Starsky & Hutch star David Soul dies at 80: Actor who achieved cult status for 1970s TV series and topped the charts with hit ‘Don’t Give Up On Us’ dies after ‘brave battle for life’ ‘ – as his heartbroken wife leads tributes
David Soul, who gained cult status for his role in the 1970s TV series Starsky & Hutch before topping the charts with his hit ‘Don’t Give Up On Us’, has died aged 80.
His heartbroken wife Helen Snell said the British-American star had died surrounded by his family after a ‘brave battle for life’.
She said in a statement: ‘David Soul – beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother – died yesterday after a brave battle for life in the loving company of family.
“He shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as an actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend. His smile, laughter and passion for life will be remembered by the many whose lives he touched.”
Soul starred Detective Ken “Hutch” Hutchinson alongside Paul Michael Glaser’s Detective Dave Starsky. The pair remained friends and in 2017 Glaser was seen pushing his old co-star in a wheelchair to Liverpool Comic Con.
Soul married five times and is survived by five sons and a daughter. He first married the actress Mirriam ‘Mim’ Solberg in 1964, but this only lasted a year. Other unions followed suit Karen Carlson, whom he met on the set of the TV series Here Comes the Brides; Patti Carnel Sherman, the ex-wife of 1960s pop idol Bobby Sherman; and the actress Julia Nickson.
Soul described how he ‘fell in love’ with Britain after spending time there for work and living in Maida Vale for many years, becoming a devoted Arsenal fan. He obtained citizenship in 2004. He met Helen Snell, a PR executive, in 2002 during the stage production of Deathtrap and they married in 2010.
David Soul has died at the age of 80, his wife Helen Snell announced this afternoon in a heartfelt statement
David Soul as Hutch alongside Paul Michael Glaser as Starsky in season three of Starsky and Hutch
Soul met Helen Snell, a PR manager, in 2002 during the stage production of Deathtrap and they married in 2010. They appeared together in London in 2015.
Soul became an international star and pin-up thanks to Starsky and Hutch during the show’s four-year run from 1975 to 1979.
He had a cameo in a 2004 feature film remake of the hit show, starring Ben Stiller as Starsky and Owen Wilson as Hutch, which introduced the legendary characters to another younger generation.
The original series ran for four seasons on ABC from 1975 to 1979, following the title characters, detectives who fought crime on the streets of fictional Bay City, California in a bright red Gran Torino, with Antonio Fargas as their informant, Huggy Bear.
Soul also enjoyed a short-lived pop career, scoring a number one hit in the US and Britain in 1976 with the catchy ballad Don’t Give Up On Us Baby.
Other chart hits would follow in 1977, with the singles Going In With My Eyes Open and Silver Lady, but Soul’s foray as a singer would end twelve months later with the release of It Sure Brings Out The Love In Your Eyes – his fifth and final. single.
Other memorable film roles included that of a vigilante in the Dirty Harry sequel The Enforcer and starring as nostalgic writer Ben Mears in 1979 Stephen King adaptation Salem’s Lot.
Born in Chicago on August 28, 1943 as David Solberg, he spent his childhood between South Dakota and post-World War II Berlin.
His father, Dr. Richard Solberg, a professor of history and political science and an ordained minister, moved them to Berlin, where he was a religious affairs adviser to the U.S. High Commission.
He started out as a musician, singing on the Merv Griffin show and appearing on the 1960s dolphin series Flipper.
He starred in Star Trek, Here Come The Brides, Perry Mason and Johnny Got His Gun throughout the 1960s and 1970s.
Soul in October 1970 with his second wife, American actress Karen Carlson
Soul in a photo taken in 1982 with his third wife, Patti Carnel Sherman
The actor in Los Angeles with actress Julia Nickson, his fourth wife and their children
South and Mrs. Nickson on November 30, 1988 dining at Spago in West Hollywood, California
Soul met Ms. Snell during a performance in Deathtrap, when she was doing public relations for the play, and described her as his “soulmate”
Soul got his break as Officer John Davis in Clint Eastwood’s police series Magnum Force, about Inspector Harold Callahan, which led to a role on Starsky & Hutch from 1974 to 1979.
At the height of his fame, he released the British chart hits Don’t Give Up On Us and Silver Lady, and the hits Going In With My Eyes Open and Let’s Have A Quiet Night In.
He also appeared in the TV series Salem’s Lot, an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel ‘Salem’s Lot’, as Ben Mears, who returns to his hometown, which has been taken over by vampires.
Soul also appeared in Miami Vice, Harry’s Hong Kong, Homeward Bound and a TV series remake of Casablanca.
In the 1990s he made his debut on the West End stage in the award-winning play Blood Brothers while living in Britain.
His turn in British theater led to a role as a surgeon in the BBC hospital drama Holby City and he also appeared in detective shows Poirot and Dalziel And Pascoe.
Soul also starred in the musical Jerry Springer – The Opera as the infamous talk show host, who took over from Michael Brandon in 2004.
He acquired British citizenship in 2004 and has lived in London with his fifth wife, Helen Snell, since 2010.
Soul as Detective Ken “Hutch” Hutchinson alongside Paul Michael Glaser’s Detective Dave Starsky
He also enjoyed a short-lived pop career, scoring a number one hit in the US and Britain with the catchy ballad Don’t Give Up On Us Baby in 1976. Soul is pictured in 1975.
Other memorable film roles included that of a vigilante in the Dirty Harry sequel The Enforcer and the lead role as nostalgic writer Ben Mears in the 1979 Stephen King adaptation Salem’s Lot (pictured in 1977)
Soul arrives for the UK premiere of Starsky & Hutch at the Odeon Cinema on Leicester Square in 2004
Referring to his love for Britain in 2015, he told MailOnline: ‘Britain is beautiful. I really like South Devon, the bleakness of Dartmoor.
‘And I like being in a country that is steeped in history. I return to the United States about three times a year, as my five sons all live there, while my daughter lives here.”
He added: “When Paul Michael Glaser and I were filming Starsky & Hutch in the 1970s, Princess Margaret came to meet us on set once because she liked the show.
“We took her out to lunch and, suffice it to say, we didn’t go back to work in the afternoon. We were also told that the Queen Mother once said: ‘I like those boys so much!’ But I don’t think I’ll ever be Sir David, even if I act like one sometimes!
‘The only person I would like to call Sir David is my wife, as I call her Lady Helen!’