rip, lenny briscoe

Jerry Orbach lived in the same building I did when I first moved to NYC at 53rd & 8th. Sadly, he passed away a couple months later. I remember seeing him several times around the neighborhood while we both lived there — I recall him wearing a silly straw cowboy hat. Once, very late at night, he was stepping out of the elevator with his wife and another couple while my friends and I were waiting to go back up.

I’ve loved him since Dirty Dancing and looked forward to his “witty” remarks on L&O. I became even more enamored with him after learning from my grandmother that he was originally a “song and dance” man. 42nd Street, anyone?

Now they’re naming the street near my old building after him.

I wish I could’ve been there for the ceremony.