David Soul, ‘Starsky and Hutch’ actor, dead at 80
David Soul, the actor and musician who starred in the hit 1970s action show, Starksy and Hutch, has died at the age of 80.
The American-British actor rose to international fame thanks to the success of Starsky and Hutch, which ran for four years between 1975 and 1979. In the show, he played Detective Ken ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson alongside Paul Michael Glaser’s Detective Dave Starsky. Together, they formed an iconic TV duo.
Born in Chicago, Illinois, on August 28th, 1943, Soul also featured as Joshua Bolt in the American western comedy Here Come the Brides from 1968 to 1970 and also rose to fame as Officer John Davis in the second Dirty Harry film, Magnum Force in 1973, where he starred alongside Clint Eastwood. He also made a cameo as the original Ken Hutchinson in the 2004 feature-length remake of Starsky and Hutch, starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson.
Soul also found tremendous success as a singer and scored transatlantic number one hits with 1976’s ‘Don’t Give Up on Us’, when he was at the peak of his fame, and the following year’s ‘Silver Lady’. Notably, Soul’s time as a musician ended not long after these triumphs when he released ‘It Sure Brings Out The Love In Your Eyes,’ his fifth and final single in 1977.
Soul’s wife, Helen Snell, confirmed the news of his death in a statement this afternoon but did not reveal his cause of death. She wrote: “David Soul – beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother – died yesterday after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family.”
“He shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend,” she continued. “His smile, laughter and passion for life will be remembered by the many whose lives he has touched.”
David Soul lived in London with Helen Snell, whom he married in 2010 after meeting her eight years earlier during a stage production of Ira Levin’s play Deathtrap.
Watch the trailer for Starsky and Hutch below.
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