Biography

Paul Manfred Glaser was born on Thursday, March 25, 1943 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He grew up in the residential towns of Brookline and then on Dudley RD in Newton; upper-middle-class communities just outside Boston. He is the youngest of three children and the only son of Dorothy and Samuel Glaser - an MIT graduate, was an architect and partner with deCastro & Vitols. Established in 1930 by Samuel Glaser, it is one of the oldest architectural firms in the City of Boston. The original firm became a partnership in 1968 and in 1979 reorganized as two separate entities, Glaser/deCastro Associates and Vitols Associates. Paul attended Brown & Nichols, the Meadowbrook School and graduated from the Cambridge School of Weston.

Paul's exposure and interest in acting began at an early age. His older sister Pricilla, was very involved in the dramatic arts and theater. Paul's first stage appearance occurred when he was 14 in the production of "Amahl and the Night Visitors". He continued to involve himself in school plays throughout high school. "She influenced my interest in the theater," says Paul. "I Have 2 older sisters, the middle....the... younger of the two older sisters, ah, was determined to be an actress and I think, when,. we were very close when we were kids and I think I kinda followed in her footsteps and I found myself in my last 2 years of High School pursing aggressively starting to think about acting and getting involved in it. My mother used to do a lot of story telling and performance."1

Filled with many wonderful memories of Newton, MA, Paul recalls these treasured things: "Skating at Kennard's Pond. Pillaging the Concord grape vines in the back yard. Walking to Newton Centre for a soda. Jumping into Autumn's piles of dead leaves. Walking home on snowy evenings. Finishing mowing the lawn, raking the leaves, picking up the apples. Watching the winter squirrels leap across the leafless tree branches from my window. Jack Oven, the 'Fruit Man' and his green fruit truck. Dogs; Duke, then Dorn. Walking in the woods. The coolness of the garage on hot summer days."2 There was also a lot of music, art and theater in Paul's growing up. "... and so I kinda headed in, ah, that direction. So when it came time to apply to a college, I choose a college with a good theater department. Then in the summers I did summer stock and repertory."3

	When Paul was 4, his first "stage" appearance was standing on a pillow in his living room conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra while listening to them on the radio. On May 31, 1978, Paul actually got to conduct a symphony, The Newton Symphony at Boston College! Paul narrated "Lincoln's Portrait" by Copeland and the Ogden Nash verses to "Carnival of the Animals" by Saint-Saens. It was a marvelous performance!

Paul's spiritual core of his religious training came from his father and grandfather, who was one of the founders of a conservative temple in Boston- the Kehilath Israel in Brookline, Massachusetts. In a 1998 interview with Jewish Television Network, Paul says: " Well, my father's father was a very religious man. He was one of the founders of a very big conservative temple in Boston.. Kehilath Israel in Brookline, Massachusetts and my mother wasn't, ah, at all raised in a very strong Jewish tradition. In fact, she was basically agnostic." To expand Paul's spiritual journey beyond Sunday school, when his father had met a student from Israel at MIT, he asked him to teach Paul his Haftorah for his Bar Mitzvah and to teach him Hebrew. At 16, in 1959, his teacher took Paul and 12 other young men on three month trip. Paul says "He and I became very close, this man, this teacher, and he went and ended up taking 12 young men to the Brussels's World's Fair and through France and then we got on the theater half, which is on of the reparatory boats and we sailed from Marseilles to Haifa and we spent a month and one-half in Israel, two months in Israel."4 Today, Paul considers himself a “Jew-Bu” (Jewish-Budhist).

After graduating from Cambridge School of Weston, in 1961, Paul was drawn to Tulane University in New Orleans because it was the farthest place from home and it also purportedly had a good theater program. His roommate was director, producer and writer Bruce Paltrow. "Bruce and I were fraternity brothers and for one year, house mates with two other guys. Bruce was into the fine and applied arts, I was into theatre." "We had a great department--it was a spirited group,"5 Paul says. "I felt the people there were very supportive and I have nothing but good memories of the whole experience." He was fortunate to land a lot of good roles! In his junior year, Paul took a leave of absence for a six month trip to London where he studied and observed theatre. While in England , Paul studied with Max Adrian, a very well thought of character actor; audited classes at R.A.D.A, and L.A.M.D.A. and spent a month and a half observing at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Stratford-On-Avon. Paul returned with intentions of finishing his college degree at Carnegie Tech in their well known theatre dept. but “Carnegie Tech had insisted I lose a year in order to take some technical classes that taught what I had already learned to do in summer stock, so I passed on that, returned to Tulane and proceeded to try and implement lessons I had learned that Max had told me would take forty years to learn. He was right. I was terrible.” 6

Always keeping busy, Paul performed in such plays as ‘Comedy of Errors,’ ‘Major Barbara,’ ‘Uncle Vanya,’ ‘Clarembard,’ ‘ Juno and the Paycock,’ ‘ Twelve Angry Men,’ ‘ The Queen and the Rebels,’ … and after Paul’s return from London, Paul played the role of “the bandit” in Akira Kurosawa’s “Rashomon.”

For Paul, what marked his college days was the passion with which his professors and fellow students approached their subjects. "The head of the department was a Dr. Monroe Lippman who I remember fondly. We had a theatre-in-the-round and a small proscenium theatre under what was left of the old football stadium. The Dept. had it’s reputation off it’s publication. "The Tulane Drama Review.’" "It was a place that allowed me to do an awful lot of work," he says, citing both Monroe Lippman and Irving Rivner as influences. "It wasn't just what they taught; it was more how they taught and their passion for what they taught. Finding people who are passionate about what they do is not as easy as one might think." People generally are unable to communicate their passions, he continues. "In the theater and the arts, passion is the fuel that makes it all go, so to have people like that as my mentors--people who were passionate about what they did and were willing to be there for you--was a valuable thing."7

Paul appears as a "Juror" in the play "Twelve Angry Men" at Tulane University in 1966.

Paul spent his summers doing stock at Tufts Arena Theatre, the "Merry-Go-Round Theater in Sturbridge, Stockbridge Summer Theatre, Williamstown Summer Theatre, (abbreviated because of a backstage accident that landed him in the hospital for a month and a half), Cedar City Shakespeare Festival, and Loeb Drama Center where he played Raskalnikov in ‘Crime and Punishment,’ and Thomas in ‘The Lady’s not for Burning,’ ( his favorite play).

He continued his education at Tulane graduating with a B.A. degree in English Literature and Theater before heading back to Boston University where he earned a M. A. in Theater majoring in Directing and Acting. He is an alumni member of the fraternity Sigma Alpha Mu. Their commitment to service today supports the EGPAF. Since 1995, they have raised over $100,000.

Paul believes his biggest personal breakthrough came when he was acting in Crime and Punishment at the Loeb Drama Center in Boston. The director had rewritten the script, with little understanding of the play, and faced with an opening night totally unprepared, Paul decided that the only way to get through the evening was to treat it as just another rehearsal. From that point, “ I strove to make every performance a rehearsal.” 8

After graduating from Tulane (A&S '66), Paul went onto Boston University and earned a second Master's ('67) in acting and directing. Paul and his friend Richard Huges were the first students to graduate there. During his studies at BU, he directed "Escurial", played leads in Pirandello's Henry IV and Richard III. Richard III was also his Master's Thesis.

In 1968, Paul headed for New York. While doing ‘under fives,’ (under five lines on Soap Operas), Paul was approached by the Actors' Equity, where there was already another Paul Glaser on their books (Whose original name was Paul Groat), We can't have another, it's against the rules." Feeling that Manfred Glaser sounded a "bit too pretentious", Paul decided on Michael Glaser. It was not until 1973, while doing a Guest Star’ on ‘Kojak’ when Paul picked up ‘Variety’and read that "Paul Glaser had died", that he was able to add Paul as his billing name…so then he became Paul Michael Glaser, keeping the name ‘Michael’ because a lot of people had come to know him as that.

