# Dann Florek

Ezekial Dann Florek (born May 1, 1950) is an American actor and film director. He is best known for his role as New York City Police Captain Donald Cragen on NBC's Law & Order and its spinoff Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and Dave Meyer on L.A. Law (1988–1993).

## Early life

Florek was born in Flat Rock, Michigan, the son of Leonard Florek, a chiropractor, and Darlene Florek. He attended Eastern Michigan University where he majored in math and physics, but never graduated. He moved to New York City to pursue an acting career in the theatre.

## Career

In the 1980s, Florek performed supporting roles in films such as Sweet Liberty, Moon Over Parador and Angel Heart. He also played Mr. Slate in the live-action film version of The Flintstones.
Florek played Dave Meyer, the husband of Susan Ruttan's character, Roxanne Melman, on 22 episodes of NBC's hit drama L.A. Law beginning in 1988. Florek also had a recurring role in the WB sitcom Smart Guy as the high school gym coach, and appeared in several episodes of Roseanne.

### Law & Order

Starting in 1990, Florek co-starred in the NBC police procedural and legal drama television series Law & Order as Capt. Don Cragen.
The first few years of Law & Order had mediocre ratings and finally, after the close of the 1992–1993 season, NBC told creator/executive producer Dick Wolf that they would cancel it unless he added a few women to the all-male cast. Wolf reluctantly complied and fired Florek as well as Richard Brooks (who played Paul Robinette), replacing them with S. Epatha Merkerson and Jill Hennessy, respectively. However, Florek was allowed to direct a few Law & Order episodes in 1994 and 1995.
Florek reprised the role of Cragen in the 1995 episode "Bad Faith" (which he also directed), and in the 1998 TV-movie Exiled: A Law & Order Movie, centered on the character Mike Logan, played by Chris Noth.
In 1999, he returned to the Cragen role, only this time on the Law & Order spin-off series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, as the titular unit's captain. For the return of the Cragen character, Florek and Wolf created a backstory in which his wife, a flight attendant, was killed in a plane crash a few years previously, which drove Cragen, a recovering alcoholic, to start drinking again and to patronize prostitutes; he takes command of the Special Victims Unit in order to escape his addiction.
Florek was written out of the series during its 15th season, and his final episode aired on January 15, 2014. He reprised his role in the 21st episode of season 16 in May 2015. In the 500th episode of SVU, he appeared as Cragen in a video chat with his former detective Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay), now captain of the unit. He also reprised the role of Cragen in an episode of the SVU spin-off Law & Order: Organized Crime, reuniting Cragen with his former detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) in April 2022. He subsequently appeared in the second season finale.

## Personal life

Florek and his wife, Karen, live in Venice, Los Angeles. Karen works as an artist. His brother, Dave, is also an actor. All three trained at Eastern Michigan University.
Florek received an honorary Bachelor of Arts and an honorary Doctorate of Arts, on December 13, 2008, and December 14, 2008, respectively, from Eastern Michigan University at the school's winter commencement ceremony. Florek was the keynote speaker at the event.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1983 | Eddie Macon's Run | Man in bar | |
| 1986 | Sweet Liberty | Jesse | |
| 1987 | Angel Heart | Herman Winesap | |
| 1987 | Five Corners | Policeman | |
| 1988 | Sunset | Marty Goldberg | |
| 1988 | Moon over Parador | Toby | |
| 1989 | An Innocent Man | Prosecuting Attorney | Uncredited |
| 1991 | Flight of the Intruder | Lt. Cmdr. Mad Jack | |
| 1994 | The Flintstones | Mr. Slate | |
| 1994 | Getting Even with Dad | Wayne | |
| 1998 | Hard Rain | Mr. Mehlor | |
| 2000 | Beautiful Joe | Happy | |
| 2002 | Law & Order: The Beginning | Himself | Video documentary short |
| 2003 | Focus Room | William | Short film |
| 2003 | SVU Beginning | Himself | Video short |
| 2004 | Law & Order: The First 3 Years | Himself | Video documentary short |
| 2004 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Police Sketch: Dann Florek | Himself | Video documentary short |
| 2005 | Jerry Orbach Tribute | Himself | Video documentary short |
| 2006 | Copy That | Dann | Short film |
| 2011 | Run Your Mouth | Detective | Short film |
| 2013 | Santorini Blue | Trent Parker | |
| 2023 | Crater | Older Dylan | |

