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Ian Smith (actor)

 
Ian Smith (actor)

 
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Ian Smith (actor)
 
 
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Ian Smith (born 19 June 1938) is an Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
n soap opera
Soap opera

A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in Serial format on television or radio. Programs described as soap operas have existed as an entertainment long enough for audiences to recognize them simply by the term soap....
 character actor
Character actor

A character actor is one who predominantly plays a particular type of role rather than leading actor ones. Character actor roles can range from bit parts to leading actor....
 and television
Television

Television is a widely used telecommunication mass-media for transmitting and receiving moving , either monochrome or color, usually accompanied by sound....
 scriptwriter
Scriptwriter

A scriptwriter is a person who writes Screenplay and script for movies, games, comics, plays, television, comedy shows, political speeches, and other presentations....
, best known today for his long-running role as the caring, kindly coffee shop owner Harold Bishop
Harold Bishop

For the former American football player, see Harold Bishop, Jr.Harold Wayne Bishop is a fictional character in the Australian television soap opera Neighbours played by Ian Smith ....
 in Network Ten
Network Ten

Network Ten, or Channel Ten, is one of Australia's three major commercial Television broadcasting in Australia. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, Western Australia, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country....
's long running serial
Serial (radio and television)

Serials in television and radio are series that rely on a continuing Plot that unfolds in a serial fashion, episode by episode. Serials typically follow main story arcs that span entire seasons or even the full run of the series, which distinguishes them from traditional episodic television that relies on more stand-alone episodes....
 Neighbours
Neighbours

Neighbours is a long-running multiple Logie Award-winning Australian soap opera, which first aired in March 1985. The series follows the daily lives of several families who live in the six houses at the end of Ramsay Street, a short cul-de-sac in the fictional middle-class suburb of Erinsborough....
.

Smith had previously acted in guest roles in drama series such as the Crawford Productions
Crawford Productions

Crawford Productions is an Australian television production company founded by Hector Crawford, and now owned by the WIN Corporation.The company generally had a reputation for higher quality productions than its nearest rival, the Reg Grundy Organisation....
 police dramas Homicide
Homicide (TV series)

Homicide was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network between 1964 and 1977.The series dealt with the homicide squad of the Victoria police force and episodes revolved around the various cases the detectives are called upon to investigate....
, Division 4
Division 4

Division 4 was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Nine Network between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes....
 and Matlock Police
Matlock Police

Matlock Police was an Australian Police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the 0-10 Network between 1971 and 1975....
. He had a regular role in long-running Australian television serial Bellbird, made a guest appearance as a police detective in The Box
The Box (TV series)

The Box was an Australian soap opera than ran on Network Ten from 1974 until 1977.Inspired by the success of soap opera Number 96 , Crawford Productions, then known for the highly popular police dramas they specialised in, launched The Box, their first-ever soap opera, in February 1974....
 in 1975, and had a semi-regular role in serial Prisoner
Prisoner (TV series)

Prisoner is an Australian television soap opera which was set in the Wentworth Detention Centre, a List of fictional prisons women's prison....
.






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Ian Smith (born 19 June 1938) is an Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
n soap opera
Soap opera

A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in Serial format on television or radio. Programs described as soap operas have existed as an entertainment long enough for audiences to recognize them simply by the term soap....
 character actor
Character actor

A character actor is one who predominantly plays a particular type of role rather than leading actor ones. Character actor roles can range from bit parts to leading actor....
 and television
Television

Television is a widely used telecommunication mass-media for transmitting and receiving moving , either monochrome or color, usually accompanied by sound....
 scriptwriter
Scriptwriter

A scriptwriter is a person who writes Screenplay and script for movies, games, comics, plays, television, comedy shows, political speeches, and other presentations....
, best known today for his long-running role as the caring, kindly coffee shop owner Harold Bishop
Harold Bishop

For the former American football player, see Harold Bishop, Jr.Harold Wayne Bishop is a fictional character in the Australian television soap opera Neighbours played by Ian Smith ....
 in Network Ten
Network Ten

Network Ten, or Channel Ten, is one of Australia's three major commercial Television broadcasting in Australia. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, Western Australia, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country....
's long running serial
Serial (radio and television)

Serials in television and radio are series that rely on a continuing Plot that unfolds in a serial fashion, episode by episode. Serials typically follow main story arcs that span entire seasons or even the full run of the series, which distinguishes them from traditional episodic television that relies on more stand-alone episodes....
 Neighbours
Neighbours

Neighbours is a long-running multiple Logie Award-winning Australian soap opera, which first aired in March 1985. The series follows the daily lives of several families who live in the six houses at the end of Ramsay Street, a short cul-de-sac in the fictional middle-class suburb of Erinsborough....
.

Smith had previously acted in guest roles in drama series such as the Crawford Productions
Crawford Productions

Crawford Productions is an Australian television production company founded by Hector Crawford, and now owned by the WIN Corporation.The company generally had a reputation for higher quality productions than its nearest rival, the Reg Grundy Organisation....
 police dramas Homicide
Homicide (TV series)

Homicide was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network between 1964 and 1977.The series dealt with the homicide squad of the Victoria police force and episodes revolved around the various cases the detectives are called upon to investigate....
, Division 4
Division 4

Division 4 was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Nine Network between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes....
 and Matlock Police
Matlock Police

Matlock Police was an Australian Police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the 0-10 Network between 1971 and 1975....
. He had a regular role in long-running Australian television serial Bellbird, made a guest appearance as a police detective in The Box
The Box (TV series)

The Box was an Australian soap opera than ran on Network Ten from 1974 until 1977.Inspired by the success of soap opera Number 96 , Crawford Productions, then known for the highly popular police dramas they specialised in, launched The Box, their first-ever soap opera, in February 1974....
 in 1975, and had a semi-regular role in serial Prisoner
Prisoner (TV series)

Prisoner is an Australian television soap opera which was set in the Wentworth Detention Centre, a List of fictional prisons women's prison....
. Smith was also script editor
Script editor

A script editor is a member of the production team of scripted television programmes, usually dramas and comedies. The script editor has many responsibilities including finding new script writers, developing storyline and series ideas with writers, ensuring that scripts are suitable for production....
 of Prisoner for most of its eight-year run. He became Associate Producer
Television producer

The primary role of a television producer is to control all aspects of production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking....
 of Prisoner late in its run.

Smith became best known through his portrayal of Harold Bishop in the soap opera
Soap opera

A soap opera is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in Serial format on television or radio. