Paul Hogan

PAUL HOGAN

Date of Birth: October 8, 1940

The Lighting Ridge, New South Wales native who's best known as the Australian country bumpkin, Crocodile Dundee, Hogan worked in a variety of jobs, including a painter on the Sydney Harbour Bridge before landing a job in show business.

In the late '60s, Hogan wrote to a television talent show expressing a desire to display his talents as 'a tap-dancing knife thrower.' The producers bought it and invited him in. Once on the show though, he performed a stand-up in which he poked fun of the very show he was on.

The prank became popular talk all over Australia, and Hogan was soon rewarded with a series that he hosted, A Current Affair. This show led him to The Paul Hogan Show in 1977, which became a huge hit in Australia and around the world.

He then dove into commercial work, including Foster's beer and the Australian Tourist Commission, which again proved popular overseas.

After completing work on another series, Anzacs, he was named Australian of the Year and inducted into the Order of Australia. Having numerous offers to play parts in various feature films, Hogan decided to once again do it his own way and came out with his greatest success to date, Crocodile Dundee.

Based on a rugged man from the outback who is introduced to an American journalist, Mick Dundee shows her what Australia is all about, before going back to New York with her. His "fish-out-of-water" character looks at the fast-paced city life from an entirely different point of view. Crocodile Dundee was an instant success both on his native turf and across the globe. He won nominations from BAFTA and Academy Awards for his screenplay and won a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy.

Besides international recognition and awards, Hogan also claimed the co-star of Dundee, Linda Kozlowski for his wife -- leaving his on-again/off-again wife of 31 years and five children.

Following the success of the first film, Hogan quickly pumped out a sequel, and Almost an Angel. Thanks to its following, the former film fared well at the box office, but the latter film didn't.

While filming mediocre productions like Lighting Jack and Flipper, Hogan continued to appear in commercials for the Subaru Outback.

Hitting his 60s at the beginning of the new millennium, Hogan decided to do one more Dundee film. "I've been totally typecast since the first one came out. I was 45 years old and I'd never been seen as anything else by the world. I've been in semi-retirement for about ten years so I don't have a problem with it."

Filmography:

Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles (2001)
Floating Away (1998)
Flipper (1996)
Lightning Jack (1994)
Almost an Angel (1990)
'Crocodile' Dundee II (1988)
Crocodile Dundee (1986)
Fatty Finn (1980)