What was David Soul’s Net Worth and Salary?
David Soul was an American actor and singer who had a net worth of $1 million at the time of his death. He died on January 4, 2023 at the age of 80. David Soul was best known for playing Sergeant Kenneth ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson in the 1970s television series “Starsky & Hutch.” David appeared in 92 episodes of the series, which starred Paul Michael Glaser as Detective Dave Starsky, and ran from 1975 to 1979. Soul and Glaser also made a brief cameo in the 2004 film version which starred Ben Stiller as Starsky and Owen Wilson as Hutch.
Among his other notable credits, he starred in the television series “Here Come the Brides” and the miniseries “Salem’s Lot.” As a singer, Soul scored a number-one hit in the US and UK with the song “Don’t Give Up on Us” in 1977.
Early Life and Education
David Soul was born as David Solberg on August 28, 1943 in Chicago, Illinois to June, a teacher, and Richard, a Lutheran minister and professor of history and political science. Soul had a brother named Daniel, and was of Norwegian descent. Due to his father, who served as a representative for Lutheran World Relief during the postwar reconstruction of Germany, Soul moved frequently with the family during his youth. As an adolescent, he attended Washington High School in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Soul went on to attend Augustana College for two years before the family moved to Mexico City. There, he attended the University of the Americas.
Career Beginnings on Stage
Soul began his acting career on stage in the mid-1960s. He was a founding member of the Firehouse Theater in Minneapolis, and traveled with the company to New York City. Soul acted in such plays as “Baal” and “Serjeant Musgrave’s Dance.”
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Television Career
Soul first achieved national attention in 1966 when he appeared as the ‘Covered Man’ on “The Merv Griffin Show.” Singing while wearing a mask, he stated, “My name is David Soul, and I want to be known for my music.” Soul went on to appear in episodes of “I Dream of Jeannie,” “Flipper,” and “Star Trek.” He landed his first main role in 1968, playing Joshua Bolt on the ABC comedy Western series “Here Come the Brides.” The show ran until 1970. After that, Soul appeared in episodes of various series, including “All in the Family,” “The F.B.I.,” “The Streets of San Francisco,” “Cannon,” and “Circle of Fear.” In 1974, he starred in the NBC television film “The Disappearance of Flight 412.” Soul had his breakthrough the next year when he started playing Sergeant Kenneth ‘Hutch’ Hutchinson on the ABC action series “Starsky & Hutch.” He starred opposite Paul Michael Glaser, who played Sergeant David Starsky. Both characters were Southern California police detectives who tore the streets in stylish cars, most notably a red Ford Torino. “Starsky & Hutch” ran for four seasons, ending in 1979. Later that year, Soul starred in the miniseries “Salem’s Lot,” based on the horror novel by Stephen King.
In the early 1980s, Soul starred in the miniseries “World War III,” the short-lived television series adaptation of the classic film “Casablanca,” and the soap opera “The Yellow Rose.” All were on NBC. Following those, Soul starred in the television film “The Key to Rebecca” and had a supporting role in another television film, “The Fifth Missile.” Later in the decade, he starred in the television film “In the Line of Duty: The F.B.I. Murders” and the short-lived NBC series “Unsub.” Soul was much less active on television in the 1990s, appearing only in the television film “Cry in the Wild: The Taking of Peggy Ann” and in episodes of “The Young Riders” and “Murder, She Wrote” early in the decade. After a ten-year break from the small screen, he returned in 2001 with a guest role on the British medical drama “Holby City.” Soul appeared exclusively on British television after that, with credits including episodes of “Little Britain,” “Poirot,” “Dalziel and Pascoe,” and “Lewis.”
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Film Career
Soul made his big-screen debut in Dalton Trumbo’s 1971 epic antiwar film “Johnny Got His Gun.” He next appeared alongside Clint Eastwood in the 1973 action thriller “Magnum Force.” Soul subsequently starred opposite Ron Moody in the comedy “Dogpound Shuffle” (1975) and opposite Pamela McMyler in the romantic comedy crime film “The Stick Up” (1977). His credits in the 1980s include the war film “The Hanoi Hilton” and the mystery film “Appointment with Death,” based on the Agatha Christie novel. Soul’s only appearance on the big screen in the 1990s was in the action film “Pentathlon,” costarring Dolph Lundgren. He returned to film in 2004 with a cameo in the film adaptation of “Starsky & Hutch.” Soul’s final film credits were 2009’s “Farewell” and 2013’s “Filth.”
Music Career
As a singer, Soul scored his first and only number-one hit in the US with the song “Don’t Give Up on Us,” in 1977. The song also reached number one in the UK. Soul achieved another number-one song in the UK with “Silver Lady,” also in 1977. He went on to tour extensively around the world. Soul released a number of further albums throughout the 1990s and into the 21st century.
Later Career on Stage
In the mid-1990s, Soul moved to the United Kingdom and began acting on the West End stage. He appeared in such productions as “Comic Potential,” “Blood Brothers,” and “Mack and Mabel.” Soul also starred in “Jerry Springer: The Opera” at the Cambridge Theatre, and later appeared for one week in a revival of the play “Love Letters” in Dublin.
Personal Life and Death
Soul was married a total of five times. His first wife was Mirriam Russeth, to whom he was married from 1964 until their divorce a year later. They had one child together. Soul next wed actress Karen Carlson in 1968; they had a son before divorcing in 1977. Three years later, Soul married Patti Carnel-Sherman. During the marriage, he was ordered to attend therapy classes for alcoholism and anger management after he attacked his wife. The couple had a child before divorcing in 1986. One year later, Soul married actress Julia Nickson, with whom he had a daughter named China. The couple divorced in 1993. Soul wed his fifth and final wife, Helen Snell, in 2010. She was 31 years his junior, and had been in a relationship with him since 2002.
A chronic smoker for over 50 years, Soul was severely affected by COPD and had to have a lung removed due to cancer. He stopped smoking around 2013. On January 4, 2024, Soul passed away in a London hospital at the age of 80.
