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Of all the great things about television, the greatest is that it’s on every single day. TV history is being made, day in and day out, in ways big and small. In an effort to better appreciate this history, we’re taking a look back, every day, at one particular TV milestone.
IMPORTANT DATE IN TV HISTORY: December 27, 1953
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT: While Tovah Feldshuh has made a significant mark in the theater world, I submit to you that her deceptively small contributions to the world of TV are dwarfed by nothing. While on stage, Feldshuh was doing one-woman shows and playing Golda Meir in as many venues as would have her, on TV she’s been more of a character actress. And what way-station do all American character actors have to pass through at one time or another? That’s right: Law & Order. Feldshuh played defense attorney Danielle Melnick on 13 episodes of Law & Order, mixing it up in the courtroom with Jack McCoy as often as she could. She even got arrested (and later shot!) for her troubles.
Feldshuh more recently showed up on The Walking Dead as Deanna, the leader of the fenced-in Alexandria community that was doing JUST FINE until Rick and his band of dirty back-luck-bringers came to town and brought nothing but death and destruction with them.
But by far the crowning achievement of Ms. Feldshuh’s many years on television was her most recent, playing mother to Rebecca Bunch on the CW’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Her signature moment came in the final episode of 2015 when she came to visit Rebecca and descended upon her daughter’s West Covina home like a category-four hurricane full of judgement and open hostility.
In under three minutes, Feldshuh slays everything in her path. It’s an inspirational wonder. She can’t come back to that show soon enough.
So happy birthday, Tovah Feldshuh. You’ve brought us justice, you’ve brought us leadership, and you’ve brought us the neverending guilt and attention that only a mother can bring. Mazel tov.
