldwin, and Kaye Ballard, and many others. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Edie Adams, Bea Arthur, (more)
- 2003
Broadway's Lost Treasures is a two-hour collection of musical highlights, culled from 19 years (1967-1986) of Tony Awards telecasts by Christopher A. Cohen, son of the original telecasts' producers, Alexander H. Cohen and Hildy Parks. The program is divided into four self-explanatory segments -- "Broadway Divas," "Leading Men," "Dancin'," and "Record Breakers" -- and presented by hosts Angela Lansbury, Jerry Orbach, and Chita Rivera. Musical numbers include the "Broadway Divas": Vivian Blaine ("Adelaide's Lament" from Guys and Dolls), Patti LuPone("A New Argentina" from Evita), Angela Lansbury ("The Worst Pies in London" from Sweeney Todd), Carol Channing ("Before the Parade Passes By" from Hello Dolly), and Julie Andrews ("Send in the Clowns" from A Little Night Music). Next up are the "Leading Men": Zero Mostel ("If I Were a Rich Man" from Fiddler on the Roof), Yul Brynner ("Shall We Dance?" from The King and I), John Raitt ("Hey There" from The Pajama Game), Robert Preston ("Trouble" from The Music Man), and Paul Lynde("Kids" from Bye Bye Birdie). Now for the "Dancin'": Joel Grey ("Wilkommen" from Cabaret), Tommy Tune and Twiggy ("Chasin' the Clouds Away" from My One and Only), Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon perform "All That Jazz" and "Nowadays" from Chicago, and Jerry Orbach from 42nd Street ("Lullaby of Broadway"). Then there are the "Record Breakers": Andrea McArdle and cast ("Tomorrow" from Annie), the cast of Annie ("You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile"), and Betty Buckley and the cast of Cats) ("Jellicle Songs" and "Memory"). This also includes the bonus performances not seen on the PBS pledge-special broadcasts: Ann Miller and Mickey Rooney ("McHugh Medley" from Sugar Babies), Patti LuPone ("Buenos Aires" from Evita), Barbara Harris ("Movie Star Gorgeous" from The Apple Tree), Bonnie Franklin ("Applause" from Applause), and Dorothy Loudon and cast ("Easy Street" and "Tomorrow" (reprise) from Annie). ~ Laura Mahnken, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angela Lansbury, Jerry Orbach, (more)
- 2002
As it entered its 13th season on the air, Law & Order also entered the history books as the longest-running TV program of its genre. This, however, did not satisfy series producer Dick Wolf, who had every intention of keeping the series in production for at least another eight years, long enough to smash Gunsmoke's status as the longest-running dramatic series of all time. Wolf also refused to rest on his laurels by concentrating on his "baby" alone: In addition to the original Law & Order, he was also churning out spin-offs Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as well as the documentary/reality series Crime & Punishment, with an updated revival of the classic Dragnet still in the wings. The basic Law & Order cast from season 12 was still in place, with one very significant change. After two years of service, interim District Attorney Nora Lewin (Dianne Weist), who'd replaced the venerable Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) in 2000, was herself replaced by DA Arthur Branch, played by Fred Dalton Thompson, an erstwhile actor better known to the public as a former Republican senator from Tennessee. The avuncular, home-fried conservatism of Branch -- who, unlike his strictly-business predecessors, was inclined toward long-winded anecdotes and rustic homilies whenever making an important point of law -- was frequently at odds with the intense liberalism of ADA Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) and the studied seriousness of McCoy's assistant Serena Southerlyn. So much for the "Order" portion of the program. Back on the "Law" end of the spectrum, producer Wolf had promised viewers that there would be more friction between detectives Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Eddie Green (Jesse L. Martin); as it turned out, however, Briscoe and Green developed into something of a comedy team, with Green playing off of the witty comments and abysmal puns invariably dropped by Briscoe at each murder scene. Similarly, the detectives' sober-sided superior, Anita Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson), became a bit more wry and light-hearted than she'd been in previous seasons. As always, Law & Order kept abreast of the times with stories based on actual events and persons. The aftermath of 9/11, the saga of "American Jihad" John Walker Lindh, the shoplifting trial of actress Winona Ryder, the Lacy Peterson murder case, the Martha Stewart inside-trading imbroglio, pop star Michael Jackson's display of parental recklessness from a balcony, the criminal charges against the NBA's Jayson Williams, and the "D.C. Snipers" case were all grist for the writers' mill. The 13th-season finale of Law & Order was lavishly publicized as the series' 300th episode. Technically, however, it was the 301st, but NBC seldom acknowledged the series' pilot episode because it had been financed by CBS. Ironically, that selfsame pilot show was rebroadcast by NBC May 21, 2003, the same night as the "300th" installment. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jesse L. Martin, S. Epatha Merkerson, (more)
