The “Law & Order: Organized Crime” star recalls a moving story involving his daughter, Ice-T and Snoop Dogg.
A “Law & Order” OG with THE Snoop D.O. Double G.@chris_meloni via Instagram
/ Source: TODAY
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Cats and one “Dogg” in particular have played a special role in Chris Meloni’s and his family’s lives.
The “Law & Order: Organized Crime” star is teaming up with cat treat brand Temptations to narrate a new season of their “Catch a Cat Burglar” podcast series. This second season, “Catch a Cat Burglar: Purry Duty,” will also get fans involved as a “mysterious case” of a pet store robbery unfolds involving cats who will “get their paws on the new Temptations Wet Cat Food,” according to a press release.
For Meloni, his history with cats dates back to when he first began dating his wife, Sherman Williams.
“I’ve never had a cat,” he explains in an interview with TODAY.com. “When I first started dating my wife, 35 years ago, she had two cats, and it was the first time I had any long-term, close relationships with a cat. Golly, if they didn’t — they seduced me. So bad.”
Meloni hopes listeners will be “on the edge of their seats” while tuning in to the show, which he infused with a fun “twinkle” in his voice.
“I saw it as a faux serious courtroom docudrama kind of thing,” he says.
“The copy was funny so that I kind of attempted to make — to give it this serious, tonal quality to the proceedings that are happening before you,” he adds, explaining it’s “almost like old-time radio.”
While Meloni’s wife had cats at one point in her life, the couple’s kids have not. The actor says his children, daughter Sophia, 23, and son Dante, 20, grew up with two dogs, one of which they still have.
Another “Dogg” Meloni recently spent some time with is the rapper Snoop Dogg, who guest-starred on an episode of “Law & Order: SVU” in 2019, eight years after Meloni departed that series. The two were recently spotted together attending the 2024 Paris Olympics.
On July 27, Meloni posted a photo with Snoop, and he recalls to TODAY.com the sweet story he passed along to the rapper during their conversation at the Games.
“I gave him some tips on rap,” he jokes, before explaining what the two really discussed.
Meloni says his daughter interned for “SVU” a few years ago, and she came home from the set one day with the “sweetest” story that involved Snoop and star Ice-T.
“She said, ‘I just heard the sweetest thing at work today. I was bringing Ice-T some food in his dressing room, and he was on the phone. … I heard him talking to Snoop Dogg, and he said —’ And this was the conversation: ‘All right, I miss you, too. Yeah, I love you, too, brother.’ That was the conversation! She goes, ‘Two OGs saying they love each other.’ I told Snoop that story.”
Meloni says Snoop responded, “That’s what it’s all about, man.”
“I thought that was strong and powerful and pretty cool,” Meloni says.
Ice-T has recently showed his support for Snoop at the Olympics on X.
“ICE COLD FACT 💥 @SnoopDogg hosting the OLYMPICS is TopTier HipHop Growth… You better recognize,” he wrote.
Snoop has been having a ball with athletes and fans at the Olympics, where he’s offering commentary for NBC, and has even managed to catch the men’s street finals in skateboarding alongside Meloni.
This wasn’t Meloni and his wife’s first time at the Games. He says they attended the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.
In Paris, they were able to see rugby, table tennis and beach volleyball, in addition to skateboarding, he explains.
“It was a great time,” he says.
Fans can stream the first four seasons of “Law & Order: Organized Crime” on Peacock now, and listen to episodes of Meloni’s “Purry Duty” podcast with Temptations beginning Aug. 1. On Aug. 7, listeners can vote “guilty” or “not guilty” on Spotify or the Temptations brand’s social media channels, before they learn the verdict in the final episode Aug. 15.
