Ursula is a recurring character in Season 1 and Season 2 of Only Murders in the Building. She is the building manager of the Arconia and is a known hustler and scammer, who regularly tries to get the tenants to purchase additional things, such as Gut Milk. Her office is in the basement of the Arconia.
She is portrayed by Vanessa Aspillaga.
History[]
Oliver's Packages[]
Oliver came home and asked Ursula if his packages had come. She gave them to him, saying he was saving her a trip.[2]
Charles and Oliver's Visit[]
Wanting to get more information about Tim Kono and who might have wanted him dead, Charles and Oliver went to see Ursula, knowing she would know if anyone complained about him. She showed them the file, but said they'd have to buy two cases of Gut Milk to get the file. For threes, she'd give them all the stuff that was too juicy to write down. She also told them everything she had on Tim would be gone soon, as they were cleaning out his apartment the next day.[1]
Gut Milk Delivery[]
Ursula came to Oliver's place to deliver more gut milk and said she'd written down everything she could remember about Tim. She also delivered a note from Bunny telling Oliver that he had 24 hours to pay his building fees or his water and power would be shut off.[3]
Proposed Evictions[]
Due to the podcast, several residents of the building complained about Mabel, Charles, and Oliver violating their privacy. As a result, Bunny held a meeting where they discussed evicting the three of them. During this meeting, Howard defended the trio, saying their actions may have led to him getting answers about Evelyn. She'd been poisoned with the same poison used on Tim, and he believed the killer tried to break in and take Evelyn's body, but only took a leg. Ursula questioned why the killer would only take one leg and Howard said she had some gams on her.[4]
Bunny's Last Day[]
On Bunny's last day as the board president, she passed Lester and Ursula, who were eating together outside. Ursula offered her an elevator inspection invoice to sign as one of her last duties. Ursula was sure the place would fall apart without Bunny and asked what Bunny was planning to do with her free time. Bunny said she was looking for a place in Boca Raton.[5]
Trio's Arrest[]
Ursula was among those who watched as Mabel, Charles, and Oliver were arrested after being found with Bunny's body.[6]
Bunny's Memorial[]
Ursula attended the memorial Uma threw for Bunny in Bunny's apartment. At the memorial, she told Oliver that Cinda had come around asking about them.[7]
Blackout[]
During the blackout, Ursula directed Frank to the stairs when he questioned how he'd get his groceries upstairs without the elevator. Then she pulled out a case of gut milk. She told everyone the first one was free, then she only accepted cash. Later, when Howard Morris and Jonathan Bridgecroft started a duet of The Sound of Silence, which could be heard throughout the building, Ursula was among those in the lobby who sang along.[8]
Killer Reveal Party[]
Ursula was among the Arconia residents who were invited to a "Killer Reveal Party" at Bunny's apartment. When they had all arrived, the attendees debated if a killer reveal party was a party to reveal a killer or a reveal party that was killer in nature. Before they could settle the debate, Oliver, Mabel, and Charles entered the party and explained that they'd solved Bunny's murder and would reveal the killer to them, but only as part of a show they were putting on and wanted them all to participate. Once they'd all agreed, they began setting up. An hour later, Cinda and Poppy arrived, prepared to record their own podcast because Cinda believed they'd been invited to Mabel's confession. Charles explained that they'd be revealing Bunny's real killer and pointed the finger at Cinda. He declared that she'd killed Bunny and hid her tracks with the help of a crooked cop. She asked how he knew about Kreps. Charles then laid out how instead of solving crimes for her podcast, she made them up. Cinda asked why she'd want to kill a woman she never met. Lester interjected that he had the logs that showed several visits to the Arconia, meaning she did meet Bunny. Cinda said she was just keeping tabs on the Kono investigation. The trio tried more things to unsettle Cinda, but she still couldn't confess. Mabel said that was because she didn't do it and pointed the finger at Alice, saying she wanted the painting and when Bunny asked for too much money for it, Alice killed her to get it. Alice flew into a rage and grabbed a nearby knife, intending to stab Mabel, but hitting Charles instead when he pushed Mabel out of the way. Charles collapsed to the floor while Uma called the police and the others restrained Alice. Oliver and Mabel cried and held Charles's hand as he bled to death.