- 2001
With the departure of series regular Angie Harmon at the close of season eleven (it was explained that her character, Assistant DA Abbie Carmichael, had accepted a job with the U.S. Attorney's Federal Major Crimes Task Force), season twelve of Law & Order was ushered in with a new face in the DA's office. Elisabeth Rohm was added to the cast as ADA Serena Southerlyn, who had requested the appointment because she wanted to tackle grittier cases than the "white-collar crimes" which had been her forte. The scriptwriters wasted little time in providing Serena with a baptism by fire: in the episode "DR 1-102," she courageously defused a dangerous hostage situation -- only to face the loss of her license to practice law because she failed to follow accepted legal procedure. The rest of the cast remained the same as in season eleven, though it was already established that Dianne Wiest's character, interim DA Nora Lewin, would be written out as soon as a permanent district attorney could be elected. (It was not that Wiest was unhappy with her role, nor that the producers were dissatisfied with the character; she just didn't want to be artistically confined to series television.) Likewise maintaining the Law & Order status quo was the series' predilection for stories based on current headlines, beginning with the season opener "Who Let the Dogs Out?," which was transparently inspired by a real-life California case involving a killer pit bull. The arrests of actor Robert Blake and rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs and the disappearance of congressional intern Chandra Levy, likewise provided grist for the series' story mill. In addition, the terrible events of September 11 loomed large over the proceedings, notably in the season-closing episode "Patriot." Finally, by 2001, Law & Order had become something of franchise. The series' first spin-off, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, was entering its second successful season. Both this show and its parent series were joined in the fall of 2001 by Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which chronicled crime and punishment from the perpetrators' point-of-view. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jesse L. Martin, S. Epatha Merkerson, (more)
- 2000
Season ten of Law & Order had ended on a cliffhanger of sorts, with an international trial involving the son of a prominent diplomat casting serious doubt upon the reelection of DA Adam Schiff (Steven Hill). In the first episode of the series' 11th season, it was learned that Schiff had, indeed, left office -- not due to a lack of voter turnout, but because he had been appointed by the U.S. government to supervise an upcoming Holocaust memorial in Holland. Until Schiff's replacement could be elected, it was necessary to appoint an interim DA, former law school ethics professor Nora Lewin -- played by Oscar-winning actress Dianne Wiest, whose character's predetermined "temporary" status reflected Wiest's reluctance to tie herself down to a long-running weekly series. Seemingly softer and less curmudgeonly than Schiff, Lewin nonetheless possessed what Executive Producer Dick Wolf described as a "steely reserve," which surfaced whenever it was necessary to the story. Otherwise, the cast members from season ten were carried over into season 11, though it was fairly common knowledge that actress Angie Harmon, cast as ADA Abbie Carmichael, would be departing the series to seek out different projects once her contract was up. Harmon's predecessor, Carey Lowell, made another return appearance as former ADA Jamie Ross, again acting as a defense attorney in opposition to her former colleagues. In addition, acerbic writer Fran Lebowitz made the first of several cameo appearances as Arraignment Judge Goldberg. Among the hot-button issues touched upon during the series' 11th season were the potential dangers of prison budget cutbacks, TV "reality" shows, the loopholes inherent in Israel's "Law of Return" for Jewish citizens, the gay adoption controversy, and, perhaps inevitably, the hotly contested 2000 presidential election. One episode, "Sunday in the Park With Jorge," was attacked by a number of ethnic special-interest groups because it depicted a Central Park "wilding" incident during an Hispanic Pride Festival. Although producer Wolf would not categorically apologize for the story's content, citing the real-life incident on which it was based, he agreed to remove the offending episode from Law & Order's syndicated rerun package. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angie Harmon, Jesse L. Martin, (more)
