Headlines
Smoky rides into the sunset
14-02-08
Country music icon Smoky Dawson - the man dubbed Australia's first cowboy - has died after a short illness, aged 94.
A spokeswoman for the Australian Country Music Foundation said Dawson passed away yesterday at 5.15pm in Sydney.
He is survived by his wife Dot.
There will be a public memorial in a few weeks' time.
Born Herbert Henry Dawson in Collingwood in 1913 and raised in Warrnambool, Dawson recorded dozens of albums and hosted the radio show The Adventures of Smoky Dawson from 1952 until the early 1960s.
He was elevated to the Country Music Roll of Renown in 1978 and in 1993 the Australian Country Music Foundation was created in Tamworth, citing him as a direct inspiration.
Awarded an MBE in 1978, he was also recognised in the United States with the Honour Award of the Grand Ole Opry.
In 2005 Dawson was inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame.
Australian of the Year country star Lee Kernaghan led the tributes yesterday, describing Dawson as a national treasure.
"He was a legend! In every sense of the word," Lee said.
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