Actor David Soul, star of TV’s ‘Starsky and Hutch,’ dies at 80

David Soul as detective Ken “Hutch” Hutchinson in a scene from the 1970s hit television series “Starsky & Hutch.” Soul has died at the age of 80. (ABC)

LONDON — Actor David Soul, who earned fame as the blond half of crime-fighting duo “Starsky & Hutch” in the popular 1970s television series, has died at the age of 80.

His wife, Helen Snell, said Friday that “David Soul — beloved husband, father, grandfather and brother — died yesterday after a valiant battle for life in the loving company of family.”