Judy Sheindlin, or “Judge Judy” as she is more generally known, has been a daytime television celebrity for almost 25 years.
Millions of people every day tune in to her programme to watch how her cases turn out. Forbes magazine even recognised her as 2018’s highest-paid daytime TV personality.
Although she is a highly esteemed judge, Judy Sheindlin has had a somewhat unremarkable personal life. Her long-standing union with Jerry, her second husband, has really been fairly eventful.
Is that how she and her hubby got together? How does he seem, by the way? Everything you wanted to know about their beautiful romance is right here.
Youtube/duckcammer
Probably not many people can name Judy Sheindlin by sight or sound alone. But if you mention the name “Judge Judy,” they can’t help but tune in.
The judge and TV personality sprang to prominence 25 years ago thanks to her witty comebacks and retorts in front of a live audience. She was aided much by the mysterious and often befuddled visitors to her court.
CBS decided to end Judge Judy’s extended run in 2020. Nonetheless, Judy has not let this deter her from staying in the television industry.
Judy Sheindlin has had a rather low-key private life despite her fame and fortune. However, she has had a very wonderful love tale, one that resulted in her marrying the same man twice!
What were the steps that led to Judge Judy’s current success? What you wanted to know about her is right here!
On October 21, 1942, in New York City, Judith Susan Blum entered the world as Judge Judy.
Origins of Judge Judy
She grew up in Brooklyn with the goal of becoming a lawyer firmly planted in her mind from an early age.
She was “lousy” at arithmetic and chemistry and knew from a young age that she wanted to be a lawyer.
Women of Sheindlin’s age “had every intention of getting married and starting a family,” she said.
I’ve always thought it would be cool to be a woman in a field where you stand out from the crowd.
Her parents, Murray, a dentist, and Ethel, an office manager, were her inspiration. She says they were both highly decent individuals, so it was “a process of elimination” that led her to a profession in law.
“I was an excellent hothead… recounting how her father had once told her she should become a Senator because “I could argue my way out of any situation,” she added. To paraphrase, “I realised you really need to be a lawyer first.”
Youtube/Intellectual Production System
Judge Judy always knew that the legal system was where she belonged. She enrolled in American University in Washington, DC, and earned a bachelor’s degree there in 1963. In her class of 126 (! ), she was the sole female student.
Class of ’65 Graduate
At around the same time, Judy’s father offered her a life lesson that would become pivotal.
My father had some concerns about my academic performance when I returned home from college. I began making up all sorts of reasons for why I had fallen short of his standards. She remembered, “He looked at me and said, ‘Darling, don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining.'”
Back in New York, Judy attended New York Law School to complete her legal education. The fact that she was the only female student in her graduating class was remarkable in and of itself. When she enrolled at New York Law School, however, one of her professors had a different take.
Remembering a professor’s words, “Why are you taking up the seat of a man who is going to have to support a family,” she felt guilty about her decision to enrol.
Stock Photographs from Getty Images
Judy became a business lawyer after she graduated from law school in 1965, but the job was less satisfying than she had anticipated. She was a married mother of two young children at the time. She remained a prosecutor in family court for a further decade.
Judge Judy was remarkable for being a woman in a field traditionally dominated by men. When Judy was in college, several of her teachers expressed scepticism that she would ever succeed as a lawyer, but this only strengthened Judy’s conviction that law was the proper path for her.
Image: Judge Judy by lev radin/Shutterstock
Many were impressed by her no-nonsense demeanour, including former New York City Mayor Ed Koch, who nominated her to the criminal court. After a few years, she was elevated to the position of family court supervisor.
The Emmy-winning Judge Judy on television
The fact that Judge Judy was so competent at her job made her a media darling. In 1993, she was the subject of a story in the Los Angeles Times, and she subsequently granted 60 Minutes access to her courtroom for a documentary.
After that, she was offered the judge’s seat on a courtroom TV programme, and the rest, as they say, is history. It debuted in 1996 and was an immediate success.
The show’s popularity grew each season, and Judge Judy believed it was time for her to reap the benefits of her hard work. Since she was the only attraction, she realised she could exploit that fact to her advantage.