It was at this time that Paul was introduced to Renee Valente by Bruce Paltrow (his college roommate and friend from Tulane), who introduced him to an agent and had him appear in a talent showcase where he met David Soul for the first time. Soon after, "Michael Glaser" made his New York stage debut in Joseph Papp's rock version of "Hamlet" in the role of a soldier. Regarding Hamlet, Paul states "I played a spear carrier, or rather a gun carrier, it being the rock version. I spent the next four years in New York, waiting on tables, tending bars . . . a great way to meet people ... keeping the crazy hours you keep in the beginning, saying to yourself as you fell into a bed at 4.30 a.m. that every star had to start this way."9

"The Man in The Glass Booth"

During those four years, Paul waited tables and tended bar as well as performing in several off-Broadway and off off Broadway. His big break came when he began his Broadway stage role in "The Man In The Glass Booth" with Donald Pleasance, written by Robert Shaw and directed by Harold Pinter. Soon after, Paul was offered and turned down the role of the "director" for a Westport County Playhouse of "Butterflies Are Free" with Blythe Danner and instead went to The Coconut Grove Playhouse for an abbreviated season of "Room Service" with Jules Munchen. "I remember playing the night the Astronauts landed on the Moon. There were four people in the audience, two of whom were friends of mine from NYC who were surprising me." 10

Paul also read for a big extravaganza with Maximillian Schell on Broadway, "The Prussian Officer". He read for the role of the young officer who is killed in a duel in the first ten minutes of the play and then becomes the topic of discussion for the rest of the play. While he didn't get that role, he was offered a role in which he would have to wear a woman's ball gown (as most of the men in the play were wearing)! "I wasn’t big on that, but I let my agent talk me into it with the promise of an understudy role. Well, when I returned from my aborted summer stock, I went into rehearsals for this play, immediately realized it wasn’t for me, and after the first day, asked to be fired."11 For two days, Paul was kept in the dressing room until he was called out to talk to Biff Liff, David Merrick’s right hand guy. David Merrick was the hottest producer on Broadway and nobody ever quit a Merrick show and worked again. After Biff and Paul talked a while, Biff agreed to let Paul out of the contract, told him he was making the biggest mistake of his career, and then, as Liff was getting into his cab he turned to Paul and asked if he could sing. (So much for ‘never working in this town again’)

A couple of weeks later, while visiting friends in Westport, Paul went to see the pre-Broadway production of "Butterflies are Free" and was asked again if he would play the role of the director. He accepted and "Butterflies Are Free" playing the role of director Ralph Stanton for seven months on Broadway (1968 - 1969)/ would also become his first film role in 1972 after the filming of "Fiddler on the Roof".

Paul's first experience of national popularity and adulation came on the daytime serial, "Love Is A Many Splendored Thing" (1970) where he played the role of Dr Peter Chernak. Of his character,  Paul recalls, "he's within the system, but working against it. When the character evolved, I thought, 'This is what I'd like to be playing in a nighttime series.' Later, in 2004, Paul recalls that " Dr. Peter Chernak fought the establishment, slept on a cot in his lab, cooked polish sausages over a Bunsen burner, and seduced the nurses. Not bad! He also had the ability to heal people whenever the writers felt like it." 12

In 1971, Paul also starred in one of the last LIVE soap operas, "Love of Life", during the day, in which he was a series regular as Dr. Joe Corelli (replacing Tony LoBianco)."I took over Tony LoBianco's character, who was a doctor embroiled in all levels of life and death, very romantic. It was a run of the mill soap opera situation." Paul states in another interview: "I took over the same role, but I used it selfishly for my own ends. The writing was one way. I bent it in another direction, so again in the character was something of a rebel - not outside the law, but not inside either. 'Hey,' I thought, 'it's me!' 13

And, at the same time, Paul was still doing Broadways "Butterflies Are Free" at night. During this period, Paul recalls "I got a phone call from my agent saying they were doing Fiddler on The Roof and I was dating a girl from Fiddler on The Roof of, the, the, Broadway show. And so, I had only seen the last 10 minutes. I had never seen the whole show. So, I had picked it up and read the ah, the script and I called my agent back and said "This guy here is, ah, 19 years old in Victorian Russia, so that means he really is 16, and I am 27. This doesn't work. I'm too old. She said "Well, they wanted to meet you". So I said "OK" and so I went to Sheri Netherlands and knocked on Norman Jewisons's door and Norman opens the door and looks at me and says "What are you doing here?".I said. "I'm here to read for Perchik" he says "You're too old".  "That's what I came to tell you". Hello! So he said, "Well, come in, I've got 45 minutes, I got nothing to do. Come on in." So I went in there and we, ah, he said "You wanna read, lets read." So we started to read and I picked Norman up and danced him around the room and he said "Well, thank you, Good". And a week later he called me and asked me out to Hollywood to do um, a screen test."14

After seven months of playing Dr's in soaps, Paul, known and credited as "Michael Glaser", left soaps to take off for Croatia and Yugoslavia to begin filming "Fiddler on The Roof" (1971) playing the role of Perchik. Paul sang "Any Day Now", unfortunately, it was cut from the picture. You can hear his song on the recently released 30th Anniversary of "Fiddler on the Roof" DVD and soundtrack. This film was nominated for and received several Oscars and Best Picture Golden Globes.. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend that you do. Its a wonderful story of the Jewish culture, rich in traditions and great music.

In 1972 Paul would appear in the film version of “Butterflies Are Free”reprising his role as director Ralph Stanton, with Goldie Hawn and Eddie Albert. Soon after its completion, Paul moved to California where he lived in a one-room cabin, with his dog " MAX ", in the Hollywood Hills on top of Laurel Canyon earning over $10,000/week working on several guest star roles in "The Streets of San Francisco, " (1972), "The Sixth Sense" (1972), "The Waltons- Air Mail Man" (1972), and several commercials. Other roles came his way in "Kojak" (1973), TOMA (1974) and "The Rockford Files" (1974 ) as well as made for television movies , "Trapped Beneath the Sea" (1974) and "The Impersonation Murder Case ". In 1976 Paul moved to another area where he resided with his 2 Husky-Shepherds, "Ely" and "Max".

Paul meets Elizabeth Meyer

"The great thing about it is that she loves me - not the star of a top TV series. When we met, Starsky and Hutch hadn't even gone on television."

