(ProsperNews.net) – TV and film star David Soul has died at the age of 80. The actor, who shot to fame in the 1970s as one-half of the TV cop duo Starsky and Hutch, died in a London hospital following a long illness. His wife, Helen Snell, and other family members were by his side. Soul suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which he attributed to long-term heavy smoking – he admits to smoking three packs a day for more than 50 years.
Helen Snell, his wife of three decades, said, “He shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend.”
David Soul starred in all 92 episodes of Starsky and Hutch alongside Paul Michael Glaser, who described him as “a brother, a friend, and a caring man. We shall never see his like again.” Glaser said coming to terms with his friend’s death would take time, as they remained close decades after working together.
Soul also starred in the smash hit 1970s horror Salem’s Lot, written by Stephen King, and he had a hit song in 1976, “Don’t Give up on Us.”
Born in Chicago in 1943, his father, Dr. Richard W. Solberg, was a Lutheran preacher, and his mother, June Nelson, was a teacher in the Windy City. His father was a representative of Lutheran World Relief, which meant a young David Soul traveled frequently, including in Europe, where he learned to speak German and Spanish fluently.
A founding member of the Firehouse Theater in Minneapolis, his stage-acting career began in the mid-1960s, and he made his TV debut as the “Covered Man” on The Merv Griffin Show in 1966. He married five times, the first time to his high school sweetheart, but this ended in divorce after 18 months.
In 2004, he obtained British citizenship and lived in the UK with his British wife, Helen Snell, until his death. The actor sought help several times for excessive drinking.
Copyright 2023, ProsperNews.net