- 2000
Al Pacino made a rare return to the stage in 1994 when he starred in a Broadway production of Ira Lewis's play Chinese Coffee. In this film adaptation of the drama, Pacino recreates his performance and also directs. Harry Levine (Pacino) is a writer in his early fifties who has published two novels, but never enjoyed enough literary success to leave his job as a doorman. Harry has just finished a third book, and is waiting for his close friend Jake Manheim (Jerry Orbach) to read the manuscript and give him his opinion. Harry is already edgy as he awaits Jake's verdict, since his longtime girlfriend, artist Joanna (Susan Floyd), has just called an end to their relationship. Jake, on the other hand, broke up with his wife Mavis (Ellen McElduff) when he decided to abandon his 30-year career as a photographer in pursuit of a (thus far unsuccessful) career as an actor. At first Jake tells Harry he hasn't yet read his new book, but in time he confesses that he has and that, from a literary standpoint, he thinks Harry simply doesn't have the talent to be a success; he also feels hurt and betrayed as a friend that Harry used sensitive moments from Jake's private life as plot points in his novel. Chinese Coffee was Al Pacino's second effort as a film director, following Looking for Richard, his semi-documentary look at staging William Shakespeare's Richard III. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Jerry Orbach, (more)
- 1999
This episode of Homicide: Life on the Street is the conclusion of a two-part story introduced on its "sister" series Law & Order. Newly appointed to a district court bench, ADA Danvers (Zeljko Ivanek) brings the Baltimore homicide unit into the investigation of the death of governmental official Janine McBride, who, despite being found murdered in New York City, was actually killed in Baltimore. Al Giardello (Yaphet Kotto) is mad that his son Mike (Giancarlo Esposito) turned over confidential information about the McBride case to his FBI bosses, who, in turn, handed it over to Independent Counsel William Dell (George Hearn) -- resulting in immunity for the accused murderer. As it turns out, the ruthless Dell (who bears a startling resemblance to Kenneth Starr) is using both the Baltimore cops and Law & Order regulars Rey Curtis (Benjamin Bratt), Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), and Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) as unwitting stepping stones for his own political ambitions. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Belzer, Giancarlo Esposito, (more)
- 1999
Season ten of Law & Order was marked by the first cast addition to the "Law" portion of the series since 1995. To replace the departed Benjamin Bratt, Jesse L. Martin was introduced as Detective Eddie Green, the new partner of veteran NYPD Detective Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach). The fact that Green was African-American and a considerably younger than Briscoe added a welcome dash of contrast and friction to the detective end of the show. Furthering layering the relationship between the two men was the fact that, as the son of a globetrotting, petrochemical engineer, Green was even more "worldly" than his jaded partner -- and with several charges of excessive force on his record, Green was considerably more hotheaded and impulsive than Briscoe, as well. Over at the DA's office, things remained the same as they'd been in season nine, with Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) continuing to preside over his diligent assistants, Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) and Abbie Carmichael (Angie Harmon). Jamie Ross (Carey Lowell), Carmichael's predecessor, made an unexpected guest appearance, albeit as a defense attorney at odds with her former partners. Another former Law & Order regular, Dann Florek, had been engaged to reprise his role of Captain Don Cragen in the first of the series' several spin-offs, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, which debuted in the fall of 1999. One two-part story, "Entitled," was a crossover between Law & Order and its SVU sister series, with actors from both shows exchanging guest appearances. Law & Order's tenth season ended with the departure of the only regular who'd been with the series since its inception in 1990. It was explained that DA Adam Schiff had left his office to work for the U.S. government, his first assignment being to represent the country at a Holocaust memorial in Holland. In real life, septuagenarian actor Steven Hill had decided to retire, necessitating the graceful elimination of his character. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Angie Harmon, Steven Hill, (more)
