She rose to fame as a 1970s scream queen and was once married to Dennis Quaid.
The actress made her big-screen debut in 1976 as Norma Watson in Carrie, directed by Brian De Palma. She went on to cement her cult status as Lynda van der Klok in Halloween and as rebellious Riff Randell in Rock ‘n’ Roll High School.
Her résumé also includes roles in Private Benjamin alongside Goldie Hawn and Stripes opposite Bill Murray.
Despite a string of high-profile projects, the 5ft8in actress stepped away from Hollywood early and largely left the spotlight behind.
Now 75, she was recently photographed during a rare outing in Los Angeles. Recognize her? It’s P. J. Soles.
Soles kept it casual in a navy puffer vest layered over a gray cherry-print sweatshirt, paired with red slacks as she climbed into her white Saturn sedan. She carried a water bottle and brown handbag, wearing her blonde hair loose with clips pulling it back and red-framed glasses completing the look.
Born Pamela Jayne Hardon in Frankfurt, Germany, to an American mother and Dutch father, Soles spent much of her childhood abroad, living in Morocco, Venezuela, and Belgium before eventually studying in New York and Washington, D.C. A visit to the Actors Studio sparked her interest in acting.
After modeling and landing commercials in New York, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1975 — and quickly landed her breakout role in Carrie. Initially given just one line, she impressed De Palma enough that he expanded her part. She later reunited with John Travolta in The Boy in the Plastic Bubble.
Soles met Quaid while filming Our Winning Season in 1978. They married that year and later appeared together in Breaking Away before divorcing in 1983. Quaid later wed Meg Ryan.
Her later film work included appearances in Jawbreaker, The Devil’s Rejects, and a speaking cameo in Halloween.
Over the years, Soles married three times and welcomed two children, son Sky and daughter Ashley, with her third husband, Skip Holm. Though she stepped back from mainstream fame, her legacy as a cult horror favorite remains firmly intact.
