# Joe Urla
**Joe Urla** (born 1958 in [Pontiac, Michigan](https://www.edgepedia.org/pontiac-michigan)) is an American film, stage, and television actor, sometimes credited as Joseph Urla. He is best known for playing Dugan, Elaine Benes's co-worker, in six episodes of the sitcom *Seinfeld* between 1996 and 1998, and he has accumulated a long list of guest roles on American television dramas alongside supporting parts in films such as *The Bodyguard* (1992), *Sleepers* (1996), and *Deep Impact* (1998).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) • [2](https://tv.apple.com/gb/person/joe-urla/umc.cpc.7deym6ynoysgb02827ebcr0dh)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1958, Pontiac, Michigan, USA[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) |
| Signature role | Dugan, Elaine Benes's co-worker, in six *Seinfeld* episodes, 1996–1998[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) |
| Stage honor | Theatre World Award, 1986, for playing Ernesto Pico in *Principia Scriptoriae*[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) |
| Notable films | *The Bodyguard* (1992, Minella), *Sleepers* (1996, Carson), *Deep Impact* (1998, Ira Moskatel), *Hands of Stone* (2016, Angelo Dundee)[4](https://cinegraph.org/people/joe-urla) |
| Recurring TV work | Deputy US Attorney in three episodes of *The Wire* (2008); two roles on *Law & Order*; two roles on *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit*[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) |
| Marriage | Married actress Jayne Atkinson on May 14, 1988; later divorced; one daughter, Silvie Urla[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) |
## Seinfeld and television career
Urla's most visible recurring part is Dugan on *Seinfeld*, a co-worker of [Elaine Benes](https://www.edgepedia.org/elaine-benes) at the J. Peterman catalog. He appeared in six episodes across seasons 8 and 9, beginning with "The Foundation" (September 19, 1996) and including "The Little Kicks", "The Fatigues", "The English Patient", "The Summer of George", and "The Cartoon".[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) • [5](https://www.seinfeldactors.com/seinfeldactors/actors/joe-urla.html)
His television work stretches from the mid-1980s to the 2020s. Early credits include *Miami Vice* (1987), *Matlock* (1989), *Baby Boom* (1989), and *Home Improvement* (1995).[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) In prestige dramas he played a Deputy US Attorney in three fifth-season episodes of *The Wire* (2008), Congressman Richard Johnson in *Homeland* (2011), David R. Sepsill in the pilot of *The Americans* (2013), and Samuel Rand in *The Blacklist* (2016).[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) He has also played Dr. [Carl Sagan](https://www.edgepedia.org/carl-sagan) in two episodes of the science-fiction series *Dark Skies* (1997).[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla)
**Repeat appearances in the Law & Order franchise.** Urla has appeared in the franchise in four different roles: Defense Attorney Werner and Judge Graber on the original *Law & Order* (1992 and 2023), and Deputy District Attorney Ian Wofford and Thomas Eldridge on *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit* (2011 and 2014).[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) • [3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla) His *Law & Order* appearances span more than three decades, from 1992 to the 2023 episode "Mammon".[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla)
Later television credits include *The Good Wife* (2014), *Blue Bloods* (2011 and 2024, as Officer Tedesco and Judge Carson's husband), *Chicago Med* (2019), *Manifest* (2018, two episodes as Patrick Taylor), *FBI: Most Wanted* (2021), and *Harlem* (2021).[3](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla)
## Film roles
Urla's film work consists largely of supporting parts in studio pictures. He played Minella in *The Bodyguard* (1992), John Conley Jr. in *[Disclosure](https://www.edgepedia.org/disclosure-1994-film)* (1994), Keith in *Strange Days* (1995), Glenn Stevens in *Indictment: The McMartin Trial* (1995), Carson in [Barry Levinson](https://www.edgepedia.org/barry-levinson)'s *Sleepers* (1996), Jeff Freeman in *Wedding Bell Blues* (1996), and Ira Moskatel in *Deep Impact* (1998).[4](https://cinegraph.org/people/joe-urla) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/joseph_urla) On Rotten Tomatoes, *Sleepers* is his highest-rated film at 76 percent and *Wedding Bell Blues* his lowest at 40 percent.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/joseph_urla)
Later films include *Four Single Fathers* (2009, as Ennio), *The Wilde Wedding* (2017, as Nelson), and *Hands of Stone* (2016), in which he played boxing trainer [Angelo Dundee](https://www.edgepedia.org/angelo-dundee).[4](https://cinegraph.org/people/joe-urla) • [7](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2030362/) In the 2009 short film *Acting for the Camera*, directed by Justin Nowell, he played an acting instructor running a class through the orgasm scene from *When Harry Met Sally*; the film played festival circuits including the East Coast premiere at the Providence-Bristol Film Festival.[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1336979/) • [9](https://pbifilmfest.org/press/pdf/pbiff_2009_films.pdf)
## Stage work
Urla's stage career includes a Theatre World Award in 1986 for his performance as Ernesto Pico in the play *Principia Scriptoriae*.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) He has played Dr. Thomas Stockman in an Ibsen *An Enemy of the People* production at The Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, DC, directed by Kjetil Bang-Hansen, and appeared as Petruchio in *Taming of the Shrew* at Yale Repertory Theatre under director Mark Lamos.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/) In October 2011 he took part in the staged reading of Robert Myers's play *Mesopotamia* at Yale's Whitney Humanities Center, alongside a [Gertrude Bell](https://www.edgepedia.org/gertrude-bell) exhibition co-curated by Myers.[10](https://www.aub.edu.lb/communications/media/Documents/dec-11/Bell-Yale-AUB-EN.pdf)
## Personal life
Urla married actress [Jayne Atkinson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jayne-atkinson) on May 14, 1988; the marriage later ended in divorce. They have a daughter, Silvie Urla.[1](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/)
## References
1. [Joe Urla, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0881991/)
2. [Joe Urla Films and Shows, Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/gb/person/joe-urla/umc.cpc.7deym6ynoysgb02827ebcr0dh)
3. [Joe Urla, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/people/974/joe-urla)
4. [Joe Urla, Cinegraph](https://cinegraph.org/people/joe-urla)
5. [Joe Urla, Seinfeld Actors](https://www.seinfeldactors.com/seinfeldactors/actors/joe-urla.html)
6. [Joe Urla, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/joseph_urla)
7. [Joe Urla, elCinema](https://elcinema.com/en/person/2030362/)
8. [Acting for the Camera (2009), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1336979/)
9. [Providence-Bristol Film Festival 2009 program](https://pbifilmfest.org/press/pdf/pbiff_2009_films.pdf)
10. [AUB co-produces Gertrude Bell exhibit and play at Yale, American University of Beirut](https://www.aub.edu.lb/communications/media/Documents/dec-11/Bell-Yale-AUB-EN.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 1970s to 1990s › Surnames U to We*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license