- 1998
Essentially a feature-length episode of NBC's long-running series Law & Order, this crime and courtroom drama marks the return of Chris Noth (Detective Mike Logan) to Manhattan's 27th precinct. For the past three years, Logan has been stuck on Staten Island, the result of an incident in which he lost his temper. Regretting his outburst, Logan yearns to return to his home station. A murdered hooker's body found floating in the harbor may provide the key to his return. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Chris Noth, Dabney Coleman, (more)
- 1998
With the eighth-season departure of series regular Carey Lowell as ADA Jamie Ross, Angie Harmon joined the cast of Law & Order at the beginning of its ninth season. Harmon, of course, played Ross' replacement, ADA Abbie Carmichael, who, if anything, was even more zealous in her pursuit of justice than her new partner Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston). Having racked up a 95 percent conviction rate while working in Special Narcotics, Carmichael tackled her new job with a zeal and ferocity that shocked even the ruthless McCoy -- to say nothing of her sanguine boss, DA Adam Schiff (Steven Hill). There were no ninth-season changes amongst the series' detectives, with Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) continuing to track down clues and collar perps under the supervision of Lt. Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson). However, actor Bratt was anxious to pursue other professional vistas, and thus it was arranged to write Rey Curtis out of the series during the final episode, explaining that he had requested a desk job so that he could devote more time to his wife, who was suffering from multiple sclerosis. But before his character's departure, Bratt managed to persuade his then-girlfriend, cinema superstar Julia Roberts, to appear in a guest role in the episode "Empire." The result was one of Roberts' finest performances, which earned the actress an Emmy. Of the many headline-inspired episodes in season nine, one was a standout: "Sideshow," the series' third and final crossover with the NBC crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street. Clearly inspired by the ongoing efforts to impeach President Bill Clinton, the episode featured a somewhat sinister independent counsel named William Dell, who, as played by George Hearn, bore a striking resemblance to the much-maligned Kenneth Starr. Law & Order closed its ninth season with a powerful two-parter involving the Russian mafia. On this occasion, Carolyn McCormick made a return visit to the series as former police psychologist Dr. Elizabeth Olivet, a recurring character who had been more or less supplanted during the previous two seasons by J.K. Simmons as Dr. Emil Skoda. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benjamin Bratt, Angie Harmon, (more)
- 1997
Belle and the other characters from Disney's Beauty and the Beast return in this three-part story. Belle and the Beast learn a lesson about how to forgive and forget in "The Perfect Word"; a romantic evening takes a wrong turn -- down a step hill -- in "Fifi's Folly"; and the Beast gives a pet bird its freedom in "Broken Wing." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robby Benson, Paige O'Hara, (more)
- 1997
This episode of Homicide: Life on the Street is the conclusion of a two-part story begun on its "sister" series Law & Order. The man accused of stalking Brittany Janaway (Rachel Jane Sacrey), a teenaged model who'd been raped in Baltimore before dying of toxic shock syndrome in New York City, insists that he witnessed her attack. This brings Law & Order detectives Rey Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) and Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) to Baltimore, where they team with the Homicide sleuths to determine if Brittany's father (Tom Tammi) -- the same man who posted a 250,000-dollar reward for the capture of her rapist -- is actually the guilty party. In the ensuing jurisdictional battles both in and out of the courtroom, the facts of the case are all but sacrificed in the interests of a speedy conclusion. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Belzer, Andre Braugher, (more)
- 1997
