“Ma chere Mademoiselle, it is with deepest pride
And greatest pleasure that we welcome you tonight And now we invite you to relax, let us pull up a chair As the dining room proudly presents Your dinner!” Be our guest, be our guest Put our service to the test Tie your napkin ’round your neck, cherie And we’ll provide the rest Soup du jour, hot hors d’oeuvres Why, we only live to serve Try the grey stuff, it’s delicious Don’t believe me, ask the dishes They can sing, they can dance After all, miss, this is France And a dinner here is never second best Go on, unfold your menu Take a glance and then you’ll Be our guest oui, our guest Be our guest Beef ragout, cheese soufflé Pie and pudding, on flambé We’ll prepare and serve with flair A culinary cabaret You’re alone and you’re scared But the banquet’s all prepared No one’s gloomy or complaining While the flatware’s entertaining We tell jokes, I do tricks With my fellow candlesticks And it’s all in perfect taste that you can bet Come on and lift your glass You’ve won your own free pass To be our guest If you’re stressed It’s fine dining we suggest Be our guest, be our guest, be our guest Life is so unnerving For a servant who’s not serving He’s not whole without a soul to wait upon Ah, those good old days when we were useful (hey Cogsworth) Suddenly those good old days are gone Too long we’ve been rusting Needing so much more than dusting Needing exercise, a chance to use our skills! Most days we just lay around the castle Flabby, fat and lazy You walked in and oops-a-daisy! It’s a guest, it’s a guest Sake’s alive, well I’ll be blessed! Wine’s been poured and thank the Lord I’ve had the napkins freshly pressed With dessert, she’ll want tea And my dear that’s fine with me While the cups do their soft-shoein’ I’ll be bubbling, I’ll be brewing I’ll get warm, piping hot Heaven’s sakes! Is that a spot? Clean it up, we want the company impressed We’ve got a lot to do! Is it one lump or two? For you, our guest (she’s our guest) She’s our guest (she’s our guest) Be our guest, be our guest! Our command is your request It’s been years since we’ve had anybody here And we’re obsessed With your meal, with your ease Yes, indeed, we aim to please While the candlelight’s still glowing Let us help you, we’ll keep going Course by course, one by one ‘Til you shout, “enough I’m done!” Then we’ll sing you off to sleep as you digest Tonight you’ll prop your feet up But for now, let’s eat up Be our guest Be our guest Be our guest Please, be our guestJerry Orbach
Jerome Bernard Orbach (October 19, 1935 – December 28th, 2004), better known as Jerry Orbach, was an American actor and musician best remembered for his portrayal of Dr. Jack Graham on the CBS soap opera As the World Turns from 1985 to 1995. He later became well known for portraying Detective Lennie Briscoe on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit from 1999 to 2002.
Orbach was born in New York City, the son of Jewish immigrants from Poland, and grew up in Brooklyn, where he attended Erasmus Hall High School. His mother died when he was 13 years old; his father remarried a woman named Rosemary, whom Orbach disliked intensely. At age 16, Orbach dropped out of school and worked as a waiter while taking acting classes at night. In 1956, he joined the United States Army, serving four years during the Korean War. After being discharged from the army, Orbach studied drama at Juilliard.
In 1960, he made his professional debut in the off-Broadway play A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Orbach moved to Los Angeles in 1961, where he began working in television commercials. He had small parts in several TV series, including I Dream of Jeannie, Mission Impossible, and Mannix, before landing the role of Dr. Jack Graham in As the World Turns. Orbach left the show in 1993.
His film career included roles in films such as The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1977), The Black Hole (1979), The Big Bus (1980), The Cotton Club (1984), Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993), and Home Fries (1997). Orbach played the lead role in the short-lived ABC sitcom The Jerk Store in 1986. From 1988 to 1991, he portrayed Lennie Briscoe in the NBC police procedural Law & Order.
Orbach married actress Marta Curro in 1965. They remained together until her death in 1994. Their daughter, Rebecca, was born in 1969. Orbach married second wife Susan Ward in 1996; she survived him along with their son, Joseph.
Orbach died of pancreatic cancer in Beverly Hills, California, aged 68.
Early life
Orbach was born on October 20th, 1935, in the South Bronx section of New York City. He was the only child of Emily “Emmy” Olexy, a Ukrainian immigrant, and Leon Orbach, a German Jew who had fled Nazi Germany in 1933. Orbach’s parents divorced when he was seven years old; his mother married again, to a man named Benjie, whom Orbach described as being very abusive towards her. At age nine, Orbach moved in with his grandmother, Rose, and began working as a dishwasher at a kosher restaurant called the Starlight Room.
In 1949, Orbach graduated from Abraham Lincoln High School in the South Bronx, where he played football, basketball, and baseball. After graduation, he attended the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, majoring in English literature and minoring in speech communication. While at college, Orbach performed standup comedy routines at local venues such as the Comedy Store and the Improv.
After college, Orbach returned to New York City and became involved with the burgeoning folk music scene there. During this period, Orbach met songwriter Bob Dylan, who encouraged him to pursue songwriting professionally. Orbach wrote several songs during this time, including “The Death of Emmett Till,” about the lynching of 14-year-old African American boy Emmett Louis Till in Mississippi in 1955. The song became a hit in 1965 when it was recorded by Joan Baez and later covered by many others.
Orbach worked as a waiter at the Chez Paree nightclub in Greenwich Village, performing comedy sketches while serving drinks. When the owner of the club died, Orbach left to work at another establishment in Manhattan. There, he met musicians David Amram and Albert Grossman, who helped Orbach develop his comedic skills.
In 1962, Orbach joined the cast of The Steve Allen Show, playing himself in a sketch titled “The Great Orbach.” A few months later, Orbach signed a contract with Columbia Records and released his first album, Lenny Bruce Was a Friend of Mine, which included material written by Orbach and comedian Mort Sahl. Despite some critical acclaim, the album failed commercially.
STORY: “Early career”
In 1963, Orbach opened his own nightclub, the Lenny Bruce Theatre, located at 254 West 52nd Street in Manhattan. The venue was designed to resemble the famous Cafe Au Go Go, where Bruce had performed in 1959. The club closed after three weeks due to poor attendance.
Career
Orbach began his career performing in New York City nightclubs such as Cafe La Mamma and the Copacabana. He later played the lead in the original Broadway production of, earning rave reviews for his portrayal of the character El Gallo. In addition to his stage performances, Orbach had a successful run in the 1970s playing the title role in the popular CBS sitcom. He went on to play tough police lieutenant Gus Levy in Sidney Lumets’ 1982 crime drama and won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.
In 1985, Orbach joined the cast of the NBC miniseries adaptation of William Goldman’s novel They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, portraying the part of a gangster named Frank Gorman. The following year, he portrayed the role of the evil Mayor Kwan in the 1986 James L. Brooks comedy classic Broadcast News. Orbach continued to star in films throughout the 1990s, including Oliver Stone’s JFK, where he played mob boss Meyer Lansky. Other notable movies include Woody Allen’s romantic comedy Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid To Ask), and the 1992 thriller Murder By Numbers, starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner.