Paul Hogan turns 70

1939 Paul Hogan, AM, Australian comedian and actor.

Paul 'Hoges' Hogan is perhaps best known in Australia for popularizing three myths about Australia: that Australians are rural dwellers (in fact, Australia is the most urbanized nation on the planet); that Australians call prawns 'shrimps' (in fact, they call those crustaceans 'prawns'); and that Australians cook prawns on barbecues (a practice generally unknown prior to a successful series of US advertisements featuring Hogan, and fabricated by a copywriter at the Australian advertising agency, Mojo).

The star of Crocodile Dundee (1986) was born in the opal town, Lightning Ridge, NSW and was 'discovered' by TV while employed as a rigger on the Sydney Harbour Bridge – two Aussie icons side-by-side. Hogan made his name as an occasional comedian on Michael Willesee's A Current Affair program on TCN-9, and soon was granted his own show, The Paul Hogan Show, an excruciating, Benny Hill-like compendium of corn ...

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