'I thought I’d never work again’

Press, 7 May 1984, Page 11

'I thought I’d never work again’

From

JOANNE WILLS

in Hollywood

Relaxing with his attractive wife and two young children on the white sand of a Malibu beach, David Soul looked bronzed, fit and without a care in the world. But appearances are deceptive. “I’ve been through hell,” said the star of “Starsky and Hutch.” “There were times when I thought I would never work again — when I thought I would be on Hollywood’s black list for the rest of my life. “Now, everything is looking up. ‘Starsky and Hutch’ is still being screened around the world, and sometimes I think it’s a series that’s become rather like good wine ... it’s improving with age.” The tall, husky actor quickly discovered, after the series ended four years ago, that it was very hard to find a successful follow-up. He starred in several

feature films and television shows, none of which made much impact. Finally, last year, his new television series, “The Yellow Rose,” began to climb up America’s television ratings. ‘I think I’ve been very lucky with this one,” Soul said. “It came along just in time to help me pull myself round, before I did too much damage to my family and myself.” The stresses and strains suffered by Soul after “Starsky and Hutch” ended drove him to drink — and worse. “Those were really dark days,” he said, “and the crisis came about two years ago, when I was working on the remake of the Bogart classic, ‘Casablanca.’

“I worked up to 19 hours a day on that movie, and was becoming worn out. “I was also becoming more and more convinced

that the whole production was going to be a multi-million-dollar flop. “The only thing that seemed to calm me down was a couple of drinks ... and then a couple more. “I would return home late at night to my wife, Patti. I would want to tell her all about my problems but, with a couple of kids to look after, a home to run and my being late every night, she was hardly in the frame of mind to start mothering me. “That was when the trouble began.” Soul’s problems finally reached a climax when he was jailed for beating up his wife. But, after he received treatment, they were reconciled. They have two young children — Brendan and Timothy — who, like Soul himself, are now having a very happy childhood. “Until I was 12, I lived in West Germany, where my father worked with the Lutheran Foundation, helping refugees from the Eastern bloc countries,” he said.

“Those years left an indelible impression on me, because I saw so many children of my own age, and even younger, who had neither parents, nor relatives of any kind.”

Now, with two broken marriages behind him, Soul said, “I’ve also learned that happiness doesn’t grow on trees.

“The failure of my previous marriages, though, has taught me that through your mistakes you sure can learn to see what you did wrong.” A talented singer, David Soul originally wanted a career as a record star. After a spell at university, he swapped his text books for a guitar, and set off to sing for his supper. “That was probably the most bizarre period of my entire career,” he said. “After realising that none of the record companies was interested in me, I set out to create an air of mystery around my act. “I started wearing a skimask during my performances, billed myself as The Masked Man, and everybody went bananas about my act. “Soon, the very record companies that had turned me down were queuing up to sign me up, and my records really did sell. “But it was a gimmick that I had no intention of keeping up for ever. “I intended to use it only to get myself into show business. When I thought I had done that, I decided to junk the mask. “Well, that was a mistake, because once the mask disappeared, so did my career as a singing star. For the next three years, I was virtually unemployable.” He worked at a variety of jobs before winning the costarring role, with Paul Michael Glaser, in “Starsky and Hutch.” “Its success surprised me at first,” Soul said.

“I think the reason the show took off so well was because it had a very simple format about justice and friendship. “There was never any real competition between

Starsky and Hutch. “They were two ordinary guys, working as cops, whose only aim in life was to defend the good from the bad.” Features International