Nato il 10 ottobre del 1941 ad Hollywood e cresciuto a Beverly Hills, si è spento il 5 novembre del 2007 a Mill Creek nelle vicinanze di Seattle capitale dello stato di Washington, dopo essere stato uno dei più forti giocatori americani di ogni tempo che, giocando con partner diversi, fu capace di partecipare a 7 finali della Bermuda Bowl vincendone 5 (tre nel 1976, 1977, 1979 e altre due oltre 20 anni più tardi! nel 2000 e nel 2003).

Sul piano nazionale, dopo aver vinto il suo primo titolo nel 1965, collezionò tra gli altri: 6 Vanderbilt, 9 Spingold, 4 Reisinger, 4 Jacoby, 2 Grand National Teams e un Mitchell.

 Nel 1972 fece parte dei formidabili Aces di Dallas vincendo l'argento Olimpico e, a dimostrazione della sua incredibile versatilità, vinse i suoi primi tre titoli mondiali giocando ogni volta con un partner diverso! (Bobby Goldman, John Swanson e Ira Rubin).

 Dopo essersi laureato, Paul, che al momento della sua scomparsa deteneva, con oltre 65.000, il record dei Master Point conquistati, lavorò solo per breve tempo prima di dedicare il resto della sua vita a girare il mondo come professionista di bridge.

 Nel 1988 entrò nella fortissima squadra di Nickell e formò, assieme al grandissimo Bob Hamman, una delle più formidabili coppie di ogni tempo e, pur se minato nel fisico dal male che lo consumava, vinse i suoi ultimi titoli partecipando alle gare su una carrozzella motorizzata e vincendo il titolo ACBL di giocatore dell'anno.

 Quando era a casa, Paul passava molte ore con le sue collezioni di francobolli e di monete ed aiutava sua moglie Pam Pruitt ad allevare cani di razza.

Quando è scomparso dopo una lunga malattia, occupava la 13ª posizione nella classifica dei World Grand Masters e, da cinque anni, faceva parte della Hall of Fame che accoglie le più grandi personalità del bridge nordamericano e l'anno precedente aveva ancora contribuito alla conquista della rinata Buffett Cup.

Soloway won five Bermuda Bowls with four different partners and was second in two Bermuda Bowls and two Olympiad teams.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Soloway nearly drowned at age 3 when he fell into a swimming pool at the home of family friend George Raft. He was saved by gangster Bugsy Siegel who jumped into the pool and pulled him out.

Soloway learned to play bridge in college, where he majored in business studies. Shortly after graduation, he became a bridge professional. In 1971, he joined the Dallas Aces bridge team, but left after one year. In 1998 he joined the Nick Nickell team. He died in Seattle. Washington.

He won 30 North American titles.

Not only was Soloway many experts’ choice as the world’s best player, he was a true sportsman, always winning or losing with grace, and always congratulating the opponents when they won.

The last years, as his health deteriorated, Soloway played through pain. He began competing to win his fourth world championship only 28 days after undergoing open heart surgery.

Paul was a student of the game and one of his great strengths was adapting to his partner’s needs and mastering the most obscure nuances of the system he agreed to play.

There was never any doubt that Paul knew the Hamman system better than Bob, but Paul also knew the treatments Bob was most likely to forget and went out of his way not to test him with those if there were an alternative.

In his quiet way, Paul was the glue of the Nickell team, not only with his high level of skill but also with his ability to help each of his teammates feel that no deficit was too great and that the team would prevail.

In 1998 he has been ACBL Player of the Year.

That Soloway’s death in 2007 was notable even outside the bridge world is evidenced by obituaries in the premier newspapers in America, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times.

He loved the game. While he was undergoing all the trauma of his last days, he told his wife Pam that he didn’t want to live if he lost his mental faculties and could no longer play his favorite game. Paul’s love of bridge, his sportsmanship, and his honest and friendly competitiveness always set the finest example for bridge players around the world.”

At the time of his death, Soloway had earned 65,511 masterpoints.