Hasselhoff and ex-wife settle bitter custody battle

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former "Baywatch" star David Hasselhoff and his ex-wife have agreed to share custody of their teenage daughters and reached a financial settlement, ending months of bitter wrangling played out in the celebrity media.

Hasselhoff's lawyer said on Tuesday the deal was reached late last week and a January trial has been canceled.

"David is pleased to have the matter behind him," lawyer Melvin Goldsman told reporters.

Goldsman declined to give details on spousal and child support but said relations between Hasselhoff and ex-wife Pamela Bach, 44, had improved since the summer.

In June, Hasselhoff, 55, won sole custody of daughters Taylor Ann, 17, and Hayley, 15 despite a video leaked to the media that showed him shirtless, drunk and lying on the floor in the presence of the girls.

After the tape's release, Hasselhoff, who has served as a judge on the television talent show "America's Got Talent," acknowledged he was a recovering alcoholic who had relapsed.

Hasselhoff and Bach married in 1989 and the couple have been battling over custody and money since their divorce, which Hasselhoff described as painful, became final in August 2006.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Bill Trott)