On June 9th of 1975, before Starsky & Hutch went on the air, Paul first spotted Elizabeth, a mid-twenties teacher of neurologically handicapped children. They were both driving down Santa Monica Boulevard in Hollywood when they pulled up side-by-side at an intersection and Paul recalls "As we waited for the light to change, I smiled a friendly smile at her, she gave me the most fabulous smile back - and something clicked inside me. When we both got stuck at the next light, I asked her to pull over. She did, and I got out and stood beside her car for five minutes just chatting. I told her she had to go out on a date with me. She accepted - then I asked her name!"15

Elizabeth describes her encounter with Paul " I had pork chops, not passion, on my mind when I met Paul...I had, in fact just spent 50minutes with my therapist explaining why I didn't need a man. Then, while waiting for the light to change at the intersection of Santa Monica Blvd and Beverly Blvd's, I looked at the car next to me. "Oh my God, that is the cutest guy I have ever seen," I thought. I smiled. He smiled. The light changed. HIs dark blue Mazda stayed beside mine. I decided to look one more time to see if he was really as cute as I thought he was. feeling as though I was doing something silly, I subtly glanced sideways. He saw me. I smiled again. He waved. I turned right. He turned right. ........ I glanced into the rearview mirror and he signaled me over with his arm. I was anxious and jittery as I pulled over. He stepped out of his car and walked toward me. I rolled down my window and he said, "Okay, let me see your driver's license." I looked at him and laughed. He was droll and disarming. I said "What are you talking about?" "My God" he said, your car is as filthy as mine." "What are you doing for dinner?" he asked. Thinking of therapy, I told him I was going home and making pork chops. "Wouldn't you rather go out for chinese food?" "Yes," I said without missing a beat. One therapy session thrown out the window." I told him to follow me to my apartment. when we got there, I parked my car and walked over to his. "My name is Betsy. Betsy Meyer. "I'm Paul. Paul Glaser. Nice to meet you. I'll see you at eight." After dinner and talking at Al Fong's in Beverly Hills, Elizabeth knew, even though he was an actor that he was the right man for her..... "When I looked at Paul, I saw happily -ever -after" 15a

Following that first acquaintance, it was Elizabeth's persistence that turned their friendship into a full-bloom romance which Paul says is "The most important relationship I've ever had in my life, she kept after me. She was as persevering as she could be. She would call me in the middle of the night, and I would attempt to be serious and ask her to leave me alone. Then, as if a big bubble of laughter was welling inside me, I would start to chuckle. Pretty soon I was giggling, and she'd be at my door."16 By that September, Paul and Elizabeth would share his home on Appian Way, Lookout Mountain in the Hollywood Hills with his dog, Max and watch "Starsky & Hutch" on television Wednesday evenings!

 Starsky and Hutch

"David and I are very close," says Paul Michael. "We've known each other for years. We met actually, eight - and - a half years (1968) ago in New York. We were both up for the talent program for Columbia - Screen Gems. Davey got in, and I didn't. Since then our paths have crossed, but we became like brothers on Starsky and Hutch. Very fortunate for both of us, we have a very simpatico relationship, the right chemistry. We both want to do a good job, we both want to communicate with each other. With those objectives you become very, very close. We really care about each other." Photoplay Film Monthly October 1976

In 1975 Paul Michael Glaser and David Soul became the stars of Starsky and Hutch.

Over 150 wanna be actors lined up for the role and because production was going to start filming immediately, screen testing could not be done. Paul's instant chemistry with David made the decision easy."Paul was the best," Naar recalls."His reading simply blew us out of the room. He was amazing . . . He was head and shoulders above the rest.  So we took them together and that was the magic.They liked each other and they complemented each other enormously.  The rest is history." 17

Paul: Along came this movie of the week, a backdoor pilot called “Starsky and Hutch” and I read it and I thought well this would never make it to a series and I need film of myself. So, on this particular day, I went, I had in my house,ah, a big copper bowl full of walnuts, so on my way out the door I grabbed a handful cause I hadn't eaten and I got down to FOX and the place was full up and so I sat on the floor and I fell asleep and when I was awakened everyone was gone and they said “Are you here to read?” and I said ya, so they said “there’s nobody else to read with you but come on in anyway”. So I walked in and I reached in my pocket and I took out 2 walnuts and cracked them and I thought, OK and so I started reading a page and a half and they said “stop right there” and the next day they called me in to read with David.” 18

When Paul turned up to audition for Starsky & Hutch, David Soul recalls it vividly: "In the test scene, Paul had to take the owners of a bar to task. He walked in with a bag of nuts and started using them in the scene - eating some and tossing some to me. We kicked off together right from the first minute. What pleased the director and everyone else around was the casual, natural way in which Paul played the scene. He also looked completely right. Even more important, you could sense right away that there was some sort of chemistry between the two of us - and that was vital. It has stayed with us all the way through." 19

Leonard Goldberg: “We brought in Paul Michael Glaser and I remember putting them (Paul and David) in a room in Aaron's office and Aaron and I walked out of the room but we watched from the doorway. We watched the two of them interacting and we watched their relationship and I don’t know why,.. I guess we got really lucky. We just said it works!” Joseph Naar: “ When I first saw Paul, all of us were smitten by him. We had seen many, many, actors and many of them were very good but he has something extra. He looks like a man who might be called Starsky. He’s very masculine and an extremely good actor” 20

William Blinn: “What Paul brought to the table was intelligence. I mean, if you could see his performance and know the human being at all, he’s got an incredibly bright burning intelligence that he couples with humor. That’s a hard combo plate” 21

People who witnessed the audition of Paul with David were excited to see a natural chemistry that they seem to demonstrate together right from the beginning. Actually, this was not the first time David and Paul had actually met. David recalls  "Paul and I knew each other vaguely.We had met back at the time I had first made contact with Renee Valente. Paul had also been up for consideration as part of her search for new talent. But until Starsky & Hutch, we had never worked together."22

David, Joseph Naar and others were immediately sold on Paul for the part of Starsky. How did Paul himself feel at the time? "I knew something good had happened immediately when I finished auditioning with David Soul," he was to say later. "I felt great when they told me I'd got the part. But I had no idea at all just how successful Starsky & Hutch was going to become. You can never tell what a series is going to turn out like. As far as I was concerned, although I knew this was an important part in what sounded like a great new series, anything can happen in show business and if I wasn't successful then I'd just have to move on to the next audition."23

Paul and David developed a deep friendship and bond while working on the series and they remain that close today. They have similar tastes and hobbies. They both enjoyed motorcycling and play guitar. Contrary to his Starsky role, Paul is a health food fan, and enjoys yoga and meditation.

STARSKY & HUTCH first came on to our TV screens when the pilot movie was presented as an ABC-TV 'Movie Of The Week' here in the US on April 30th, 1975. Their shooting schedule was brutal, working early in the morning till 9PM and till Midnight on Fridays! Reaction to our hero's was so strong, that production for the series began immediately after the airing of the movie. During the production of the first episodes, "S&H" fandomania and idolization  was already taking hold in the US and abroad. Joseph Naar, given that the network was happy with the success of the series admitted he had been surprised.  "I had no idea, that it would catch on like it did.  We were in the top ten from the moment we hit the air." 

Of Starsky and Hutch, Paul says "I never intended to do a series - I thought it would be a television movie and that was it," he says. "But it became a series and I became this thing called a 'celebrity,' and that was a journey unto itself."23a But as we all know, it became a great series winning several awards! Paul and David made many notable guest appearances on talk shows like Mike Douglas, Dinah Shore and Merv Griffin to name a few.

Paul: “When Starsky came along, Starsky for me was kind of an amalgamation of a lot of elements that I have worked on and his persona, the vulnerability and gullibility for the boy, and the ah, responsibilities and passions of the man and mixing the two so that you had an opportunity to play with comedy to set yourself and to a certain degree of endearing quality, I was able to explore that.”
“All of us grows up in the process in terms of what David and I may bring to something an idea in the producers head or the writers head and then start writing towards that and we look at a situation and say..you know that the reality of the situation is that I, Paul, would feel this way and David would say "I feel this way" and before you know it, it was an emotional scene."24

During the first season, Paul was still listed in the telephone directory! When S&H came on to the TV screen, he soon started receiving many phone calls and people would stop by his house, at all hours of the night! But, when some of his over-zealous, loving fans, left too many gifts, he decided to remove his name from the directory! Paul and David were over night superstars. Teen magazines like "Tiger Beat", "16" and "Spec" proclaimed Paul as a "heart throb", "TV Hunk", "TV's Sexiest Cop" and "Most Eligible Bachelor" . Poster magazine proclaimed : "Paul is tall, dark and devastating handsome". Fan clubs started immerging everywhere, "Starsky and Hutch Monthly" Magazine appeared. Toys were everywhere!