Fans of Law & Order -- and there were many, many more than there had been in previous years -- were somewhat surprised that the series entered its eighth season with no changes in the regular cast. detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) were still upholding the "Law" at the behest of their NYPD boss Lt. Van Buren (S. Epatha Merkerson), while ADAs McCoy (Sam Waterston) and Ross (Carey Lowell) continued to maintain "Order" on behalf of their superior, DA Adam Schiff (Steven Hill). In other carryovers from past seasons, the series staged its second crossover with the NBC crime drama Homicide: Life on the Street with the episode "Baby, It's You;" as before, selected Homicide cast members appeared on Law & Order, and vice versa. Also keeping in the tradition of its past, the series took home its third Emmy award for Outstanding Cinematography. In addition, the series continued tackling issues that were very much in the news. For example, the episode "Castoff" addressed the culpability of TV violence in fomenting real-life violence. Much more so than in previous seasons, the series boasted a number of narrative throughlines that enhanced its sense of reality and continuity. McCoy's questionable tactics in prosecuting a drunk driver in "Under the Influence" came back to haunt him in the season finale. Likewise, in that same episode, Cliff Gorman was introduced as a politically ambitious judge named Gary Feldman, who hoped to win the DA's office from Schiff in the upcoming election. Feldman received unexpected support in the form of powerful (and paranoiac) millionaire Carl Anderton (Robert Vaughn), who would not forget being "betrayed" by Schiff in the episode "Burned." Both Feldman and Anderton would converge upon the DA in the aforementioned series finale, which also boasted a subplot involving ADA Jamie Ross. To accommodate the fact that actress Carey Lowell planned to leave the series, Ross decided to retire to private practice so that she could devote her spare time to her second husband -- and to an ongoing child-custody battle with husband number one. And in more glimpses of the characters' private lives, Jennifer Bill appeared in a brace of episodes as Cathy Briscoe, the troubled, estranged daughter of detective Lennie Briscoe. The brevity of Bill's contribution to Law & Order was due to a devastating plot twist which threatened to push Briscoe over the edge and back into the bottle he'd successfully abandoned years earlier. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benjamin Bratt, Steven Hill, (more)
- 1996
This episode of Homicide: Life on the Street is the conclusion of "Charm City," a two-part story introduced on the TV series Law & Order. Baltimore homicide detectives Pembleton (Andre Braugher) and Bayliss (Kyle Secor) have gone to New York to investigate a subway bombing which may be linked to a similar case that occurred in their own city five years earlier. It soon becomes clear that their investigation is being thwarted by a widespread official coverup. Also involved in the case are three Law & Order regulars: detectives Rey Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) and Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), and ADA Claire Kincaid (Jill Hennessy). The presence of Briscoe ticks off Baltimore detective John Munch (Richard Belzer); it seems that Lennie was once intimate with John's ex-wife. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Belzer, Andre Braugher, (more)
- 1996
With his nerves at the breaking point, Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) is in no mood for the rude behavior he encounters at every turn at the Café Nervosa. When one customer becomes particularly abusive, Frasier uncharacteristically administers an "etiquette lesson" with physical force. Word quickly spreads concerning this outburst turning Frasier into a local hero -- whereupon his radio listeners follow his example by settling their problems with their fists. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Law & Order entered its seventh season on a note of uncertainty: Had Assistant DA Claire Kincaid (Jill Hennessy) been killed by that drunk driver at the end of season six? The answer would remain vague until it was determined by the producers that actress Hennessy had no intention of returning to the series; it was at this point that the unfortunate Kincaid was sadly and reverently referred to in the past tense. Her replacement was ADA Jamie Ross (played by Carey Lowell). The idealistic Ross, who struggled to balance her career with her home life as a single mom, proved to be an excellent opposite number for the jaded, unattached Executive ADA Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston). In addition to claiming Kincaid, death took its toll on another of the series' characters. Throughout season seven, the never-seen wife of DA Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) lay virtually comatose in a hospital bed, tenaciously hanging on to life. The final episode of the season concluded with a grieving Schiff sitting at bedside as the monitor attached to his wife flat-lined. Nor was the brief sojourn to Hollywood taken by detectives Briscoe (Jerry Orbach) and Curtis (Benjamin Bratt) fraught with