- 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).
- W. 53rd St. in Manhattan has been named Jerry Orbach Way.
- He appeared in 274 episodes of Law & Order (1990), more than anyone else except for S. Epatha Merkerson and Sam Waterston.
- Played the uncle of his real-life son, Chris Orbach, in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999).
- 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".
- Was an organ donor; upon his death his eyes were made available to someone in need of new eyes.
- The New York Landmark Conservancy declared him a Living Landmark.
- 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.
- His widow Elaine Orbach died on April 1, 2009, from pneumonia at the age of 69.
- In 1976, he was nominated for the Tony Award® for "Best Actor in a Musical" for his performance in "Chicago."
- Worked as a chauffeur for Mae West.
- 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".
- For years until the time of his death, held the record for most musical stage performances of any living actor.
- Was partying at the Copacabana with infamous New York mobster Joe Gallo (III) hours before Gallo was shot dead at Umberto's Clam House in New York City.
- Had been battling prostate cancer for 10 years.
- 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."
- His mother Emily Orbach died on July 28, 2012 at the age of 101.
- Created the roles of El Gallo in "The Fantasticks," Billy Flynn in "Chicago" and Julian Marsh in "42nd Street" on the New York stage.
- As a struggling young actor he attended Lee Strasberg's Actors Studio with a struggling young actress named Marilyn Monroe.
- On March 20, 2000, he sued online auctioneer eBay Inc. in Manhattan 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 March 15, 2000, when it advertised the sale of two of his contracts from 1958.
- Was an animal-rights activist.
- Made his Broadway stage debut as Smith, the Police Constable, in "The Threepenny Opera".
- 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 12 seasons, hated defense attorneys for defending "the scum of the earth".
- Had read for the roles of Max Greevey and Phil Cerreta on Law & Order (1990) before finally being cast as Det. Lennie Briscoe.
- 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).
- Received the Edith Oliver Award for Sustained Excellence at the 1999 Lucille Lortel Awards.
- Announced on March 26, 2004, that he would be leaving Law & Order (1990) after 12 years on the series.
- Along with S. Epatha Merkerson, Annie Parisse, Milena Govich and Jeremy Sisto, he was one of only five Law & Order (1990) cast members to play a different character in an episode before joining the cast in a later season. Michael Imperioli and J.K. Simmons also played multiple roles, but were not permanent additions to the cast.
- In 2008 his oldest son Tony and grandson Peter appeared on the series "Cash Cab" together.
- He played the same character (Detective Lennie Briscoe) in five different television series: Law & Order (1990), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005).
- The Jerry Orbach Theater, which opened in 2006, is on the third floor of the Snapple Theater Center complex, 210 West 50th Street, in New York City.
- Left an estate estimated at $10 million.
- 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.
- 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".
- Along with Chris Noth, Dann Florek and Fred Thompson, he is one of four Law & Order (1990) cast members who later joined the regular cast of one of the spin-off series. He played Detective Lennie Briscoe in Law & Order (1990) from 1992 to 2004 and was a member of the original cast of Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005).
- His character Law & Order (1990) and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005) character, Detective Lennie Briscoe, was the longest running character on American prime time live action television from May 2004, when Frasier (1993) ended, to March 2005. Kelsey Grammer had played Dr. Frasier Crane in Cheers (1982) and Frasier (1993) since November 1984. Richard Belzer, who has played Detective John Munch in Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) since January 1993, is the current holder of the title.
- Along with Jesse L. Martin, Fred Thompson, Carolyn McCormick and Leslie Hendrix, he is one of only five actors to play the same character (Detective Lennie Briscoe) in all of the first four New York City-based "Law & Order" series: Law & Order (1990), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999), Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005).
- Father of Chris Orbach and Anthony Orbach.
- He appeared in episodes of three different series with Richard Belzer: Law & Order (1990), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999).
- Has four grandchildren: Sarah Kate Orbach and Peter Orbach are his oldest son Tony's kids; Aaron Orbach (b. 2014) and Emilia Orbach (b. 2019) are the children of youngest son Chris Orbach and daughter-in-law Nicole.
- He appeared in episodes of four different series with Sam Waterston: Law & Order (1990), Homicide: Life on the Street (1993), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) and Law & Order: Trial by Jury (2005).
- Cousin of Ron Orbach.
- He appeared in episodes of three different series with Jesse L. Martin: Law & Order (1990), Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (1999) and Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001).
- Author Kurt Vonnegut, a fan of Orbach, said during an Australian radio interview in 2005, "People have asked me, you know, 'Who would you rather be, than yourself?'," and he replied "Jerry Orbach, without a question...I talked to him one time, and he's adorable.".
- Biography in: "The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives". Volume 7, 2003-2005, pages 405-407. Farmington Hills, MI: Thomson Gale, 2007.
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