Paul Michael Glaser Biography

Summary

"Paul Michael Glaser" (born March 25, 1943) is an American actor and director.

Biography

Originally Paul Manfred Glaser, he was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the youngest of three children. His parents were Dorothy and Samuel Glaser. Glaser attended Tulane University, where he was roommates with film director Bruce Paltrow, and earned a Master's degree in English and theater in 1966. He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity. He earned a second master's degree from Boston University in acting and directing in 1967.

Glaser has been married twice. He married his first wife, Elizabeth (Meyer) Glaser, in 1980. In August 1981, Elizabeth contracted HIV through a blood transfusion while giving birth to the couple's first child, Ariel. Elizabeth did not find out about the virus until four years later, at which time both Ariel and son Jake (born October 1984) were also found to be HIV positive. Ariel Glaser died in August 1988; Elizabeth Glaser died in 1994, after founding the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. After Elizabeth's death, Glaser served as chairman of the foundation until 2002 and remains Honorary Chairman, roles in which he has testified before the United States Congress and met with national leaders, as well as headlining annual fundraisers for the organization.

Glaser married producer Tracy Barone in 1996; the couple had a daughter, Zoe, in 1997. Glaser filed for divorce in June of 2007, citing 'irreconcilable differences' as the reason for ending his 10-year marriage. He was seeking joint legal and physical custody of their daughter.

Career

After appearing in several Broadway productions, Glaser appeared in his first feature film in 1971, playing Perchik in the film version of "Fiddler on the Roof". He first gained notice on television playing Dr. Peter Chernak on the daytime series "Love is a Many Splendored Thing", and made guest appearances on shows such as: "The Rockford Files", but found fame playing Detective David Starsky opposite David Soul in the television show "Starsky and Hutch", of which he directed several episodes. It ran for four seasons (1975-1979) on ABC.

After the series, Glaser continued to act on television and in films, and directed the 1987 movie "The Running Man" starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as well as the 1992 movie "The Cutting Edge". He also directed episodes of several well-known TV series, including "Robbery Homicide Division" and "Judging Amy". Glaser returned to the big screen in 2004 in both "Something's Gotta Give" as Diane Keaton's ex-husband and with a brief cameo in the 2004 film version of "Starsky & Hutch", where his old role was reprised by Ben Stiller. He also directed the children's film "Kazaam" starring Shaquille O'Neal.