merriment. They had gone to Tinseltown to investigate the brutal murder of a female studio executive, a plot line which necessitated the series' first (and, to this point, only) three-part story. This expanded time frame afforded ample opportunity to probe the private lives of two of the series' principals: Curtis, devoted to his ailing wife (who had earlier been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis), nonetheless briefly drifted from his marital vows with a sexy Hollywoodite, and new ADA Jamie Ross was bedeviled by her ex-husband, scheming defense attorney Neal Gordon (Keith Szarabajka), both in and out of court. After several years worth of Emmy nominations but no wins, Law & Order closed out season seven with two new statuettes, for Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Cinematography. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benjamin Bratt, Steven Hill, (more)
- 1996
In Disney's second straight-to-video sequel to Aladdin, Aladdin (voice of Scott Weinger) and Princess Jasmine (voice of Linda Larkin) have finally decided to marry, but when the big day finally arrives, the ceremony is thrown into chaos by the unexpected arrival of the Forty Thieves, who are searching for the enchanted Hand of Midas, a charm that will turn all it touches into gold. Aladdin makes the shocking discovery that his father (voice of John Rhys-Davies), long believed dead, is actually the leader of this infamous band of thieves, and when his father falls into peril, Aladdin must rescue him -- with the genie of the lamp (voice of Robin Williams) on hand to help. Robin Williams, whose voice work was considered a key factor in the success of the original Aladdin, returned to the franchise for this film after bowing out of the first sequel, The Return of Jafar, due to a financial dispute (in The Return of Jafar, the genie was voiced by Dan Castellaneta). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Law & Order launched its sixth season with the addition of yet another new character, Detective Rey Curtis, played by Benjamin Bratt. As the replacement for Mike Logan (Chris Noth), previous partner of Detective Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), Curtis exuded enough youthful idealism and self-consciousness to counterbalance Briscoe's hard-boiled, world-weary persona. Ever so carefully, and without disturbing the plot-driven ambience of the series, the producers continued to provide quickie glimpses of the private lives of the six principal characters. The various casual affairs indulged in by Executive Assistant DA Jack McCoy (Sam Waterston) in the years before his association with DA Adam Schiff (Steven Hill) occasionally come back to haunt him, and never so dramatically as in the episode "Trophy," in which he is forced to prosecute a former lover whose false testimony in an earlier case had enabled him to advance professionally. Another episode, "Charm City," represents the first of three Law & Order crossovers with another NBC crime series, the Baltimore-based Homicide: Life in the Street. This required several Law & Order regulars to make guest appearances on Homicide, and vice versa, thereby opening old wounds between New Yorker Lennie Briscoe and his Baltimore counterpart, John Munsch (Richard Belzer). Inevitably, the 1995-1996 season of Law & Order ended with the departure of one of the regulars, in this instance Jill Hennessy as Assistant DA Claire Kincaid. Onscreen, Kincaid was seriously injured in an auto accident; in truth, Hennessy chose not to renew her contract with the series, leaving her free to pursue other roles. The question of whether Kincaid survived the accident would not be fully answered until well into season seven. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benjamin Bratt, Jill Hennessy, (more)
The biggest news surrounding Law & Order's fifth season was the acrimonious exit of series regular Michael Moriarty, who, since the program's inception, had upheld the "Order" part of the program as Executive Assistant DA Ben Stone. According to the script, Stone quit the DA's office in disgust and despair after a witness to whom he'd promised protection was murdered. In truth, Moriarty had long been dissatisfied with the diminishing amount of screen time afforded the DA's office -- and he was also worried that then-U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno would make good on her promise to purge network TV of "excessive violence," a move he felt would emasculate reality-based series like Law & Order. With the departure of Ben Stone, a new face was added to the series' judicial lineup: Assistant DA Sam McCoy, played by Sam Waterston. Like his colleagues, McCoy was a basically decent, but decidedly imperfect, human being; famous for walking a very thin line between ethics and legal flim-flammery, he