He was voted "TV's Favorite Male Actor" two years in a row by Photoplay Monthly in 1977 and 1978 for which he received the Photoplay Film Monthly award. He, David and the "Starsky & Hutch " show were presented with two People's Choice Awards for Favorite Dramatic Show for 1975 and 1976 as well as many other international awards. Voted "Coolest of the Cool" by readers of Seventeen magazine!

 

Paul and Elizabeth at the 1977 Photoplay Monthly Awards.

 

In 1976, during one brief break from Starsky & Hutch, Paul performed at the Peachtree Theatre, a respected playhouse in Atlanta Georgia. Here, he played the role of a coarse, revolutionary monk in the John Luther historical play "LUTHER".  He received rave reviews for his performance.

Also in 1976, during a S&H break, Paul starred as Harry Houdini, the great escape artist, in the TV film "The Great Houdini" with Sally Struthers. Paul really got into this role. Of Houdini, Paul states: "What an intense, intricate man. I wanted to do this. I had to do this, reading the script I was immediately into it." He learned and practiced relentlessly to perform ALL the stunts himself! In fact, Paul actually had almost suffered a serious injury to himself while performing HH's underwater escape trick. It seems that a stage-hand missed his cue and Paul recalls (Paul was handcuffed during this scene.) "I was under water for about 45 seconds and I started getting dizzy and panicked. Then they pulled me out at last!"25. See original ABC Press release.

After returning to the set of Starsky & Hutch, Paul says "....that film became very intriguing to me. I began to really enjoy the whole idea of dancing with a camera and telling a story. I've always liked photography so, I loved telling a story with pictures and I love teaching and I love helping actors, and ah, so I gravitated to the ideas of, ah, of ah, directing and learning directing. So along about the second year of Starsky and Hutch, I said that's it, I'm gonna direct." 26

Of his character Starsky, Paul says: "At the time I felt Starsky would be fun to play. He was a natural extension of my character on Love is- someone capable of being charming, humorous and angry. I tried to create him as close to myself as possible, it was easier that way. Starsky was me and that was ok for a while " Two years in a demanding series did have it's toll. Before the third season of Starsky and Hutch, Paul (& David) became frustrated with the poor quality scripts, the level of violence, the daily demands of the show and limited creativity. He tried to be released from his contract by suing. Although he did not win, he did gain a pay raise ( reportedly from $5,000 an episode to $35,000/episode), more responsibility in scripts and began directing. "Bloodbath" was his directorial debut. Another consideration Paul sought was the reduction of the level of violence. Granted, the scripts were tailored to center more on the friendship and personalities of "Starsky and Hutch".

During the third season, Paul began directing episodes "Class in Crime"; "Deckwatch"; "Ballard for a Blue Lady", which he wrote the teleplay for, and "Sweet Revenge", the final show of the series in the fourth season. It was his behind-the-scenes experience that aided Paul when he went from in front of the camera to behind it. (more info on Starsky and Hutch)

In 1978, by special invitation of the Israel government for Israel's 30th Anniversary of Independance Day, Paul, Elizabeth and his parents visited Israel, where due to the tremendous amounts of excited and enthusiastic fans, it would be necessary for them to have the protection of body guards. They were welcomed by the Mayor of Jerusalem, Teddy Kollek, where upon they set out for a tour of architectual landmarks of the Holy City. Later, the Glaser's were received at a private luncheon with the Mayor of Tel Aviv, Shlomo Lahat, as well as attending a special memorial service at Yad Vashem, the National Memorial to the six million victims of the Holocaust. Before his return to the USA for a Newton NSO benefit concert, they were the guest of a farewell reception back in Tel Aviv.

	more stills from Israel

 

 

"Starsky and Hutch" ran for four seasons, including a PSA announcement for seatbelts!

Paul recalls in a recent interview: "David and I had our most fun, I think, when we'd goof on it. I'd have to fight a big guy, how am I gonna fight this big guy and I think of stepping on his toe or something silly. We had these undercover routines.. we'd goof on those, you know, so we had the tags on these shows which were always our favorite because we could get to cut loose"
"It (S&H) just had all of these elements going and I think that energy was pretty valuable to the audience. You know, David and I would have moments where we really felt that we could connect as actors and as men and ah,.. that was very fulfilling." 27

After the final episode of Starsky and Hutch, Paul took some time off for himself. He practiced yoga and meditation, played his guitar, wrote and then read his own poetry, wrote screenplays, and focused on improving his own well-being. In US magazine, Paul states: I've done a lot of work on myself, because I slid in a lot of crucial areas. After doing a demanding and time-consuming series like Starsky, I lost touch with myself. Some of the principles that guided my life were gone; I had mental house cleaning to do."

On Sunday, August 24th,1980, in a quiet, private and romantic nuptial in the office of their rabbi, Paul married Elizabeth Meyer. After sharing their wonderful news with their parents, Paul and Elizabeth went sailing with eight friends. Shortly thereafter, Paul was off to Europe promoting his new film,"PHOBIA" and 3 days later, Elizabeth would join him. They spent their honeymoon in Amsterdam.

Paul at the Ritz Carlton promoting "Phobia"

Phobia

After Starsky and Hutch, Paul had received many offers for various films and even another police drama. The first offer he accepted was as Dr. Peter Ross in John Houston's film "Phobia". Paul continued another five years of acting  in the TV movies "Phobia", "Princess Daisy", "Wait Till your Mother Comes Home!" , "Single Bars, Single Women." , " The Light On Synanon ( Attack on Fear)", and Jealousy.

In 1981, when she was six months pregnant, Paul's wife of one year, Elizabeth, began bleeding and was rushed to the Cedars-Sinai Hospital. She was diagnosed with having placenta previa. After six days, Elizabeth was now strong enough to return home and told to stay in bed until delivery. For Paul and Elizabeth, be her own accord "All we could do was pray that I would stop bleeding, because my child was probably too small to live outside my body. I lay there, day after day, with Paul by my side, waiting." (excerpt from In The Absence Of Angels) It was on August 4th, 1981, after she began bleeding again, that Ariel Glaser (This name has two meanings for Paul and Elizabeth.."the spirit who guides the ships through the storms"..from Shakespeare's The Tempest and in Hebrew it means "Lion of God") was delivered successfully by caesarean section; three weeks early and weighing only 5 pounds, two ounces. Relief and joy at the birth of their perfect, beautiful baby daughter, Paul gave Ariel her first bath.
Immediately after the birth, Elizabeth began hemorrhaging. She was transfused with seven pints of blood and packed with cotton (an old and rarely used procedure). It would be hours before Elizabeth would finally become stable and able to hold Ariel for the first time. The next day, she would breast feed Ariel as life would be back to normal with Elizabeth a new mother, Paul a new father and performing on stage in "The Lady Cries Murder".

Paul and Ariel would come to enjoy Sunday morning breakfasts at a nearby deli, painting, long nature walks and all the other wonderful father and daughter rituals. In 1983, they would move to a nice Mediterranean style house in Santa Monica where on October 25th,1984 Jake Glaser was born.

In 1982, a new medical drama "ER" was in the planning stages and they wanted Paul to play the lead role (the role George Clooney was given!) but due to other circumstances, he was unable to do it. Paul began looking for more creative control in the form of directing. In 1985, he received an offer to direct his first feature film, "Band of the Hand" and with that, the family packed up and relocated to Miami.

