David Brian Ury (born September 30, 1973) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, YouTuber, and Japanese translation specialist. Ury was born and raised in Sonoma, California. He graduated from Sonoma Valley High School, where he acted in theatre productions. He earned a bachelor's degree in linguistics at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington and studied abroad in Japan, where he became fluent in Japanese. Ury is a descendant of German Jewish impressionist painter Lesser Ury. Since studying abroad in Tokyo, Ury and has worked as a translator in film, television, and manga and currently (As of May 2011) translates and writes English adaptations for manga. Ury moved to Los Angeles in August 2001 where he began performing stand-up comedy. Cartoonist Keith Knight, a neighbor of his, described Ury's acting career as "Spooge man" and "a cavalcade of reprobates, sleazeballs, derelicts, & weirdos." Ury has made several film and television appearances, including an episode of Tim Kring's Crossing Jordan and in Shoot 'Em Up. He also appeared in Heroes, Malcolm in the Middle, Life, Without a Trace, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Zeke and Luther, and The Librarians. In March 2015, Ury was cast for Rob Zombie's slasher film 31 as Schizo-Head. A character actor, Ury has died on screen in almost every role he has portrayed. Ury also has several YouTube channels/accounts/personalities and alter-egos, which include Karaoke Steve and Ken Tanaka, the fictional adopted twin brother of David Ury. Tanaka is described as an Ashkenazi Jewish man adopted as an infant by Japanese parents Hideo and Mari Tanaka, and raised in Shimane Prefecture of Japan; he returns to Los Angeles to find his birth parents Jonathan and Linda Smith.

Filmography

• The Hawk — Drifter
• 2026Time of Death — Meeks
• 2025A Blind Bargain — Reggie
• 2025Violent Ends — Lou Byers
• Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage — Barry
• 2024Little Death — Petey
• 2023Do Not Watch
• 20221-800-Hot-Nite — Bill
• 2022Babylon — Fan (Autograph)
• The Rookie: Feds — Frank Patterson
• 2020Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) — Sleazy Breeder
• 2020Faith Based — Gerry
• 2020Kajillionaire — Minimart Cashier
• Outer Banks — Scooter Grubbs
• Woke — Al Durian (aka Trench Coat)
• 20193 from Hell — Travis O'Rourke
• 2019Loners — Larry Bressert
• Tacoma FD — Buffalo Phil
• Lodge 49
• Magnum P.I. — Sam
• 201631 — Schizo-Head
• 2016A Cinderella Story: If the Shoe Fits — Freddie Marks
• Rush Hour — Trucker
• Better Call Saul — Spooge
• Fresh Off the Boat — Homeless Man
• 2015Little Boy — Sir Pent
• Powers — Dr. Death
• 2014Lake Los Angeles — Dan Dan
• The Librarians — William Shakespeare
• 2013Coffee Town — Homeless Guy
• Masters of Sex
• Mom — Randy
• The Haunted Hathaways — The Green Ghoul
• 2013What Kind of Asian Are You? — Producer, Writers' Assistant
• Hollywood Heights — Gas Station Attendant
• 2012Pearblossom Hwy — Garr Booth
• Touch — Rizzi
• Grimm — Hofmann
• Justified — Hiram
• Raising Hope — Easter Joe
• Rizzoli & Isles — Sandy Grotty
• 2010The 41–Year–Old Virgin Who Knocked Up Sarah Marshall and Felt Superbad About It — Yes Man
• Community — Rick
• Lie to Me — Witness
• 2009The Revenant — ATM Robber
• 2008Black Widow — Bixler
• Breaking Bad — Spooge
• The Mentalist — Col. James Harris
• Life — Hard Case #1
• 2007National Treasure: Book of Secrets — Barkeeper
• Private Practice — Hank
• 2007Shoot 'Em Up — Diner Holdup Leader
• 2006Dark Mind — Pony Tail Man
• 2006Dark Ride — Attendant #1
• Heroes — Super, Landlord
• Bones — Larry Wolfram
• Close to Home — Rooster
• It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia — Spa Worker
• 2004Able Edwards — Franklin Wallace
• 2004Paparazzi — Fan
• Without a Trace — Gil
• Crossing Jordan — Arthur Hay
• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — Jayson Walt
• Malcolm in the Middle — Mechanic
• Charmed — Shapeshifter

Appearances as themselves (1)

• 2019To Hell and Back: The Making of 3 From Hell — Self