Judy Sheindlin
Judith Sheindlin (also known as Judy Sheindlin or Judge Judy; born Judith Blum on October 21, 1942) is an American family court judge, author, and television personality. After retiring as a family court judge in 1996, she became famous by hosting her own syndicated court show, Judge Judy. She has credited her father, Murray Blum, for helping her succeed.
Biography
Sheindlin, who was born in Brooklyn to a Jewish-American family, attended American University in Washington, D.C., graduating in 1963 and then went on to New York Law School, receiving her law degree in 1965, and practiced family law for many years in New York, before being appointed to the bench. Judge Judith Sheindlin's career in family court began in 1972 prosecuting juvenile delinquency cases for the state of New York.[1] In 1982 she was appointed to the bench as a Family Court Judge by Edward Koch, mayor of New York, and was promoted to the rank of Supervising Judge for Manhattan (New York County) in 1986.[1]
Private life
Judy Sheindlin has been married a total of three times, twice to Jerry Sheindlin, her current husband, who is also a judge (appointed by Ed Koch to Manhattan's Criminal Court in 1983,[1] and later a Justice of the Supreme Court of New York) and who also appeared on a TV courtroom show, The People's Court, from 1998 until 2001, when Judge Marilyn Milian replaced him.[1] She and her first husband, Ronald Levy, were married in 1964 and divorced in 1976. Judith and Jerry married a year later in 1977, were divorced in 1990, and remarried in 1991. For both Judith and Jerry, it was a second marriage, and between them they have five children and ten grandchildren. They performed the marriage ceremonies for all four of their married children themselves. Although production of her TV show takes place in Los Angeles, Judy lives in New York City.[2] In addition to her academic degrees, she holds an honorary Doctor of Law degree from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania.[1]
Author
Even before she gained her TV show, her outspoken reputation made Sheindlin the subject of a Los Angeles Times article in February 1993.[3] The piece caught the attention of 60 Minutes leading to a segment on the popular newsmagazine show, which brought her national recognition.[4] This led to her first book, published in 1996 by Harper Collins which was entitled Don't Pee on My Leg and Tell Me It's Raining.[5] Her second book, Beauty Fades, Dumb Is Forever[6] was published in January 1999, which would later be a national bestseller. Two further books were published in 2000, Win or Lose by How You Choose — an illustrated children's book, as well as Keep It Simple, Stupid.[7]
Judge Judy
In September 1996, her own television program, Judge Judy, debuted. The popularity of Judge Judy has become part of America's popular culture, and she has been nominated eight times for a Daytime Emmy award.[8] She has been parodied on and actually appeared on Saturday Night Live (with Cheri Oteri acting in the Judge Judy role). She's been mentioned on network TV shows such as Will & Grace and on the Academy Awards.[9] She was selected to serve as a judge for the 1999 Miss America Pageant.[10] In February 2006, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.[11] She also was parodied in The Simpsons by the character Judge Constance Harm.
References
- ^ a b c d e Judge Judy Judgejudy.com. Biography for Judith Sheindlin. URL last accessed July 28, 2006.
- ^ KIROTV. URL last accessed July 28, 2006.
- ^ Alumni.america.edu America University. Judge Judy Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
- ^ Alumni.america.edu America University. Judge Judy Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
- ^ Amazon.com book information. ISBN 0060927941. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
- ^ Amazon.com book information. ISBN 006092991X. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
- ^ Alumni.america.edu America University. Judge Judy Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
- ^ Awards for Judge Judy at IMDB.com. URL last accessed July 28, 2006.
- ^ KIROTV. URL last accessed July 28, 2006.
- ^ WCHS-TV8. URL last accessed July 28, 2006.
- ^ Alumni.america.edu America University. Judge Judy Gets Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame. URL last accessed July 26, 2006.
External links
- Judge Judith Sheindlin at the Notable Names Database
- Judging Judy, The Daily Record, November 10, 2003
- Judge Judy marks 10 years laying down the law, CTV News, February 15, 2006