### Television

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1982 | The Country Girl | Larry | TV movie |
| 1985 | Hill Street Blues | Bowers | Episode: "Intestinal Fortitude" |
| 1985 | Braker | Hayes | TV movie |
| 1986 | The Equalizer | Lieutenant Ferraro | Episode: "Breakpoint" |
| 1986 | Alex: The Life of a Child | Dr. Tom Dolan | TV movie |
| 1987 | Mr. President | Bosdec | Episode: "Armageddon Kinda Sore" |
| 1987 | CBS Summer Playhouse | Winthrop | Episode: "Doctors Wilde" |
| 1987 | Hunter | John Edleton | Episode: "Night on Bald Mountain" |
| 1988–1993 | L.A. Law | Dave Meyer | 22 episodes |
| 1988 | American Playhouse | Judge Crane | Episode: "The Trial of Bernhard Goetz" |
| 1988 | Matlock | Ken Pritchard | Episode: "The Hucksters" |
| 1988 | Beverly Hills Buntz | Joe Volker | Episode: "Buntz of the Desert" |
| 1988 | 21 Jump Street | Jim Crawford | Episode: "Brother Hanson & the Miracle of Renner's Pond" |
| 1988 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Stan Pallon | Episode: "Gambler" |
| 1988 | Almost Grown | Giardello | Episode: "Ghost Town |
| 1989 | Free Spirit | Bill / Mr. Flynn | Episode: "The Bosses Are Coming" |
| 1989 | Major Dad | Buzz | Episode: "Rescue Mission" |
| 1989 | The Edge | Paulie | Episode: "Professional Man" |
| 1990 | Grand | Robert | Episode: "The Healing" |
| 1990, 1997 | Roseanne | Dr. Rudmen / Principal Hiller | 3 episodes |
| 1990–2004 | Law & Order | Captain Donald Cragen | 69 episodes; main and guest role |
| 1994 | Hardball | Ernest 'Happy' Talbot | 9 episodes |
| 1994 | Wings | Bob (air traffic controller) | Episode: "Insanity Claus" |
| 1995 | Ellen | Mr. Woodruff | Episode: "$5,000" |
| 1995 | The John Larroquette Show | Winters Lennox | Episode: "Love on the Line" |
| 1996 | Champs | Ernie | Episode: "It's Must Have Been Gridlock" |
| 1997 | Michael Hayes | Carnap | Episode: "The Confidence Man" |
| 1997 | Sabrina, the Teenage Witch | Bob Gordon | Episode: "Cat Showdown" |
| 1997 | Total Security | Morris Silver | Episode: "Dental Men Prefer Blondes" |
| 1997 | NYPD Blue | Gary Hogan | Episode: "Sheedy Dealings" |
| 1997 | A Nightmare Come True | Det. Ron Shaye | TV movie |
| 1997–1999 | Smart Guy | Coach Gerber | 6 episodes |
| 1998 | The Pretender | Don Larson | Episode: "Crash" |
| 1998 | From the Earth to the Moon | Robert Seamans | 2 episodes |
| 1998 | The Practice | Father Michael Ryan | Episode: "Duty Bound" |
| 1998 | The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer | Abraham Lincoln | 6 episodes |
| 1998 | Little Girl Fly Away | Chief Gelbart | TV movie |
| 1998 | The Pentagon Wars | Maj. Gen. Bob Braden | TV movie |
| 1998 | Exiled: A Law & Order Movie | Captain Donald Cragen | TV movie |
| 1999–2021 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Captain Donald Cragen | 332 episodes; main and guest role |
| 2000 | Strange World | Det. Walter Nash | Episode: "Age of Reason" |
| 2002 | L.A. Law: The Movie | Dave Meyer | TV movie |
| 2014 | Captain Blackout | Jimmy Black | TV movie |
| 2015 | Under the Dome | Colonel Walker | Episode: "The Enemy Within" |
| 2018 | Disillusioned | Jeb | TV movie |
| 2022, 2024 | Law & Order: Organized Crime | Captain Donald Cragen | 4 episodes |