A Look at How 'Law & Order's' End Impacts NY Actors

In a USA Today' feature out today, Martha T. Moore examines the effects that the cancellation of Law & Order will have on New York-based actors and actresses, many of whom appeared on the series while performing in plays on and off-Broadway.

In the following exerpt Moore explains how the end of the long-running series is a blow to New York City working actors:

"The cancellation of Law & Order, the crime drama shot in New York for 20 years, means an end to a steady source of jobs for thousands of actors and extras who appeared as cops, judges, lawyers, perps, vics and innocent bystanders. NBC airs the final episode tonight of the show that seems to have hired more actors than any other enterprise in the city, with the possible exception of restaurants.

"It put many, many actors to work," says Neil Pepe, artistic director of the Atlantic Theater Company. Of the eight actors currently appearing in Atlantic's two off-Broadway shows Gabriel and Dusk Rings A Bell, five have appeared on Law & Order, as have Pepe and his wife, Mary McCann, the company's co-founder. "It's sad and it's a shame that it's not going to be there anymore."

The show cast 20 to 40 parts each week for 22 weeks a year, according to Lynn Kressel, who casts actors for the show and its siblings, Law & Order SVU and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. (Those two shows are scheduled to continue.)

The Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting says the original Law & Order- known as the "mother ship" - generated 3,000 acting jobs a year and $79 million in economic activity in the city each season it aired.

Julianne Cho of the film office calls the show "a major feeder for the theater acting pool. ... The Law & Order franchise has been one of the largest employers for actors in the city."

For the complete piece, click here.

NBC has renewed the 'Law & Order' offspring 'Law & Order: Special Victims Unit' for its 12th season, NBC also announced its new series 'Law & Order: Los Angeles.'

According to Deadline.com, Dick Wolf, the creator of the Law & Order franchise, is furious with this decision, and was threatening to take the show to TNT, before the official announcement was made. The chairman of NBC, Jeff Gaspin said this of Wolf "The full measure of the collective contributions made by Dick Wolf and his ‘Law & Order' franchise over the last two decades to the success of NBC and Universal Media Studios cannot be overstated. The legacy of his original ‘Law & Order' series will continue to make an impact like no other series before."

The current cast of 'Law & Order' includes S. Epatha Merkerson, Sam Waterson, Anthony Anderson, Jeremy Sisto, Linus Roache and Alana De LA Garza. Past cast members include Jerry Orbach, Jesse L. Martin, Chris Noth, Benjamin Bratt, Elisabeth Rohm, Angie Harmon, and Jill Hennessy amoung others. Not to mention the hundreds to actors who have guest starred in episodes over the years.

NYT estimates that over 8,000 people in New York City are emplyed by the series and its spinoffs.

For more information visit http://www.nbc.com/.

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