Thorsten Kaye (born Thorsten Ernst Kieselbach, 22 February 1966) is a German-British-American actor. He is best known for his soap opera roles as Dr. Ian Thornhart on Port Charles, Zach Slater on All My Children and Ridge Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful. For his performances, he received nine Daytime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, winning the award twice, in 2023 and 2024, for his role as Ridge Forrester.
Acting career Kaye was born in Frankfurt, Federal Republic of Germany. He appeared in many classical theater roles, including The Winter's Tale, Tartuffe, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, Love's Labour's Lost, Twelfth Night, and The Taming of the Shrew, both in London and with the Hilberry Repertory Company in Detroit.
Kaye then moved to Los Angeles, where he acted in many television shows, including the miniseries, Sidney Sheldon's Nothing Lasts Forever, before moving to New York to play Patrick Thornhart on ABC's One Life to Live (1995–1997). The character gained quite a bit of popularity, and it is where he would meet his real life partner, Susan Haskell. After completing a two-year stint on OLTL, Thorsten did some guest starring work for other shows, as well as starring in a few feature films.
In April 2000, Thorsten accepted the role of the dedicated physician Ian Thornhart (Patrick's older brother) on the ABC daytime soap (and the spin-off show of General Hospital), Port Charles (2000–2003). He appeared on the soap until its run ended in October 2003. Thorsten received two Daytime Emmy Award Nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor for his portrayal of Ian in 2003 and 2004.
In April 2004, Thorsten returned to New York to join the cast of the ABC soap All My Children in the role of casino owner, Zach Slater. He was nominated for two Daytime Emmy Awards in 2006 and 2009. Thorsten portrayed Slater until December 2009. He returned three times in 2010, and again in 2011 to bring Zach's storyline to a close when AMC came to an end after 41 years, in September 2011.
Thorsten Kaye has one of the lead roles in a new psychological thriller (feature-length film) titled Occupant, which was released in the U.S and Canada in October 2011 on demand in many cable/satellite markets as well as on most digital platforms, including iTunes, Amazon, Blockbuster, and PlayStation.
In 2012, Kaye began appearing in the role of Nick, a recurring character on the NBC series Smash. In October 2013, it was announced that Kaye was cast to portray Ridge Forrester on The Bold and the Beautiful, replacing originator Ronn Moss, who departed the series in 2012 after 25 years in the role. On 15 December 2023 Kaye became the first German-British to win the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, which he won for his portrayal of Ridge Forrester. He won again in 2024.
Personal life When not working, Kaye enjoys music, literature and riding American motorcycles. He is a fan of the Miami Dolphins and the Detroit Red Wings.
While appearing on One Life to Live, he met his partner, Susan Haskell, who played his on-show love interest (Margaret "Marty" Saybrooke). They have two daughters, McKenna (born February 2003) and Marlowe (born January 2007).
Kaye was an active blogger for the Detroit Red Wings at NHL.com during the 2008 and 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs.Thorsten Kaye – Time to flip the switch – NHL.com
Filmography
+Film roles Year Title Role Notes1996The SilencersJasper2000The Prophet's GameJoey Highsmith (adult)2000Shark Attack 2Dr. Nick HarrisDirect-to-video2011OccupantJoe2014AnimalCarl
+ Television roles Year Title Role Notes1991Deadly DesireAirport AgentTV film1995Nothing Lasts ForeverJury ForemanTV film1995–1997One Life to LivePatrick ThornhartRegular role1998SlidersRalph HackettEpisode: "Asylum"1999Air AmericaSam MoonEpisode: "Fear of Flying"2000FalconeIsadore RechelkoEpisode: "Pilot"2000–2003Port CharlesDr. Ian ThornhartRegular role2004–2011, 2013All My ChildrenZach SlaterRegular role2012–2013SmashNick FelderRecurring role, 13 episodes2013–presentThe Bold and the BeautifulRidge ForresterRegular role2016Falling WaterJavier MendozaEpisode: "Castles Made of Sand"
Awards and nominations +List of acting awards and nominations Year Award Category Title Result 1993 Soap Opera Digest Award Outstanding Male Newcomer One Life to Live 2001 Soap Opera Digest Award Outstanding Hero Port Charles Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Port Charles 2003 Soap Opera Digest Award Outstanding Lead Actor Port Charles Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series Port Charles 2005 Soap Opera Digest Award Favourite Return All My Children Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series All My Children Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series All My Children Soap Awards France Best Actor of the Year The Bold and the Beautiful Soap Awards France Best Couple of the Year – "Caroline and Ridge" (shared with Linsey Godfrey) The Bold and the Beautiful Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Bold and the Beautiful Soap Hub Awards Favorite The Bold and the Beautiful Actor The Bold and the Beautiful Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Bold and the Beautiful Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Bold and the Beautiful Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Bold and the Beautiful Daytime Emmy Award Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series The Bold and the Beautiful
References
External links
Thorsten Kaye profile ThorstenKaye.com – The Official Thorsten Kaye Web Site