It was May of 1986 that Ariel became ill with persistent stomach pains. After several months and numerous blood tests and illnesses being ruled out, it became necessary to test Ariel for HIV. With the shocking news that her test was confirmed positive, the entire family would also be tested for the AIDS virus. Elizabeth tested positive and it was found that she had passed the virus to her daughter through breast milk and had also unknowingly given the virus in-utero to her son, Jake. Paul was the only family member who remained unaffected.  With this devastating diagnosis of Elizabeth, Ariel and Jake, it was recommended by their doctor to not share this information with anyone. "The world is not ready for your family" he explained. Confiding in only a few friends, Paul and Elizabeth quietly began their journey together. "It would be nine months before the Surgeon General would appear on television to say flat out that you can't get AIDS from saliva or kissing. And with that information, our lives slowly regained some normalcy." 15a

In 1987, after two weeks into the production of "The Running Man" with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Paul was asked to take over on directing the film. Working on this film would take him to Pomona, CA and an abandoned steel mill in . It would be an escape, albeit a temporary one, from the private sufferings of his home life. Paul's nephew David, a film producer living in NY, came out to be his assistant. "Running Man" was released into theaters in November of that year.

1988 would begin Elizabeth's incredibly journey and one of her greatest contributions to her family, to her heart and to people around the world. Her and Paul's efforts would be the start of positive changes in the fight against HIV / AIDS and the near elimination of Mother-to-Child-Transmission of HIV in this country (currently down to 2%).  Determined to get better drug treatments for Jake and for other children with HIV / AIDS,  Elizabeth went to Washington in May of 1988 to meet with politicians about getting a bigger federal budget for clinical trials in pediatric AIDS. And on August 12th, 1988, at the age of seven, Ariel Glaser, with Paul and Elizabeth by her side, passed away. In a private memorial service, Ariel was laid to rest beside her grandfather, Samuel Glaser.

The privacy of their grief would be interrupted by the tabloid press. In 1989 the Glaser's received a phone call threatening to make public their very private family ordeal and after pleading with them failed, in fear of the risk of acknowledging their story, and in desperation for the truth to be told, they called the LA Times. Another test of courage would result in the overwhelming support and love of friends, the Hollywood community and the public. You can read their story here as published in the LA times on August 29th, 1989.

A fundraiser event at the film premier of "Immediate Family" in October of 1989 would sell out raising $250,000. Paul and Elizabeth, being co-chairs, had to speak prior to the showing of the film. After opening remark, Paul was introduced. Addressing a room filled with friends and colleagues, Elizabeth notes in her book "his voice cracked. Paul's pain and anguish that is usually so private, reverberated through the room. As I listened to Paul's words I felt proud of his courage and blessed by his love. Ari and Jake could have no finer dad."

Paul steps up to the podium and, as seen on a video clip, it is obvious how much emotion is about to be released. His address is as follows:

Paul: "From the day when AIDS changed our lives, it seems that we have experienced the gamut of emotions-along with just about every kind of fear imaginable. However, the greatest fear, the most debilitating, was that of feeling impotent. Impotent in the act of life; powerless in the face of death. It's a common fear Mine came from a perception that I had no choice-that this was my lot.

I struggled with this fear for a long time. Then I realized that I did indeed have a choice. I could run and hide, or I could stay and fight. And in having and making a choice, I was, in fact, empowering myself. It It rendered me potent. In the face of all my fears, I had the power to choose. Then I had to act on that choice. That I couldn't do by myself. I couldn't have done it without you.

To those friends whom we see often, to those friends whom we see only occasionally, and to the industry that, I believe, always knew in part, sometimes only as a rumor, some version of our story and chose to honor our privacy and now have rallied around us, and as evidenced by tonight, chooses to continue to support the issue of pediatric AIDS, to all of you, my deepest thanks."

After Paul regained his composure, he introduced Elizabeth saying " I have learned more from her than any person I have ever met."

After all the applause and Elizabeth composed herself, she too addressed the audience of supporters:

"Some causes are so easy to embrace - rain forests, our bay, clean air. Then, there are some that are harder - and we don't really care about them until we are directly affected.

Until tonight, some of you may not have even known there was such a thing as pediatric AIDS. well, there is, and Paul and I know too much about it....

Two years ago, when Ariel Started to fail, there was no hope, no drugs, no therapies, only questions. Now, two years later, we are fighting to write a different story for our son and all the other children and families battling AIDS...." (from "In The Absence of Angels")

The evening was a complete success from fundraising efforts to the outpouring of love from their community. David Soul shows his support for Paul and Elizabeth at the 1989 benefit.

After the LA Times article came out, media calls flooded in. TV's "60 Minutes" called to do a spot.They followed and filmed all aspects of Paul and Elizabeth's day as well as all the efforts of the PAF for months, from the kitchen table office to the new office to Washington and back again. "In one 15minute shot, fifty million people would learn that children were dying from AIDS and that almost nothing was being done. The Pediatric AIDS Foundation would be known nationally overnight. The office was excited." (from "In The Absence of Angels") Being out in the open, sharing their story, would bring much needed positive reinforcement. Many people,.. friends, volunteers, all wanting to help. The miserable burden about keeping their family secret had been lifted. Ed Bradley's intimate and frank interview about living with HIV/AIDS with Paul and Elizabeth was outstanding. Their personal struggle from being diagnosed to personal anguish, hopelessness, keeping the secret and just day to day survival would bring the issue of the severity of this disease out into the public eye. Their incredible courage, strength and hope for the future would inspire millions of people everywhere. It aired February 4th, 1990. You can read the transcript here.

In the months that followed, the PAF would raise over $4million with 80% of these funds going directly to pediatric AIDS research. Since then, renamed on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1st, 1997, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation has raised more than $130 million and is now the leading national non-profit organization dedicated to identifying, funding and conducting critical pediatric AIDS research. In addition, it also funds programs in 13 developing nations to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV through simple, affordable preventive interventions. At Stanford University's 2004 Commencement, Paul says “What Elizabeth and her co-founders were able to create was the realization that an effective, grass-roots organization can make a difference. In this world, in this country, we are experiencing more and more disenfranchisement, less hope, more apathy as people feel that they have no ability to impact the lives and futures of their children. The foundation has become a beacon of hope — a reminder that we can make that difference.”

Elizabeth and Paul became even more politically active in the fight against AIDS and through Elizabeth's tireless work, the budget for AIDS research was increased to $8.8 million. Pres. Reagan under the direction of Paul, taped a TV PSA helping bring more awareness to AIDS.

Pres. Reagan, Elizabeth, Nancy Reagan, Paul

She also spoke at the 1992 Democratic National Convention. Elizabeth gave a powerful, moving and inspirational address. She radiated courage and strength. I will never forget it. Please read her speech here. She co-founded the Pediatric AIDS Foundation with her two close friends, Susan DeLaurentis and Susan Zeeger and continued to fight for increasing funds for AIDS research until her death on December 3rd,1994 at the age of 47. Jake played the piano at her memorial service held on the cliffs of Malibu. She was, and is, a warrior, a crusader and an inspiration to people everywhere. Thank you, Elizabeth.

What began at a kitchen table in 1988 with her two best friends, Susan and Susie, and with the full support and added strength from Paul, a $500,000 loan from Paul's aunt, Vera List, the Pediatric AIDS Foundation was formed. Their mission: to create a future of hope for children and families worldwide by eradicating pediatric AIDS, providing care and treatment to people with HIV/AIDS, and accelerating the discovery of new treatments for other serious and life-threatening pediatric illnesses. Today, it is the leading national non-profit organization dedicated to identifying, funding and conducting critical pediatric AIDS research.

