Who is David Soul?
If you were a fan of the crime-drama series “Starsky and Hutch”, you’re familiar with one of the main protagonists, Detective Ken Hutchinson, also known as ‘Hutch’, and the actor who played this role is David Soul. He has over 85 acting credits to his name but is probably still known best for the mentioned role. Back in the late ’70s, David was a pop icon with his blonde hair and blue eyes, not just because of his portrayal of Hutch, but also as an aspiring singer with several hit songs, including “Silver Lady” and “Don’t Give Up on Us”.
Early life, family, and education
Born David Richard Solberg under the zodiac sign of Virgo on 28 August 1943, he’s aged 79 as of May 2023. He hails from Chicago, Illinois USA but holds both American and British nationalit, the latter obtained in 2004. When it comes to his ethnicity, he comes from a family of Norwegian descent.
During David’s youth, the family often moved due to his father’s occupation – Doctor Richard W. Solberg was a professor of History and Political Science, and a Lutheran minister, and David’s mother, June Johnanne (nee Nelson), was a teacher. They had another son besides David, namely Daniel, who later became a pastor. The family spent some time in Sioux Falls, South Dakota before moving to Berlin, Germany in 1949. By 1956, they moved back to their home in Sioux Falls, where David attended a local high school.
He was an avid sportsman – as he said, his first love was baseball, and upon matriculating in 1961, David was offered a professional baseball contract. However, he enrolled at Augustana College, but after two years dropped out and left his baseball career behind, moving to Mexico City with his family. There, he enrolled at the University of the Americas and met some Mexican students who taught him to play guitar. David decided to leave college again and follow his passion for music – his first performance was at the 10 O’Clock Scholar Club in Minneapolis.
Acting career-beginnings
David co-founded the Firehouse Theater in Minneapolis in the mid-‘60s, making his stage debut in the plays “Sergeant Musgrave’s Dance” by John Arden, and “Baal” by Bertolt Brecht. In 1965, David traveled to New York City with his company, and in the following year, he appeared on “The Merv Griffin Show” as the ‘Covered Man’, achieving national fame. He sang with a mask on, subsequently stating that he wanted to be known for his music.
Later in 1966, he made his first television series appearance as Dennis Blake in an episode of the series “Flipper”, then made his movie debut as The Captain in the 1967 drama “The Secret Sharer”. David followed with guest roles in “I Dream of Jeannie” and “Star Trek: The Original Series” before he was cast to play Joshua Bolt in “Here Come the Brides”, and between 1968 and 1970, he appeared in 52 episodes of this Western adventure comedy, about a single marriageable woman and a forestry work crew in Seattle after the American Civil War.
The early ‘70s saw David guest-starring in “The Young Rebels” (1970) and “Dan August” (1971), followed by his movie role as Swede in the 1971 war drama “Johnny Got His Gun” which won the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prize of the Jury.
From 1971 through 1974, David had a recurring role as Ted Warrick in the series “Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law”, and also during 1974, he was seen guest-starring in “Cannon”, “The Rookies”, and “McMillan & Wife”, among other TV series.
Notable TV series roles
Certainly the most notable of David’s roles was his portrayal of Detective Hutch in “Starsky and Hutch”. From 1975 to 1979, David appeared in all 92 episodes of this action crime-drama which followed two streetwise policemen in their red-white Ford Gran Torino, busting criminals with the help of Huggy Bear, a police snitch. Hutch and his partner, Starsky, played by Paul Michael Glaser, were the most favorite television cops of the era.
After “Starsky and Hutch”, David was cast to play Caleb Staunton in the 1981 TV mini-series “The Mansion of America”, followed by his role as Jake Caffey in the 1982 mini-series “World War III”. David was next cast to play Rick Blaine in the 1983 series “Casablanca”, a prequel to the legendary romantic war drama “Casablanca” from 1943.
