LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT: Amanda Green Looks Back at Writing ‘Swing’ (Part 1)

Ellen Burstyn and Christopher Meloni in “Swing.” (Photo credit: YouTube screengrab/NBC)

For the first nine years of LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT’s run, Elliot Stabler’s (Christopher Meloni) background had one glaring, obvious absence: His mother.

Viewers frequently saw Stabler with his wife and children in the early seasons, and there were brief mentions of his (long-dead) abusive cop father and his (still-unseen) siblings. But for over 200 episodes, nothing was said about what role, if any, his mom had in his life.

Then, on October 14, 2008, Bernie Stabler (Ellen Burstyn) made her debut in the LAW & ORDER world in the SVU episode “Swing.” 

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