- Known For
- Acting
- Born
- July 16, 1931
- Place of Birth
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Died
- October 15, 2023
Joanna Merlin
Joanna Merlin (born Joann Ratner; July 15, 1931) was an American actress and casting director who has worked with Stephen Sondheim and starred in the original Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof. She has written two acting guides and is a faculty member of New York University's graduate acting program. In recent years, she has become known for her recurring role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit as Judge Lena Petrovsky. Joann Ratner, who later took her mother's maiden name, was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Toni Merlin and Harry Ratner, a Jewish grocer. Her family also included her older sister Harriet Glickman (1926-2020) who would go on to gain recognition for having helped persuade Charles Schulz to add a black character to his Peanuts strip. Merlin first acted on stage at age 11, joining a community theatre production, Too Many Marys. Merlin graduated from UCLA and later …
Filmography
movieActive Adults
2017 · Miriam
tvHomeland
2011 · Grandma
movieSarah's Key
2010 · Mrs. Rainsferd
tvThe Good Wife
2009 · Loni Goslin
movieThe Wackness
2008 · Grandma Shapiro
movieThe Invasion
2007 · Joan Kaufman
tvThe Jury
2004
movieThe Jimmy Show
2002 · Emily
movieWitness Protection
1999 · Cindy's Mother
tvLaw & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999 · Lena Petrovsky
movieCity of Angels
1998 · Teresa
movieThe Prosecutors
1996 · Jewel
movieMURDER and murder
1996 · Doris
movieTwo Bits
1995 · Guendolina
movieJefferson in Paris
1995 · Casting
tvNew York Undercover
1994
movieLittle Buddha
1993 · Casting
movieMr. Wonderful
1993 · Loretta
movieLove, Honor & Obey: The Last Mafia Marriage
1993 · Rose Profaci
tvIn a Child's Name
1991 · Frances Silvano
movieClass Action
1991 · Estelle Ward
movieInto the Woods
1991 · Casting
tvBaby Talk
1991 · Gina
movieMr. & Mrs. Bridge
1990 · Casting
tvLaw & Order
1990 · Deirdre Powell, Defense Attorney Carla Bowman
tvNorthern Exposure
1990 · Nadine Fleischman
movieMurder in Black and White
1990 · Dr. Bromberg
movieMystic Pizza
1988 · Mrs. Arujo
tvAmerican Experience
1988 · Family Member (voice)
moviePrince of Darkness
1987 · Bag Lady
movieThe Last Emperor
1987 · Casting
tvL.A. Law
1986 · Ellen Kennedy
movieBig Trouble in Little China
1986 · Casting
tvAmazing Stories
1985 · Marie
movieThe Killing Fields
1984 · Schanberg's Sister
movieJacobo Timerman: Prisoner Without a Name, Cell Without a Number
1983
movieBaby It's You
1983 · Mrs. Rosen
movieLove Child
1982 · Mrs. Sturgis
movieSoup for One
1982 · Allan's Mother
movieStarstruck
1981 · Inez Marin
movieFame
1980 · Miss Berg
movieNurse
1980 · Nan Riley
movieAll That Jazz
1979 · Nurse Pierce
movieThe Last Tenant
1978 · Mrs. Farelli
movieHester Street
1975 · Jake's Landlady
tvAnother World
1964
movieThe Power and the Glory
1963
movieWeddings and Babies
1960 · Josie
tvNaked City
1958 · Gloria Werminski
movieThe Ten Commandments
1956 · Jethro's Daughter