was also a renowned womanizer, having slept with virtually all of his former law partners -- a fact that added a fascinating dimension to his relationship with State's Attorney Claire Kincaid (Jill Hennessy). Despite its so-so ratings, Law & Order had enough viewer support and industry clout to survive its fifth season, passing the 100-episode mark with "Progeny" (although NBC, refusing to acknowledge the existence of the series' 1990 pilot episode because it had been commissioned by CBS, insisted that "Rage" was Number 100). One indication that the series was supported by its network was the fact that the producers were given enough production money to complete 23 episodes, rather than the standard 22. In what was rapidly becoming a Law & Order tradition, the 1994-1995 season ended with the exit of still another character. In the season finale, "Pride," Detective Mike Logan Chris Noth was yanked from homicide and reduced to pounding a beat on Staten Island after punching out a homophobic councilman. In real life, producer Dick Wolf decided not to renew Noth's contract, feeling that the actor had reached the limits of his character -- and that the world-weary Mike Logan did not provide enough contrast with his equally hard-bitten, acerbic partner Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach). Although Noth never returned to the weekly version of Law & Order, he was able to persuade the series' producers to fashion a spin-off TV movie, 1998's Exiled, which tied up the loose ends of Logan's career. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Hennessy, Steven Hill, (more)
It can be said with some assurance that during its fourth season on the air, Law & Order finally came into its own and assumed the form and texture for which it became famous. For one thing, the producers finally responded to audience demand that there be more of a "female presence" on the series. Thus, Richard Brooks as Assistant DA Paul Robinette was given his walking papers, as was Dann Florek as Police Captain Don Cragen. Replacing these two regulars were Jill Hennessy as new Assistant DA Claire Kincaid and S. Epatha Merkerson as Lt. Anita Van Buren, freshly transferred from the narcotics bureau to homicide. It was explained that Robinette had retired from the DA's office to go into private practice (in fact, the character would return in a later season as counsel for the defense, opposing his former colleagues). As for Cragen, the character returned to Law & Order in a guest-star capacity, and was returned to full "regular" status in 1999 on the spin-off series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. (Actor Florek also directed several Law & Order episodes). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jill Hennessy, Steven Hill, (more)
Another major casting change occurred during the third season of Law & Order, although not until the series had offered eight episodes. In "Prince of Darkness," an undercover police operation goes tragically awry, and Detective Phil Ceretta (Paul Sorvino) ends up seriously wounded. Though Ceretta would recover sufficiently to take up a desk job, Sorvino himself decided to leave the series for good; like George Dzundza before him, the actor felt that the series' format was too confining for his talents. Brought in as Mike Logan's (Chris Noth) new partner was Jerry Orbach as laconic veteran detective Lennie Briscoe, a recovering alcoholic with a multitude of family problems (which, in fine old Law & Order tradition, were only revealed to the audience on a "need to know" basis). At the time Orbach joined the series, there was much speculation (usually tongue-in-cheek in nature) as to how long it would be before he, too, was shot down in the line of duty, just like Logan's two previous partners, Greevey and Ceretta. As it turned out, Orbach not only outlasted Noth as Logan, but by season 13, he had been on the series longer than any other regular. A few stylistic changes marked season three. The "street action" was more or less cut to the bone, as was the background music. Also, in answer to viewer demand, the handheld camerawork became more steady and less distracting. One thing still remained constant from season one: the series' lack of regular female characters. At least Carolyn McCormick, in the recurring role of police psychologist Dr. Elizabeth Olivet, was spotlighted in the compelling episode "Helpless." Once again, Law & Order was honored with several Emmy nominations during the 1992-1993 season. This time out, the series copped the Emmy twice, for Elaine Stritch's guest-star turn in "Point of View" and for Constantine Makris' photography. Ratings remained steady, if not spectacular, but things would change dramatically during the next season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Brooks, Dann Florek, (more)