As Howard comforted Mrs. Gambolini, Uma told them police and the ambulance were three minutes away. Cinda said that she was sorry for Charles's death, but said Mabel was incredible and offered her a job, saying she could even have her own podcast. This upset Poppy, who said there was nothing tying Alice to the murder and her confessing was just pure luck. Meanwhile, Poppy does everything for Cinda. As she talked, Poppy started sneezing. She said she was the one to tell Cinda about the art in the first place. Mabel questioned why and Poppy said it was for a podcast, but Cinda wasn't interested. Poppy continued to sneeze as she talked, prompting Oliver to ask if she had some kind of allergy, perhaps to Mrs. Gambolini. Mabel said the killer sneezed while leaving the crime scene. Poppy challenged that it wasn't uncommon to be allergic to birds and asked if they were going to believe some young girl hiding in the walls. Oliver said that only the killer could know about Lucy. Cinda then revealed that she knew that Poppy was really Becky Butler, the woman whose "murder" was the subject of Cinda's podcast, All Is Not OK in Oklahoma. When Poppy asked who told her that, Charles popped out from under the sheet and said it was them. The whole night was staged, including the two false accusations. Poppy said she just wanted to make a good podcast. She wanted Cinda to notice her, but things went wrong. While she talked about why she did it, Williams came in to arrest her while Kreps waited outside, already in handcuffs of his own.[9]
Personality[]
Ursula is very straight-talking and can be quite sharp. She takes a disinterested view of Tim Kono, and appears not to be particularly concerned that he's dead. She can be sarcastic, as seen when she tells Charles to not respect her so much when he claims this is why he doesn't tip.
Ursula likes Oliver, who calls her his "beloved" and generally acts charming towards her. She often involves him in her various schemes such as timeshares, subscriptions and complementary mammograms. She also warns him about Bunny wanting to evict him. She dislikes Charles as he doesn't tip her at Christmas and instead sends out signed photos.
Relationships[]
Career[]
Notes and Trivia[]
Gallery[]
Episodic[]
Episode Stills[]
Appearances[]
| Season One | |||||
| #01 | "True Crime" | #05 | "Twist" | #09 | "Double Time" |
| #02 | "Who Is Tim Kono?" | #06 | "To Protect and Serve" | #10 | "Open and Shut" |
| #03 | "How Well Do You Know Your Neighbors?" | #07 | "The Boy from 6B" | ||
| #04 | "The Sting" | #08 | "Fan Fiction" | ||
| Season Two | |||||
| #01 | "Persons of Interest" | #05 | "The Tell" | #09 | "Sparring Partners" |
| #02 | "Framed" | #06 | "Performance Review" | #10 | "I Know Who Did It" |
| #03 | "The Last Day of Bunny Folger" | #07 | "Flipping the Pieces" | ||
| #04 | "Here's Looking at You" | #08 | "Hello, Darkness" | ||
| List of Characters | ||
| MAIN | Charles-Haden Savage • Oliver Putnam • Mabel Mora • Howard Morris • Jan Bellows • Oscar Torres | |
| RECURRING | Tim Kono • Donna Williams • Sazz Pataki • Teddy Dimas • Theo Dimas • Zoe Cassidy • Ursula • Cinda Canning • Uma Heller • Arnav Kapoor • Bunny Folger • Lester • Poppy White • Ndidi Idoko • Grover Stanley • Amy Huang • Will Putnam • Sam • Paulette • Marv • Alice Banks • Daniel Kreps • Joy Payne • Lucy • Ben Glenroy • Bobo Malone • Cliff DeMeo • Dickie Glenroy • Donna DeMeo • Jonathan Bridgecroft • Kimber Min • K.T. Knoblauer • Loretta Durkin • Tobert • Eugene Levy • Eva Longoria • Zach Galifianakis • Marshall P. Pope • Vince Fish • Rudy Thurber • Milton Dudenoff • Glen Stubbins • Bev Melon | |
| GUEST | Sting • Roberta Putnam • José Torres • Jimmy Fallon • Silvia Mora • Amy Schumer • Matthew Broderick • Scott Bakula • Doreen • Ron Howard | |
References[]
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