Here on March 13, 1990, Paul and Elizabeth testify before the House Budget Subcommittee in Washington, DC to continue and to increase their budget for funding for pediatric AIDS research. You can read what they had to say here:

In the fall of 1990, Elizabeth was honored by Helen Hayes and she received a donation towards the Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

1994 began the decline of Elizabeth's health, the HIV virus was now full blown AIDS and as Susan Deluarentis recalls, in a Hello magazine interview, "Elizabeth became more dependent on Paul. He made her feel safe. She wanted him to be there, and he stayed by her side, day in and day out." It would be on Dec. 3rd, 1994, that Elizabeth Meyer Glaser, died from complications of AIDS. Through her tireless efforts, her courage and her strength, today fewer children are being born with HIV and children with HIV infection are living longer and healthier lives. As Paul stated in 1991, “We are making progress in the war against AIDS, but it is far from over. It certainly isn’t won.” Following her death, the Elizabeth Glaser Scientists Award was established to fund research into the AIDS virus and on World AIDS Day on December 1st, 1997, the Pediatric AIDS Foundation was re-named the "Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation." Please read her autobiography "In The Absence of Angels" It's a wonderful and passionate chronicle of courage, love and hope from her struggle of desperation and sorrow to a call to action for the fight against AIDS.

And, undoubtedly, though, some of Paul's best work is this, the fight against AIDS. Thank you Paul for all that you do.

You can help by making donation's of any size to EGPAF or even plan your own fundraiser. Contact EGPAF for ideas and help.

It would not be until 1992 that Paul began directing again. His first film was "The Cutting Edge" A wonderful story about  a figure skater and a hockey player. In 1994, Paul directed "The Air Up There" starring Kevin Bacon. That film was dedicated to Paul's son Jake.

In 1995, a couple months after Elizabeth's death, Paul received a phone call and was asked if he had or knew of any roles for Shaque O'Neal. Jokingly, he replied "NO, he otta play a genie" and then hung up the phone. Thinking that that was not a bad idea, while attending the All Star Game in Phoenix, he met and presented his idea to Shaque O'Neal's attorney/manager who also liked it. Keeping himself focused during this incredible time of grief, Paul immersed himself in writing the screenplay for (as well as produced and directed) "KAZAAM". He presented his project to Ms. Tracy Barone, president of Peters Entertainment and 10 1/2 weeks later he had a green light!. Of Tracy, Paul says "And so we started having, ah, conversations about this project, then I asked her out for lunch and I grilled her"28. She became his supporter, provider of feedback, "my mirror"29. This project proved to be a spiritual journey in which he once again found peace in his heart. In regards to "KAZAAM". Paul says: "It was very meaningful to me because, you know, I was-for me it was about my heart - about finding my heart. And I had a great time doing it. "30

"KAZAAM" is dedicated to Elizabeth, Ariel and Jake. It's a cute movie and I hope that you will watch it and enjoy it as much as I do. Jake has an acting debut in Kazaam as "Jake", "Max's" friend and classmate.

In June of 1995, Paul took over for Elizabeth as chairman of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation, every year he hosts benefits for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation some of which include: in California - picnics, golf tournaments, etc;  New York City Kids for Kids Carnival (celebrities who man carnival booths and pose for pictures). It is his way of honoring the loved ones he lost and his way of contributing to help find a cure for the disease that continues to take so many lives. Here in the USA, through the efforts of the EGPAF, the transmission of AIDS from mother to child has decreased to less than 2%. A remarkable achievement.

In Santa Fe, New Mexico, on November 24, 1996, Paul married Peters Entertainment President Tracy Barone. Together, they have a daughter, Zoe Anne (Oct. 7,1997) and share their love of Jake and their new family.

On world AIDs Day, December 1st, 1997, Paul Michael Glaser presented First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton with the EGPAF first "Commitment to Children Award." "Hillary embodies Elizabeth's dedication and compassion in working tirelessly to improve the lives of children," said Paul Glaser, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. "Her ongoing work will provide a healthier future for all children by giving them a voice and focusing the nation's attention on urgent health issues."

Paul has continued to work mostly behind the scenes, producing and directing films. He appeared as himself in a documentary film Special Effects: Anything Can Happen (1996) , an IMAX production that explores ground-breaking special effects in film.

In March 2000, Mr. Glaser and the EGPAF founded the Glaser Pediatric Research Network. This network will benefit scientists world wide as it provides a medium for physicians to share and collaborate their medical findings and new therapies in pediatric illnesses. It will also serve as an advocate for public policy is regarding children's health issues and for training of the next generation of pediatric scientists.

On June 1st, 2000, Ty, Inc. announced the arrival of "Ariel" the Beanie Baby. 100% of the profits were donated to the EGPAF. Ariel Beanies were given out to pediatric patients at the Mattel Children's Hospital in LA by Paul and hospital staff. Paul: "Our heartfelt appreciation goes out to Ty Warner and all our friends at Ty. The Ariel Beanie baby will help us raise awareness about the impact of HIV and AIDS while raising critically necessary funds for pediatric research. Ty's extraordinary gift will help us continue our quest to discover a vaccine and cure. Through partnerships like this, we continue our battle against the complacency of this disease." (Marybeth's Bean Bag World Magazine, 2000) A total of $ was raised by the sale of Ariel the Beanie. Later that year, Ariel "beanie buddy" made her debut. You can read more about it here.

The poem inside Ariel's tag reads
"In memory: 1981 - 1988."
May little children everywhere,
Remember that we'll always care,
And Ariel's dreams will all come true,
Because she'll share them all with you.

In 2001, after 17 years, and to our delight, Paul stepped back in front of the camera as Detective Frank Gugliatta in the true murder story "And Never Let Her Go". Currently, Paul is taking a more active role in writing as well as directing.  He also made an appearance in the independent film "F -Stops" and directed "Peppermint Lounge" unfortunately, they have not been released.

On May,8,2001, Paul testified before a Senate committee on Capitol Hill in support of the pediatric drug testing provision within the Food and Drug Administration Modernization Act of 1997 (FDAMA). The need for continued federal incentives for drug companies to test and develop pharmaceuticals to combat childhood disease is essential. Each day, for example, more than 1,600 babies are newly infected with HIV around the world.  The provision has successfully encouraged drug companies to test drugs for use in children by offering six months of additional exclusive sales on drugs studied for children. Prior to the passage of this provision in 1997, the drug manufacturers promised 70 pediatric studies of marketed drugs but completed only 11 studies. In the three years since the enactment of the law, more than 300 pediatric drug studies have been initiated. In a study for Congress, the FDA concluded that the incentives are "highly effective." Paul testified that 80 percent of the most commonly prescribed medications had never been tested for use by children. Without this critical data, doctors are often forced to rely on anecdotal information or guesswork when prescribing drugs for their pediatric patients. The results of this have sometimes been tragic. As recently as 1999, seven newborns who received the widely prescribed drug erythromycin became seriously ill and required surgery because the drug had not been tested in this age group.

In his testimony, Paul applauded Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Mike DeWine (R-OH) for drafting a bill that reauthorize's the necessary pediatric testing provisions while including much-needed improvements in the law, including the study of generic medicines, prompt changes in safety and efficacy information upon the completion of studies, wider dissemination of study results, a stronger emphasis on studies of newborns and the creation of a new office of pediatric therapeutics to highlight the importance of pediatrics within the FDA.31 Please read his testimony here.

Always busy, on Oct.23, 2001 on CBS, Paul directed an episode of "Judging Amy" entitled " Look Closer" followed by episodes on several other television programs: "The Agency" (2001) (episode "Double crossover") (episode "Son Set") (episode "The Golden Hour"), "Robbery Homicide Division" (2002) (episode "Absolute Perfection") (episode "Had") (episode "In/Famous") ... aka "R.H.D./LA: Robbery Homicide Division/ Los Angeles" (2002), "Mister Sterling" (2003) (episode "Final Passage" aka "The Price").

