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Dann Harvey Florek was born on May 1, 1950, in Flat Rock, Michigan, to a chiropractor father. Despite majoring in math and physics at Eastern Michigan University, he received a drama scholarship and left college before graduating to pursue a career in acting. He trained at Juilliard and traveled extensively throughout the late 1970s and early 1980s, performing in various stage productions, including classic and contemporary plays.
In the 1980s, Florek moved to Los Angeles and continued to work in theater, appearing at the La Jolla Playhouse and Globe Theatre. He also began to seek out film and television opportunities, eventually finding a niche playing down-to-earth, pragmatic officials in TV crime dramas. His notable television credits include "Hill Street Blues," "The Equalizer," "Matlock," "21 Jump Street," "Beverly Hills Buntz," and "Almost Grown."
Florek's breakthrough role came when he was cast as Captain Cragen on the long-running TV series "Law & Order" in 1990. He reprised his role on the spin-off series "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" in 1999 and played the character for two and a half decades. During his time on the show, he also appeared in a few other series, including "Hardball" and "The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer," and had recurring roles on "Smart Guy" and "The Joy Wheel."
In recent years, Florek has continued to work in film and theater, appearing in productions such as "The Front Page" on Broadway and "The Joy Wheel" on stage.
