Starsky and Hutch, A Short Overview

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A short introduction to the four primary characters of our favorite show.

 

Originally published in the SHareCon 2008 zine.

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He’s the curly-headed one. Left-handed (all the better for pulling his Smith & Wesson Model 59 9mm automatic aka Baretta), drove his 1974 Candy Apple Red Ford Torino (license plate number 537-ONN), and often drove Hutch to distraction. He also wore VERY tight jeans which made the viewing experience that much more pleasurable.

Though concrete facts in the SH universe are often absent, his birth-date is often said to be the same as Paul himself, March 25,1943. Starsky was born in New York and his father was killed when he was very young (believed to be a cop, but maybe not). His mother (who is still alive and whom he calls every Friday) sent him away, but kept his brother Nick close at hand. After spending his youth with his Uncle Al, Starsky may (or may not) have joined the Army.

We do know he joined the Academy and that’s the beginning of the partnership with Hutch. His current rank is Detective Sergeant with the Bay City Police Department, serving under Captain Dobey, and he often keeps his ear to the street by way of his favorite snitch and all-around good friend Huggy Bear. He and Hutch are best friends, the most conspicuous undercover cops you’ll ever meet, and like to show their devotion for one another, often by touching A LOT. Starsky often finds any way possible to unbutton his shirt down to mid-chest, so he shows off his chest hair.

He’s the blond one. Right-handed (often pulling out his Colt Python .357 Magnum—six inch barrel, making an overall length of 11.5 inches), drove a horrid Ford LTD that looked like it was condemned, but thankfully he mostly rode in the Torino. Oh, but he also had cute little Belle. Never forget!

He came from money, fine Minnesota money. It’s not known about his family, but his mother is still alive during the series because he mentions her. He was once married to Vanessa, but they divorced and during the third season of the show she is killed (we cried…joyful tears). In the pilot he mentions a Nancy, which may have been Vanessa’s nickname or may have been the first Mrs. Hutchinson (SH canon…wide open!). He may or may not have gone to medical school before he joined the Academy, but he sure knows a lot about medicine.

Hutch joined the Academy and that’s the beginning of the partnership with Starsky. His current rank is Detective Sergeant with the Bay City Police Department, also serving under Captain Dobey, and he utilizes Huggy Bear when the time is right. Hutch has this chest touching he does when he’s hot…it makes us a little hot, too. He also has this thing with hookers, but we don’t question it.

 

Captain Dobey is the man in charge, though at times it seems like the monkeys are running the asylum. He’s a family man who has a wife (Edith), a son (Cal), and a daughter (Rosie). After the pilot, the good Captain took a throat lozenge and miraculously changed in a lot of ways. 😉

He had a green 1973 Ford that apparently doubled for the get-away car for half the bad guys in Bay City. Maybe he should just stick to his pretty white four-door instead.

He adores his boys, even when they’re driving him up the wall. Now if he could just teach Starsky to stop kicking his office door shut maybe his blood pressure wouldn’t shoot up so high. Or maybe that has more to do with the ever-expanding waistline.

 

Huggy is a man of many talents and he puts them all to good use in Bay City. He had a bar named “Huggy Bear’s” and then he lost it. Before becoming a bar owner again he went through a multitude of jobs, such as magician, street vendor, pet store clerk, private investigator, personal cab driver, and all-the-time snitch.

This is a man with a lot of cars and a lot of family (seriously, pick a town or country, Huggy’s got family there). The streets are cool with Huggy and Huggy is cool with the streets. The bad guys know that Huggy is the direct line to Starsky and Hutch, but when they’re not beating him up in order to get the boys’ attention it’s apparently okay to use Huggy for all their fencing and connection needs.

Huggy often walks that fine line between one side of the law and the other, but he does it with such style that we’re cool with it.