There have been many judges on the People’s Court. Hosts have come and gone from The Tonight Show. She said, “But there was only ever one Lucille Ball on I Love Lucy.
Nearly two decades ago, I expressed the desire to increase my role in the firm to that of a partner. Don’t talk to me like I’m a worker. I’ve worked out an arrangement where I can do the programme without you, but you need me to do it.
I’m free to take Judy Sheindlin anywhere if I want to. If you’re looking for love, I hope you find someone else. If not, then let’s split the benefit of this software’s use that we’ve both realised. Nothing unreasonable there, in my opinion,” Judge Judy said.
Judge Judy has been on the air for 25 years, with an average of 9 million viewers per day and a total of more than 6,500 programmes and 12,500 cases. Three Emmys were awarded to the programme, and Judge Judy became very wealthy as a result.
On-air “mini-stroke”?
Judy claims that she had a stroke-like episode while performing in front of an audience. Many of her devoted fans saw something was amiss right away. Judy reported to Good Morning America that she thinks she had a TIA.
Temporary instigation of stroke-like symptoms, or TIA.
“The folks who had been keeping an eye on me for 15 years saw something was wrong and phoned paramedics without asking, which was probably a very good thing because I would have said, “Don’t go there.”
The physicians first thought Judy had a mini-stroke, but they were mistaken.
It turned out that I wasn’t hurt at all. I think I may have experienced a transient ischemic attack, but I can’t be sure.
The Wealth of Judge Judy
In 2018, Judy made $47 million in salary alone, as reported by a 2019 list in New York Times Magazine. Forbes estimates that she is worth a whopping $445 million.
Licences to air “Judge Judy” have been sold to more than 100 countries. She said, “I get mail from all over the place, including Zimbabwe.”
CBS made the decision to terminate the show official in March of 2020. Judy had been a part of the programme for 25 years, but she wasn’t sad to film her last episode.
Shutterstock
I didn’t feel emotional at all. I was proud of myself for making it through that phase of the voyage successfully. It was just the close of business for the day. She proudly said, “I cleaned the bathroom, and it’s sparkling.”
Even though Judge Judy will no longer be seen on television, it doesn’t mean she’s leaving the bench. In fact, she will soon star in a programme titled Judy Justice on Amazon’s IMDb streaming site. The debut date is set for November 1.
Sarah Rose, her granddaughter and current legal clerk for Judy, will accompany her.
Our legal firm’s secretary, Sarah, whom I’ve known since birth. Judy said, “She’ll be the third woman in our family to get into the legal profession. She’s as witty as she is bold in her convictions. No one can guess where she got such characteristics.
Life at home In 1964, Judy wed Levy, a prosecutor in the juvenile court. They settled down in New York City and had two children, Jamie and Adam.
I was nearly 21 years old and just 20 at the time. Consequently, I entered the motherhood role… Judge Judy told Fox News in 2017 that she felt pressure to get married since all her friends were doing it.
Judy gave up her profession and her work to be at home with her two kids. Even though Judy was content with her family life at the start, she eventually became bored with it.
They officially split up in 1976.
“It was scary, I was the first divorce in my family,” she said.
“My first husband is a wonderful human being, but he treated my work as if it were a hobby, and I resented that.”
In 1976, Judy was having a hard time balancing her responsibilities as a mother with the often-emotional family court cases she was managing. But in a little over half that time, she met attorney Jerry Sheindlin.
Judy was a prosecutor and Jerry a defence attorney; both had just finished a case. When they initially met, it appeared like they hit it off right away.
“There was a reporter from the New York Post there at the bar, and I was speaking to him about the case,” Jerry said, according to the LA Times.
“Judy walked in, pointed at me, and said, ‘And who is this?’ To which she said, “Lady, remove your finger from my face.” Since then, we’ve been inseparable.
It meant a lot to Judy. When she finally met Jerry, she said she felt “so crazy” to Closer. In addition to gaining a wonderful husband in Jerry, Judy also gained three wonderful stepchildren in Nicole, Gregory, and Jonathan Sheindlin when the pair tied the knot in 1977.
I would have married him the day we met if I could have… nevertheless we waited a whole 12 months before we tied the knot.
