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Roots -

David Hasselhoff was born on July 17, 1952 in Baltimore, Maryland. The Hoff is of English, Irish, and German descent. He has four sisters.

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Beginnings -

David Hasselhoff started to take acting, singing, and dancing lessons at the age of seven.

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Higher education -

He went on to graduate with a degree in theater from the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts).

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First appearance -

David Hasselhoff's first TV appearance was as Dr. Snapper Foster on the CBS' soap opera ‘The Young and the Restless,’ this in 1973.

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He starred in B movies -

In the meantime, Hoff's career in movies started to take off. For instance, he appeared in the 1976 film ‘Revenge of the Cheerleaders.’

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Enter the ‘Knight Rider’ (1982–1986) -

But David Hasselhoff had his big breakthrough with the starring role of Michael Knight on the TV show ‘Knight Rider.’ The Hoff and his talking car K.I.T.T. became hugely popular all over the world.

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Music career -

The Hoff had a successful music career, mostly in Europe and especially in Germany, where his 1989 single ‘Looking for Freedom’ remained in the number one spot on the charts for eight weeks in a row!

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Iconic performance -

David Hasselhoff performed at the Berlin Wall on New Year's Eve 1989, shortly after its fall.

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‘Baywatch’ (1989-2001) -

In 1989, David Hasselhoff returned to TV as Mitch Buchannon in another worldwide success: ‘Baywatch.’ The Hoff not only starred in the series, but he also worked as an executive producer and bought the rights to the show.

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Slow-mo scenes -

As a producer, he made some ingenious decisions. The iconic slow-motion scenes of fit lifeguards running on the beach, for example,  were actually done to save money. “We didn’t have enough financing to finish the show, so we found a way to fill the hour by shooting people in slow motion,” explained Hasselhoff. “We said, ‘Well, girls in bathing suits look good running in slow motion, let’s just shoot that.’ And we found out that the audience kinda liked it.”

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Hollywood Walk of Fame -

In 1996, David Hasselhoff was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

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The Hoff is a Broadway star -

In addition to TV and music, David Hasselhoff also made a name for himself in theater. He played main roles in numerous Broadway musicals and other productions, including ‘Jekyll and Hyde: The Musical,’ ‘Chicago,’ ‘The Producers,’ ‘Peter Pan,’ and ‘Last Night a DJ Saved My Life,’ among others.

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Self-parody -

The Hoff doesn’t take himself too seriously. In fact, he is known for his self-parodic appearances in movies, shows, and even music videos.

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Self-parody -

Examples include his funny appearances in ‘The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie’ (2004), and in his music video for ‘Jump in My Car.’

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Comedy Central -

In 2010, the Hoff was honored with the ‘Comedy Central Roast of David Hasselhoff.’

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He holds a Guinness World Record -

David Hasselhoff has got his name on the Guinness Book of World Records as "The Most Watched TV Star in the World," thanks to his roles in 'Knight Rider' and 'Baywatch.'

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"Hoffisms" -

"Hoffisms" are essentially puns on The Hoff. Some examples include Some Like It Hoff, the Wizard of Hoff, and Desperate Hoffwives.

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"Don't hassle The Hoff" -

David Hasselhoff's famous catchphrase was first coined in an Australian show. David Hasselhoff said he received an email from a woman about the puns, which he found hilarious.

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"Don't hassle The Hoff" -

“I was talking about the whole phenomenon and I said, like I was talking to the secretaries, ‘I have a saying for you: Don’t hassle the Hoff!’ And that’s when it all blew up and went crazy,” shared Hasselhoff.

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He wrote an autobiography -

David Hasselhoff's autobiography ‘Making Waves’ was released in 2006. A year later, he released 'Don't Hassel the Hoff: The Autobiography.'

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He hosted talk shows in Sweden and Finland -

In 2014, The Hoff hosted a talk show called ‘Hasselhoff - en svensk talkshow,’ in Sweden. The following year it was time for him to take on 'The David Hasselhoff Show' in Finland.

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He launched his own social network -

In 2008, Dave Hasselhoff launched a social networking site called HoffSpace (similar to Myspace). The site no longer exists.

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TV work -

In 2010, David Hasselhoff joined ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ He had previously joined the judging panel on ‘America's Got Talent' from 2006 to 2009. Later in 2011 he could be seen on ‘Britain's Got Talent.'

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Odd coincidence -

One of David Hasselhoff’s ex-wives, Catherine Hickland, married a man named Michael E. Knight. Of course, The Hoff famously played Michael Knight on ‘Knight Rider.’

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He struggled with addiction -

In 2007, a video shot by Hasselhoff’s daughter, Taylor Ann (left), surfaced online. The video showed The Hoff drunk inside his home and his daughter asking him to stop drinking.

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He recorded a metal song -

In 2020, Hasselhoff joined forces with Austrian duo CueStack and released his first heavy metal song, titled ‘Through the Night.’

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Hasselhoff is on Cameo -

Yes, you can get David Hasselhoff to sing you or a loved one 'Happy Birthday.' How cool is that, right?

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There’s a crab named after him -

In 2012, scientists discovered a new kind of squat lobster in Antarctica and named it “The Hoff crab” (scientific name Kiwa tyleri). The crab happened to have a hairy chest, just like David Hasselhoff.

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‘Hoff the Record’ (2015) -

The British mockumentary series follows David Hasselhoff as he moves to the UK and tries to resurrect his career.

Sources: (IMDb) (Mental Floss) (Men's Health) (Eighties Kids)

See also: The best mockumentaries of all time

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