Thorsten Kaye — A Biography
Born Thorsten Ernst Kieselbach in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, before the family moved to London.
A gifted athlete, Kaye earned a scholarship in track (decathlon) to the U.S. International University in San Diego, but a serious motorcycle accident changed his fate and lead him to Wayne State University in Detroit, where earned a master’s degree in Theater and Theater history.
Thorsten tackled many theater roles in both London and at the Hilberry Repertory Company in Detroit including such classics as The Winter’s Tale, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, Tartuffe, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Twelfth Night, and The Taming of the Shrew. It was Kaye’s move to Los Angeles that opened the door to film and television to the thespian.
He landed roles in Deadly Desire, Sidney Sheldon’s Nothing Lasts Forever and The Silencers, before signing on to play Irish poet, Patrick Thornhart.
Thorsten quickly became a fan favorite and met his future partner-in-life, Susan Haskell. After a two-year stint, he added more credits to his resume such as Sliders, Air America, The Prophet’s Game, Falcone, and Shark Attack 2.
In 2000, it was back to Los Angeles to play Patrick’s brother, Dr. Ian Thornhart on Port Charles until the show’s run ended in 2003. He received two Emmy nominations for his role as the dedicated physician.
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Back on the East Coast, Thorsten joined the cast of All My Children as Zach Slater from 2004 – 2011. He had a brief break to do Occupant and a stint on Smash, before returning to AMC as Zach.
In 2013, it was announced that Thorsten would take over the role of Ridge Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful.
He added credits such as The Stafford Project, Animal, Falling Water, But Deliver Us From Evil, and For Thine Is The Kingdom while working on B&B and flying to the east coast to spend time with his family.
Thorsten is bi-coastal, living in Los Angeles while taping The Bold and the Beautiful, and flying back to New York to be with life-partner, Susan Haskell, and their two daughters, McKenna and Marlowe.
Follow him on Twitter @Iamthorstenkaye, Instagram @iamthorstenkaye, and Facebook.
The Bold and the Beautiful (BB) airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes. To find out what his character is currently up to on The Bold and the Beautiful, click here.
Fast Facts
- February 22, 1966— Birthdate
- Moved to the US in 1985 on a track (decathlon) scholarship.
- A serious motorcycle accident sidelined an athletic career.
- After a rugby tour through Europe, Kaye enrolled in graduate school at Wayne State University in Detroit, where he earned his master’s degree in theater and theater history.
- Thorsten is the author of two books: “From Timber Ridge to Daymer Gardens: A Journey in Words,” co-written with the late Dorothy Bridges, and “A Solid Wheel of Colored Ribbons,” a book of children’s poems with illustrations by Tami Evans Foster (to be published in the spring of 2009).
- Thorsten enjoys music, literature, riding American motorcycles, hockey (following the Detroit Red Wings), and football (he is a Miami Dolphins fan).
