Paul Michael Glaser (born Paul Manfred Glaser; March 25, 1943) is an American actor, director, and writer whose career has spanned five decades. He made his acting debut in the television series Love Is a Many Splendored Thing and went onto have many acting roles, appearing in The Waltons, The Streets of San Francisco, and Kojak. Glaser rose to prominence for his portrayal as "Detective Dave Starsky" in the 1970s television series, Starsky & Hutch and went on to write and direct five episodes for the show.^[1][2][3] Following the show's success, he ventured into directing for other series including Miami Vice, Judging Amy, and Las Vegas.

Glaser also had some success in movies and made his acting film debut in the musical film Fiddler on the Roof and starred in the box office hit Something's Gotta Give. He also directed the cult classic film The Cutting Edge and the moderately successful box office film The Running Man. In the early 2000's, he played Captain Jack Steeper on the NBC series Third Watch from 2004 to 2005, appeared in several episodes of Ray Donovan during the 2010s, and had minor roles in Criminal Minds and The Mentalist. Glaser had his first U.S. exhibition of his art work in 2018.

Paul Manfred Glaser was born March 25, 1943, in Cambridge, Massachusetts,^[1] the youngest child and only son of Samuel Glaser, an MIT graduate and well-known Boston architect, and his wife Dorothy. He grew up in Brookline and Newton.^[1] He was raised Jewish, and although Dorothy was an agnostic, and the family did not observe Shabbat, the family did celebrate the religion's major holidays, including Glaser's own bar mitzvah. Samuel designed a shul in Rhode Island.^[2]

Glaser attended the Buckingham Browne & Nichols School until 1961 before transferring to the Cambridge School of Weston, completing high school. He attended Tulane University, where he was roommates with film director Bruce Paltrow, majoring in theater and English with a minor in architecture and graduated in 1966.^[4] He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity. He earned a master's degree in fine arts from Boston University in acting and directing in 1967.^[5]

Glaser made his movie debut as Perchick in the 1971 movie version of the musical Fiddler on the Roof. He found fame playing Detective Dave Starsky opposite David Soul in the television series Starsky & Hutch, of which he directed several episodes. It ran for four seasons (1975–1979) on ABC.^{[citation needed]}

After the series, Glaser continued to act on television and in movies, and directed the 1987 film The Running Man starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as well as the 1992 movie The Cutting Edge. He also directed episodes of several TV series, including Miami Vice, Robbery Homicide Division and Judging Amy. Glaser returned to the big screen in 2003 in Something's Gotta Give, as Diane Keaton's ex-husband, and with a brief cameo in the 2004 film version of Starsky & Hutch, in which Starsky was played by Ben Stiller. He directed the children's movie Kazaam featuring Shaquille O'Neal. He guest featured in "The Scarlet Letter", the October 1, 2009, episode of CBS's The Mentalist.

Between 2013 and 2019, Glaser appeared as Alan in several episodes of the television series Ray Donovan. In an interview published in April 2018, Glaser, having not acted since that role was asked if he had retired from acting, and replied, "People ask me, 'What's your favorite: acting, directing or writing?' My answer: What life occurs. It's what happens. You never know when something will cross your path. I try to stay open to everything. I'm doing a guest appearance on Grace and Frankie right now. As long as it's a good group of people, I'm open to anything. That's the thing I enjoy most about filmmaking or acting: experience." That same month, Glaser had his first American solo exhibition for his paintings and digital illustrations at Cosmo Lofts in Hollywood. The show was titled "Act III", because his foray as an artist marked the third stage of his career, following acting in front of the camera, and writing/directing behind it.^[6]

Glaser has been married twice. He married his first wife, Elizabeth Glaser, in 1980. In August 1981, she contracted HIV through a blood transfusion while giving birth to the couple's first child, Ariel. Elizabeth did not know that she was infected with the virus until four years later, when both she and Ariel became sick with a mysterious illness. When the entire family was tested, Elizabeth, Ariel and the couple's one-and-a-half-year-old son Jake were found to be HIV positive. Ariel died three years later, soon after her seventh birthday. ^[7][8] Elizabeth died December 3, 1994.^[9]

Glaser later married Tracy Barone, who adopted Jake, who was 10 years old at the time. The couple had a daughter, Zoe. That marriage ended^[8] with Glaser filing for divorce in June 2007.

As of 2007, Jake remained healthy,^[10] and as of 2016, had maintained his relationship with Tracy.^[8]