Jerome Bernard Orbach (October 20, 1935
– December 28, 2004) was an American actor and singer, described at the time of
his death as "one of the last bona fide leading men of
the Broadway musical and
global celebrity on television" and a "versatile stage and film
actor". Orbach's professional career began on the New York stage, both on and off-Broadway, where he created roles such as El Gallo in the
original off-Broadway run
of The Fantasticks (1960)
and became the first performer to sing that show's standard "Try to Remember", Billy Flynn in the
original Chicago (1975–1977),
and Julian Marsh in 42nd Street (1980–1985).
Nominated for multiple Tony Awards, Orbach won
for his performance as Chuck Baxter in Promises, Promises (1968–1972).
Later in his career, Orbach played supporting roles in films such as Prince of the City (1981), Dirty Dancing (1987), Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989),
and Disney's Beauty and the Beast (1991). He
also made frequent guest appearances on television, including a recurring role
on Murder, She Wrote as
private detective Harry McGraw between 1985 and 1991, and was the voice of
Zachary Foxx in The
Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers in 1986. He gained
worldwide fame for his starring role as NYPD Detective Lennie Briscoe on the original Law & Order series from 1992 to 2004.
Carol Elaine Channing (January 31, 1921
– January 15, 2019) was an American actress, singer, dancer, and comedienne,
known for starring in Broadway and film musicals. Her characters usually had a
fervent expressiveness and an easily identifiable voice, whether singing or for
comedic effect. Channing became known for creating the lead roles in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes in
1949 and Hello, Dolly! in
1964, winning the Tony Award
for Best Actress in a Musical for the latter. She revived both
roles several times throughout her career, playing Dolly on Broadway for the
final time in 1995. She was nominated for her first Tony Award in 1956
for The Vamp, followed by a nomination in 1961 for Show
Girl. She received her fourth Tony Award nomination for the musical Lorelei in 1974. As a film actress, she won the Golden Globe Award and was nominated for the Academy
Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Muzzy
in Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967).
Her other film appearances include The First Traveling
Saleslady (1956) and Skidoo (1968). On television, she appeared as an
entertainer on variety shows. She performed The White
Queen in the TV production of Alice in Wonderland (1985),
and she had the first of many TV specials in 1966, titled An Evening
with Carol Channing. Channing
was inducted into the American Theater Hall of
Fame in 1981 and received a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in
1995. She continued to perform and make appearances well into her 90s,
singing songs from her repertoire and sharing stories with fans, cabaret-style.
She released her autobiography Just Lucky I Guess in 2002,
and Larger Than Life was released in 2012, a documentary film
about her career.
Ashford & Simpson were an American
husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August
22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford
was born in Fairfield, South Carolina,
and Simpson in the Bronx, New York City. Afterwards, his family relocated to Ypsilanti, Michigan, where
he became a member of Christ Temple Baptist Church. While there, he sang with a
group called the Hammond Singers (named after the founding minister, James
Hammond). Later, Nickolas attended and graduated from Willow Run High School in Ypsilanti, Michigan,
before pursuing his professional career, where he would ultimately meet his
wife, Valerie. They met at Harlem's White Rock Baptist Church in
1964. After having recorded unsuccessfully as a duo, they joined an aspiring
solo artist and former member of the Ikettes, Joshie Jo Armstead, at the Scepter/Wand label, where their
compositions were recorded by Ronnie Milsap ("Never Had It So Good"), Maxine Brown ("One
Step at a Time"), as well as the Shirelles and Chuck Jackson. Another of the trio's songs, "Let's Go Get
Stoned," gave Ray Charles a number one U.S. R&B hit in 1966. That
same year, Ashford & Simpson joined Motown, where their best-known songs included "Ain't No Mountain High
Enough," "You're All I Need to Get
By," "Ain't Nothing Like the
Real Thing," and "Reach Out
and Touch (Somebody's Hand)." Ashford and Simpson wrote many
other hit songs, including Chaka Khan's "I'm Every Woman" (1978) and "Is It Still Good to
Ya?", originally recorded by the duo in 1978 and covered by Teddy Pendergrass in 1980. As performers, Ashford &
Simpson's best-known duets are "Solid" (1984) and "Found a Cure"
(1979). The duo were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in
2002. They are also recipients of The Rhythm & Blues
Foundation's Pioneer Award, ASCAP Founders
Award, and the Grammy Trustee Award. Rolling Stone ranked them No. 19 on its list of the
20 Greatest Duos of All Time.