On Oct.22, 2001, the 3rd Annual EGPAF celebrity Golf Tournament was held at the Riviera Country Club. Completely underwritten, this event raised more than $525,000! Some of the guests who participate include James Caan, Andy Gracia, Sylvester Stallone, Peter Falk, Joe Pesci, Chris ODonnell to name just a few! This is a great fundraising event and Paul is the chair person at this event every year. In 2002 it raised $673,000 and in 2003 it raised close to $650,000 with Paul's team of ADIDAS executives and himself winning the top honor.

In 2002, Paul, in addition to his directing various episodes from the CBS dramas, stepped down as Chairman of EGPAF and into the role of Honorary Chairman. He continues his work as activist in the fight against AIDS and his work as director, writer, producer. Also, released in 2002, on DVD is "Fiddler on the Roof" in which  Paul sings "Any Day Now"! He has a beautiful baritone voice. Unfortunately for his fans, this song was not included in the original film.You can order your copy through AMAZON. Please do so through the EGPAF website (or the Greatergood.com) as 15% of the sales will be donated to the EGPAF.

On July 1st, 2003. Paul was the recipient of the 2003 "Lifetime Achievement Award" presented to him by the "Phoenix Body Positive". About 900 tickets were sold in the events elegant "Night for Life 2003". Larry King presented Paul his award. Paul has been given many awards including the Louis D. Brandeis Humanitarian Award from Brandies University.

The new year of 2003 brought fans the beginning of several treasures as Paul resumes his acting career appearing as Diane Keaton's ex-husband Dave Klein in "Something's Gotta Give" and in 2004 as "Capt. Jack Steeper in three episodes of NBC's "Third Watch" .

On March 5th, 2004 "Starsky & Hutch" the movie premiered starring Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson. Both Paul and David had a cameo at the end of the movie. I was lucky to attend an early premier in February and when Paul and David came on screen, everyone in the audience cheered as they gave a standing ovation! It was wonderful to witness. You can buy the one and ONLY S&H episodes, season one, two and three, on DVD with the final season to come. Please do so through the GreaterGood.com With the premiere of "Starsky & Hutch" the movie, came many interviews with Paul, David and Antonio. You can read their transcripts on the Interviews page.

Paul is currently keeping busy working on a USA Television Network True Crime Movie-of-the-Week film entitled "Ladies NIght" (to be telecast on February 18, 2005 on USA TV Network) in the lead role of "Art Kirkland"..seductive charmer... killer,writing a book, a TV pilot and 2 screenplays, one of which will hopefully reunite he and David Soul and, in addition, he completed directing a September 2004 episode of "Third Watch". In addition to all that, he makes himself available for speaking engagements.

Jake Glaser now 20, attends college, and is a wonderful spokesman for the EGPAF. Recently he spoke at the Annual Kids for Kids kickoff cocktail party on March 11th, 2004 in New York. Jake addressed the attendees: "Kids for Kids is a special event because it's a chance to put smiles on kids faces, and it reminds us of why we do the work we do...We have to continue to build momentum in our fight to save millions of children who are dealing with HIV/AIDS like me."

Jake made a wonderful presentation at the Kid's for Kid's event in New York on May1st and the "Time For Heroes" in LA in June, 2004. A privilege to hear him speak. Thank you Jake.

The October 18th, 2004 EGPAF Golf Celebrity Classic was held once again at the Riviera Country Club in LA. This annual event raised more than $600,000 this year.

Please take a moment to read his 2004 poem for a peaceful holiday season. "Listen to the Silence" can be read here. A wonderful sentiment for this time of year.

June of 2004 was a busy month from speaking at Stanford University to the filming of "Ladies Night" in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada . Paul enjoys a visit with fan, Shar, proud owner of a Gran Torino. She was requested to visit the set as a surprise for Paul by the film crew. It was a great day for all!

In "Ladies Night", Paul Michael Glaser, is handsome,... seductive... charming,... and deadly as Art Kirkland. Guaranteed to give you the night of your life!

Based on a true story, "Ladies Night" will be airing on USA TV Network February 19th, 2005. A father (Paul) and son team work on seducing female bank employees, convincing them to steal money, kill them, and move on to another victim. The plan works 10 times; it unravels when one of the banks hires a team of insurance investigators to recover its money and they discover a link between several mysterious murders of the past. Now they must stop the killers before they can lure their eleventh victim to her death.

WOW! What a marvelous performance by Paul.

Paul is wickedly wonderful as the villainous charmer! A must for fans.

2005 begins with an unbelievable performance as Art Kirkland in USA TV's true crime series, "Ladies NIght". With incredible prowess, Paul slips into the skin of serial killer Art Kirkland. Charming, seductive and deadly, Paul adds a new dimension to the phrase “psychotic serial killer”.  Don't miss this edgy film! Read more about it on the "Ladies Night" page!

Also on the palate, Paul directed an episode of "Las Vegas" ~ "To Protect and Serve Manicott" which aired Feb. 21st, 2005, guest starring Sylvester Stallone; "Third Watch", "Welcome Home", which aired in April and guest stared Valerie Perrine. In addition, on April 14, 2005, Paul spoke at La Sierra University sharing his journey and experience in the entertainment industry, on celebrity and social activitism. He continued directing with two more episodes of "Las Vegas"; "Double Down, Triple Threat which aired Oct. 3rd, 2005 and his third episode of "Las Vegas" ; "For Sail by Owner" aired on Nov. 28th, 2005.

In February Paul was presented with the "Flame of Hope" award by Georgetown University Medical Center. The Flame of Hope Award recognizes people that share the mission of Georgetown University Children's Medical Center. This award was presented to Paul on February 25th 2006 in recognition of his devoted service through the EGPAF in helping to improve the quality of life for children.

Paul had an acting role in an independent film, "LIVE!", a mockumentary on reality TV filmed in June, 2006. In it, he plays the role of a network president who oversees the production of this TV series where a television executive, Katy (Eva Mendes), produces a show called "Live!" in which show contestants play the game of Russian Roulette with a loaded gun!

Paul was recently honored by "Our House" , Oct. 2006, at the Beverly HIlton in Beverly Hills, CA. You can read his speech here.

As 2007 begins, he is currently working on writing 2 novels for young adults (everyone really!) as well as directing various television programs, and although it has not yet been picked up by FOX, he filmed a temporary role as "Bailey Hughes" in six episodes of "Faceless". And the film 'LIVE!', debut at the Tribecca Film Festival in NY in April.

On June 25th, Paul filed for divorce from Tracy Barone Glaser after almost 11 years of marriage.

Paul returns to the stage as 'Capt. Hook' in Britain's traditional Christmas Pantomime theater presentation of 'Peter Pan' beginning November 30, 2007! This unique audience participating theater work continues through Jan. 13th, 2008! Read more about Peter Pan here!

Come and be prepared to 'boo and hisssssssssssssss' at your favorite villain of all time! Get ready for fabulous singing by Paul!

The journey continues.......................

Check out his poetry page!

