I did not envy actor Dennis Farina when he was cast to replace Jerry Orbach on Law & Order. Farina’s Det. Joe Montana had an edge and flashiness that was more old time Little Italy than Lower East Side. But that was fitting for such a quintessentially New York series. Lennie Briscoe was irreplaceable but Joe Montana was still compelling to watch.
serhasacomplaint 
observeratlarge
July 22, 2013 at 6:28 pm
All the detectives in Law & Order have brought their own special something to the role. My favorites will always be Eames and Goren, it was an inspired partnership. Dennis Farina will always have a soft spot in my heart for Crime Story, and who can ever forget Jerry Orbach’s El Gallo in The Fantasticks? And besides, he lived in Fort Lee and I would see him in the supermarket. You can’t realize on television how very tall and handsome he was, even in his 70’s.