‘Starsky & Hutch’ star David Soul dies at age 80

David Soul, best known for starring in the 1970s action TV series “Starsky & Hutch,” has died at the age of 80.

The American-born British actor died Thursday “after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family,” said his wife Helen Snell, reported BBC News on Friday. A cause of death was not disclosed.

“He shared many extraordinary gifts in the world as actor, singer, storyteller, creative artist and dear friend,” Snell added. “His smile, laughter and passion for life will be remembered by the many whose lives he has touched.”

Soul was also remembered as a “beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother,” in an statement shared to his verified account on X.

Snell starred as Detective Kenneth “Hutch” Hutchinson in the ABC cop series, which aired from 1975 to 1979.

Both Soul and co-star Paul Michael Glaser reprised their titular roles in the 2004 “Starsky & Hutch” film, in which Owen Wilson starred as Hutch and Ben Stiller took over Glaser’s Starsky.

Born in 1943, Soul got his start in music as an opening act for the likes of The Byrds, The Lovin’ Spoonful and Frank Zappa. He returned to the industry in 1977, churning out four soft rock albums.

Before turning to the arts, however, the Chicago White Sox attempted to recruit a then-18-year-old Soul to join the team. Instead, he followed his family to Mexico City, where his father had accepted a job teaching political science and history, CNN reports.

While there, Soul attended college for one year, where a group of fellow students gave him a guitar and taught him indigenous songs. He later played those tunes after returning stateside, first getting hired to sing folk music at Minneapolis coffee house The Ten O’Clock Scholar, where the likes of Bob Dylan had performed.

In the mid-1960s, his interest in performing turned to acting. He became a founding member of the Firehouse Theater in Minneapolis, and traveled with the company to New York in 1965.

From there, he made appearances on “The Merv Griffin Show” and “Flipper,” and eventually signed a contract with Columbia Pictures. He had a number of guest-starring parts on TV, including in “Star Trek,” “All in the Family,” and “The Streets of San Francisco,” before landing his career-defining role in “Starsky & Hutch.”

Soul’s other credits include the Dirty Harry flick “Magnum Force,” the TV version of “Casablanca,” and series “The Yellow Rose,” alongside Sam Elliott and Cybill Shepherd. He also appeared in a number of TV movies and miniseries including “World War III,” “Secret of the Sahara,” and “Jerry Springer: The Opera.”

His last appeared onscreen in 2013’s “Filth” opposite James McAvoy.

Collaborators and fellow thespians took to social media to mourn the loss of Soul.

“Defining 70’s cool. Rest in peace,” wrote Stiller, retweeting a clip of “Starsky & Hutch.”

“Sorry to hear David Soul has passed,” said Stephen King, who noted Soul starred in the Emmy-nominated TV adaptation of his book “Salem’s Lot.”

“Every day this month we have been posting a sketch from the first series of ‘Little Britain’ and today we’re posting one starring David Soul, who has passed away,” tweeted Matt Lucas and fellow comedian David Walliams, who created the British sketch comedy show. “David was hugely talented, effortlessly funny and we were thrilled to work for him.”