Written by Pam with some contributions from Paul Michael Glaser

"The power is in you,.. in your heart" Kaazam, 1996

Some Words of Wisdom from Paul's Commencement Speech at Tulane Univ. May,1998:

"I hope that you choose ultimately to follow your heart, and learn that whatever your plans, your goals, your dreams, life will take you in directions you haven't even dreamed of. Be open to the path not chosen, the door unopened, welcome your fear, and the choices that allow you that fear....Through all the changes, through all the disappointments, the unexpected turns, the victories, and the pain, the losses that you will experience, there will always be a constant, along with your breath, there will always be one thing that you will know, that you have the ability to choose your heart."
"I hope you never stop asking the questions, who am I? Who do I want to be? For it is in the asking that we define ourselves. So go out there and confront your dragons, and you may find that they are angels in disguise, and that your ability to embrace them will define you in ways you never thought possible."
Paul Michael Glaser, 1998 ,Tulane Commencement Address

Some other quotes by Paul
"Our ability to love is our truest power, our greatest power as human beings."   Paul Michael Glaser   

“To give, to acknowledge another’s existence, acknowledges our own.  It acknowledges our common bond as living beings.  It acknowledges that we journey together.  It acknowledges the unique struggle that each of us has as humans, that all of us share in this life.  It allows us to experience our compassion for each other and for ourselves.  When we do that, we open our hearts and know love. When we know love, we know why we exist.”
- Paul Michael Glaser
from the book Santa’s Gift, by Jeffrey W. Comment
This is a wonderful book by Jeffrey W. Comment. I highly recommend that you get a copy. 100% of proceeds are donated to the EGPAF.

One of Paul's goal-"Learn as much as I can, be at peace as much as I can, and teach as much as I can. "You only go around once," he says. "You have to aim high." Tulane Magazine

Some Paul Insights:
Paul M. Glaser - March 25, 1943
Tracy Barone Glaser--November 1, 1962
Jacob S.I. Glaser--October 25, 1984
Zoe Anne Glaser--Oct.7,1997
Paul and Tracy's wedding Anniversary--November 24, 1996
Divorced: 2007

He currently has 2 adorable pugs.

Elizabeth Meyer Glaser-- 1947 -1994
Ariel Glaser-- 1981 -1988

Affiliations

-Directors Guild of America

-Screen Actors Guild   

-Writers Guild of America         

Other Organizations Paul is involved in that you can support!                               

F.O.C.U.S. Institute of Film

Paul also currently serves on the Board of Trustees for F.O.C.U.S. Institute of Film. Their mission is to "engage the motion picture community to produce a socially responsible commercial film each year for the benefit of homeless and foster youth in select U. S. cities, and to conduct high profile fundraising premiers to benefit qualified youth in cities hosting these events. F.O.C.U.S. was established in 1996 to co-produce and distribute major commercial films for charity with the motion picture produce. Proceeds from these feature releases will create the scholarship funds. With our support, we can make a difference in our country’s future -- one child, and one city, at a time." (To find out how you can help, see end of page.)

Board of Trustees

How we can help-What can F.O.C.U.S. do with your generous donations?$ 100 - BOX OFFICE SPONSOR: "Star Day" *A celebrity mentor day with a veteran icon in the industry, and a screening of that celebrity's film for a child. Once a month, F.O.C.U.S. will provide a day at a children's home or at a local theater with a celebrity icon to talk about their life and career and how they discovered and lived their dream. Your $100 donation will pay for one child to attend on "Star Day." All "Star Days" will be filmed on HD Digital for streaming video on the F.O.C.U.S. website.
$ 5,000 - FEATURE SPONSOR: "F.O.C.U.S. Screen writing Mentorship Program" *Your donation of all or part of $5000 will develop a screenplay through the F.O.C.U.S. Mentorship Program for production as a charitable film. Sponsors of F.O.C.U.S. Screen writing Mentorship Program will receive Co-Executive Producer credit on films sponsored. 

Please visit their site if you're interested in making a donation, supporting or volunteering.

                                                More  F.O.C.U.S. INFO
"We at the F.O.C.U.S. Institute of Film have designed a way for the film industry to use its influence and resources to meet this challenge head-on, and lend a helping hand to America’s at-risk youth. As we launch F.O.C.U.S. Films, our charitable motion picture effort, we face the immediate challenge of reaching all the foster children in America who need our help. The next few pages will explain how we can accomplish this goal and how, with your support, we can make a difference in our country’s future -- one child, and one city, at a time."

The Unusual Suspects Theatre

Advisory Council- Paul Michael Glaser

"The program was created in 1993 after the Los Angeles riots to empower young people by giving them a voice, and to ease racial tensions. The Unusual Suspects gives the kids an effective tool for communication by helping them to create original theatre drawn from their lives.  Their mission statement  is to bring theatre arts to at-risk teens. Through improvisation and writing exercises, professionals in the arts work to help young people create original theatre and to foster pride, self confidence and racial tolerance."

Please visit their site if you're interested in making a donation, supporting or volunteering.

Paul is 5'11, blue eyes, dark brown curly hair.

Paul's favorite color is BLUE

-Paul enjoys painting, tennis, swimming, jogging, spending time with family, writing screen plays. He's an avid golfer and loves to read.

Paul- July 2000, donated his famous sweater from season1 and his brown leather jacket from season 4 to Kim who graciously posted these on ebay. All donations from these auctions went to the EGPAF. Thanks to Kim for making this auction possible for such a great cause.
-Grand total for the sweater $3,400.00 with a total of 42 bids!

-The famous leather jacket went for $26,100 with a total of 51 bids. Complete with 4 bullet holes!

-Paul  into yoga and meditation, jogging and tennis, and health foods. "I stick to a nutritious diet because my life and my body are gifts and the least I can do is take care of them."

-Paul -"I had dreams of being a great theater actor. I thought, 'I'll never go Hollywood.' Well, maybe I'd do a film, but I'd never live there." He has lived in California now for over 30 years!

Paul-"It alludes to my own need to be perfect. That's probably my biggest problem, the need to know everything, and to be the best at everything - the best actor, the best friend, the best lover, etc. Every time I fall short I kick myself around the block, I set very high goals for myself, and it's not fair to me."

-Paul-"Being a celebrity forces me to get in touch and stay in touch or at least try to more than I ever did before. So you don't lose yourself, don't lose your balance."

-Paul- (in 1977)…"my biggest concern about this series, Starsky and Hutch, and the success of it, is that I may lose my dreams. Dreams are what make you take chances. What I want most to do in my future work is to communicate with people."
One dream is to play Richard III. "He's one of my favorite characters. Not just as Shakespeare wrote him but as Shakespeare wrote him juxtaposed with his actual historic self - a great man who has been made to look very evil and the only cognizance of his immortality is Shakespeare. I would like to play him to the heights of comedy against the heights of despair and come up with some very real humanity."S&H Monthly

Paul-(1976)-"This Houdini film is a step in the right direction," he says, "it gives the industry a chance to see me do something besides Starsky. And that's what I need. Naturally I prefer to make movies because an actor can paint on a larger canvas. There's more money, more selectivity and fame in movies. But I try to keep in mind that movies are a director's medium, television is the producer's medium and the theatre is the actor's medium. And there is a great deal of conflict involved between the three."

Paul appeared in The 70s: The Decade That Changed Television, an ABC program exploring the role of television within American society.  Paul was interviewed for the section on 1970s cop shows, and his comments about Starsky and Hutch included the following: "I think that in the relationship of these two characters, people found a tremendous amount of trust and dependency on each other and the fact that, in the midst of this chaotic world, such a relationship could exist."

Paul's recipe for Curried Squash Soup as reported by S&H Monthly

"Preparation Time : about 1 1/2 hours
Serves 4
Ingredients :
2 cups chopped onions
3 tablespoons sweet butter
4 to 5 tablespoons best quality curry powder
3 pounds butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 pound apples, cored and chopped
3 cups homemade chicken stock
1 cup unfiltered apple juice
Fresh cilantro for garnish