From 1983 through 1984, David was seen as Roy Champion in 22 episodes of the drama “The Yellow Rose”, which followed the trials and tribulations of the Champion family which run the Yellow Rose ranch; David starred opposite Cybill Shepherd and Sam Elliot.
In the late ‘80s, David was seen in “Crime Story” (1987), “Secret of the Sahara” (1988), and “Unsub” in 1989. His next notable TV series role came in the 1995 mini-series “Sandra, the Rebel Princess” in which David played Zoltan Kouros, starring opposite Marie Verdi. This adventure romance followed the story of Sandra who after learning that she’s the daughter of a murdered royal couple, tries to reclaim her title.
The late ‘90s and early 2000s saw David mostly guest starring in an episode or two of numerous series, such as “The New Adventure of Robin Hood” (1998), “Holby City” (2002), and “Dalziel and Pascoe” in 2004. Most recently, David was seen as Paul Yelland in an episode of the English series “Inspector Lewis” in 2012.
Notable movie roles
Because the list of David’s movie roles is so long, we’re going to highlight only the most crucial ones for his career. One of his first significant roles was his portrayal of Officer Davis in the 1973 crime drama “Magnum Force”, starring the great Clint Eastwood.
David landed his first lead role in the 1977 romantic crime-comedy “The Stick Up”, which although having no nominations, was well-accepted by the public. Two years later, he starred as Pritt in the comedy “Dogpound Shuffle”, which followed the story of a man who has lost his beloved dog, and a young stray who is helping him to find the animal, which leads to a series of misadventures, and co-starred were Ron Moody and Pamela McMyler.
In the following years, David was seen in numerous TV movies, including “Rage!” (1980), “Through Naked Eyes” (1983), and “The Key to Rebecca” (1985), among many others. He returned to the big screen as Jefferson Cope in the 1988 mystery crime-drama “Appointment with Death”, based on the novel of the same title by Agatha Christie.
The ’90s saw David mostly playing supporting roles in numerous movies – worth mentioning is his lead role opposite Dolph Lundgren in the 1994 action thriller “Pentathlon”. David then focused on his roles in movies made for television, although he had a supporting role as Harvey in the 2001 comedy “Tabloid”, also starring Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, which followed the story of a slimy TV host being tricked to reveal some of his own dark secrets.
In the 2004 movie “Starsky & Hutch”, starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, David made an appearance as Original Hutch, which brought him and Paul Michael Glaser a nomination for the MTV + TV Award- Best Cameo.
In the following year, David was seen as Eric Bridges in “Puritan”, followed by his role as Hutton in the 2009 movie “Farewell”. Most recently, David was seen as Punter in the 2013 action comedy “Filth”, which won praise and numerous awards.
How is David Soul doing now?
For years, almost from the very beginning of his career, David has been involved in numerous charity events and organizations. He’s still a social activist, and uses his social media accounts to raise awareness of major problems around the world. His fans can keep track of his life and career through his Twitter and Instagram accounts.
Love life and wives
Yes, you read well – David was married four times before he met his now-wife. However, let’s start from the beginning. David’s first wife was an actress, Mirriam Russeth, with whom he has one child. They married in 1964 but divorced after a year.
In 1968, David married his second wife, also an actress, Karen Carlson. The two met on the set of the series “Here Come the Brides”. They had one child, and their marriage lasted until 1977.
Three years later, David married Patricia Anne Carnel, and they had two children together. The couple divorced in 1986.
David’s fourth wife was Julia Nickson, also an actress. The two married in 1987 and divorced in 1993. Their daughter, China Soul, is a famous British singer-songwriter.
After an eight-year-long relationship, on 26 June 2010, David married his now-wife, Helen Snell, whom he met while he was working in the British stage production of the play “Deathtrap”. David currently lives in London, England with Helen.
How rich is David Soul?
When they see how many roles this actor has had, many assume that he earned enormous wealth by acting. The truth is that David, although a talented actor, never appeared in blockbusters and hit movies that had good earnings. According to sources, his net worth has been estimated at $1 million, as of mid-2023.