Portion of 53rd Street Renamed 'Jerry Orbach Way' 9/17

The City of New York will name a portion of 53rd Street at 8th Avenue after legendary star of stage and screen, Jerry Orbach.  A street sign reading "JERRY ORBACH WAY" will be unveiled during a dedication ceremony on Monday, September 17 at 2:30PM on the southwest corner of the block.  The actor's widow, Elaine Cancilla-Orbach, Richard Belzer and fellow cast members from "Law & Order" and cast members from the Off-Broadway cast of The Fantasticks will attend.  A brief reception will follow at the Jerry Orbach Theater (210 West 50th Street).

Jerry Orbach, best known for his starring role as wisecracking Detective Lennie Briscoe in the long-running television series "Law & Order," was also an accomplished Tony Award-winning Broadway and Off-Broadway actor.  His theatre career began in 1960 as El Gallo in the original Off-Broadway production of The Fantasticks.  He later went on to star on Broadway in such musicals as 42nd Street, Chicago (Tony Award nomination), Guys and Dolls (Tony Award nomination) and Promises, Promises which earned him the 1969 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. 

On the screen, Orbach appeared most notably in the films Prince of the City, Dirty Dancing, Crimes and Misdemeanors and provided the voice of Lumiere in Disney's animated feature, Beauty and the Beast.  Orbach lost his battle to prostate cancer on December 28, 2004 at the age of 69.

In June of this year, one of two theater facilities in the Snapple Theatre Center (210 West 50th Street) was named The Jerry Orbach Theatre.  Located on the corner of 50th Street and Broadway in the heart of Times Square, the Snapple Theater Center is Snapple's first branded entertainment center.  Since its official opening in May of 2006, The Snapple Theater Center has been home to two landmark Off-Broadway shows: The Fantasticks, the world's longest-running musical, and Perfect Crime, the longest-running play in New York City.