Jerry kept working in his field, and the pair had a wonderful time together. But in 1990, disaster hit.
Judy’s dad, “the one person I could totally rely on,” passed away. Because of this, Sarah and Jerry ultimately chose to separate.
“I was so sad when my father died that it was easier for me to deal with anger at Jerry for not picking up the slack,” she said to Closer.
Judge Judy Sheindlin, star of the TV court reality show Judge Judy, stands with her family on the day she was honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (February 14, 2006). Photograph by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Jerry and Judy broke up and moved on to date others. However, there came a time when I realised I could no longer act. They knew they were destined to be together, and so Judy and Jerry remarried.
“I just had to accept the fact that men of that generation expect to be cared for and catered to,” she said.
I wanted Jerry back because I like having a partner to pamper and am lonely without him. It’s second nature to me.
Judy added:
The things I thought would bring me joy didn’t always do so. I simply had to accept the reality that guys of that age had a different set of expectations about how they should be treated.
Her Connection to Her Children
When Jerry started appearing on a competing show called The People’s Court, things took an unusual turn in their marriage. In 2001, he decided to leave the programme.
The couple’s love has endured to this day. They have a big family today, with kids and grandkids, and they all reside in Florida with them and their three dogs.
Judge Judy and Jerry Sheindlin were having lunch today at Dolce & Salato in old Naples. They were very nice. pic.twitter.com/Q3SYE8mXSr
— Tim Aten (@TimAtenKnows) April 19, 2017
Judge Judy, who is 78 years old, has no plans to retire anytime soon.
You’re wrong; I’m not exhausted. She said to Hollywood Reporter, “I don’t play golf or tennis, and I have no interest in learning to play mahjong, chess, or checkers.”
Judy and Jerry have been married for 45 years and have five children they’ve raised as a team.
The third generation has likewise entered the legal field like their parents. Judy’s son Adam from a previous marriage is an assistant district attorney in Putnam County, New York.
Both of Judy’s stepchildren, Gregory and Nicole, followed in their parents’ footsteps by becoming attorneys.
On April 13, 2015, in Beverly Hills, California, Judy Sheindlin (centre), Jerry Sheindlin (right), and their daughter Nicole Sheindlin arrived at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel for the Women’s Guild Cedars-Sinai’s Annual Luncheon. Image by Amanda Edwards/WireImage.
The reality star has previously admitted to feeling guilty about her kids. When she was working, she often didn’t have time to prepare healthy meals for her family. One of Judy’s kids, for instance, pleaded with her for a hot lunch like the other kids at school enjoyed.
Judy was a strict mother who once had her children heat up pizza by placing a piece on the radiator. Of course, Judy is sentimental as well, particularly when it comes to her grandchildren. The celebrity adores her 13 grandkids and does all she can to spoil them.
“I spoil them,” Judge Judy stated of her courtroom audience in 2015. I’ve been racking my brain for a way in which we don’t, but the truth is that we do. Their parents are really savvy, and we have no idea we’re doing it. They’re trying to give it the brakes.
Judy discussed her experience being a grandma in an interview with Access. She is too busy to attend her grandchildren’s baseball games, but she never misses an opportunity to shower them with gifts on their special days.
Youtube/ET
She claims to be interested in her grandchildren’s opinions and inquiries, but she is not the kind of grandmother to have them over for Sunday dinner every week.
A few years ago, Judy saw an unforgettable event: the wedding of her first grandson, Casey Barber. Judy presided over the event, and she became choked up.
She fought back tears as she remembered the emotional moment she held newborn Casey. When Casey was little, his grandparents Judy and Jerry Sheindlin “stole” him often out of pure love. Casey and his bride have always had a special connection, so naturally there were many happy tears shed on the day they tied the knot.
Example: Judy was on the verge of tears.
She was so moved that Jerry Sheindlin said, “I thought a tear was gonna come out of her eye.”
Indeed, Judy Sheindlin has done quite well financially as a result of her efforts. We’re thrilled that she and her sweetheart are happy and healthy, and we wish them the best in the years to come.
Only a select minority of the rich are able to raise happy, healthy children. Clearly, Judge Judy and her husband are successful in some way.
If you like watching Judge Judy, please spread the word about this post.
