Paul Parsons Satterfield Jr. (born August 19, 1960)[1] is an American actor. He is best known for his roles on daytime soap operas General Hospital (as Paul Hornsby, 1991 to 1994), The Bold and the Beautiful (as Dr. Pierce Peterson, 1998 to 1999, 2001 to 2002), and One Life to Live (as Dr. Spencer Truman, 2005 to 2007). He was also a regular cast member on the WB series Savannah (1996 to 1997).
Early life
Satterfield was raised in Nashville, Tennessee and Jacksonville, Florida, because his father, Paul Sr., was a firefighter during the winter and a lifeguard during the summer. His mother is Priscilla Coolidge and his aunt is Rita Coolidge, who was married to Kris Kristofferson. After his parents' divorce, Satterfield and his sister were often looked after by their aunt. When Satterfield was in the third grade, his mother and stepfather, Booker T. Jones of Booker T. & the M.G.'s, abruptly decided to move the family to California. His mother had landed a record contract and Coolidge and Jones wished to escape the racism they encountered in Tennessee as an interracial couple.[1]
Satterfield's family relocated to Los Angeles, then to Mendocino. He attended Whitman College in Washington on a basketball scholarship, graduating with a bachelor's degree in English.[2][1] He considered playing semi-pro ball in Europe, but decided to move back to Los Angeles. He got a job painting, varnishing, and scrubbing boats in Marina del Rey.[1]
Career
Satterfield first tried acting as a teen, landing a few TV commercials. Gary Busey, a family friend, advised him, "Grow up first, there's plenty of time." He took his advice and waited until after college to begin modeling and taking acting classes.[1]
Satterfield guest starred on an episode of Hunter in 1986.[3] He made his first film appearance in the 1987 horror anthology Creepshow 2, playing the role of Deke in a segment based on a Stephen King's story "The Raft".[4][5] He then landed a starring role in Arena in 1989.[6]
Satterfield began portraying Dr. Spencer Truman on the ABC soap opera, One Life to Live in May 2005.[14] In 2006, he performed "The Prayer Song" on One Life: Many Voices for Hurricane Relief, an album of songs by One Life to Live actors to raise funds for victims of Hurricane Katrina.[15] His character on One Life to Live was killed off on January 26, 2007, but Satterfield continued to make appearances via flashbacks and dreams until August 2007.[8][16]
In 2011, he was cast as Lee Nelson on the second season of The Bay.[17]
Personal life
Satterfield married Elizabeth Wells in 1996 and they had two children.[10] They are now divorced.
He finished a Masters Degree in education at Drury University in 2013 and is pursuing a career in education.[2]
On October 2, 2014, his mother, Priscilla Coolidge and stepfather, Michael Seibert, were found dead from a murder-suicide at their home in Thousand Oaks, California. Seibert killed Coolidge with a gunshot wound to the head before turning the gun on himself.[18]
Satterfield is often noted for his striking resemblance to Christopher Reeve, and the two were able to meet before the actor's passing. Reeve joked, "This is driving me crazy. I'm you and you're me." Satterfield agreed that the resemblance was uncanny.[1]
