New York Special Unit: Everyone knows that voice we hear at the beginning of every episode! But do you know who it belongs to?

An iconic introduction

“Sex crimes are considered particularly heinous in the justice system. In New York, the detectives who investigate these crimes are members of an elite unit called Special Victims Unit. Here are their stories.” (original version: “Sexually based crimes are considered particularly heinous in the criminal justice system. The dedicated detectives in New York who investigate these heinous crimes are members of an elite squad known as Special Victims. These are their stories…”)

No viewer could miss this text, which has been opening every episode of New York Special Unit for 27 years. It’s also a trademark of the “Law & Order” universe created by Dick Wolf: from the main series to New York Police Judicial to numerous spin-offs, including New York Organized Crime and New York Criminal Section, all of these programs open with a monologue describing their characters’ scope of action in the fight against crime. One thing is constant: the proposal “Here are their stories”followed by the famous “Dun Dun”.

Little known actor

The person who speaks this introduction in the original version is Stephen Zirnkilton, a voice actor who was a politician in his youth. After playing a detective in the first episode of NYPD (the only one in the entire franchise that didn’t have an opening monologue, by the way), he was called back to write the text that accompanied the beginning of each episode. Subsequently, the production called him for all the spin-offs. In an interview, he emphasizes with fun Maine campus In 2009: “I’m the only person who’s been in every episode.”

In the same interview, Zirnkilton discusses his attraction to the voice acting profession: “Every Sunday my dad and I went to church and there was a person I would always see across the church. He was the host of the local radio station and I remember it was really cool. But I didn’t think much of it. It wasn’t until college when I walked into the college radio station one day that everything changed. It was me.

When it comes to law and order, he remembers receiving.A call from a big producer who told me he wanted to record something. I had no idea what it was, and while they were reading the text, he stood next to me and then explained how he wanted to do it. And that was it. “

If his face and name remain unknown to the general public, he is grateful to have had this experience: “I’m happy with the longevity of the show and the security it brings me because it allows me to continue my career and raise my children. Now I have the opportunity to participate in various charity events with other actors. It has given me opportunities that I certainly would never have had otherwise.” Since then, he has lent his voice to Family Guy, Murderville and Blood & Money.

In the French version, the first Jean Roche voiced the NYPD. From the Special Branch, it was Daniel Beretta who got the hang of it. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s French voice left us in March 2024.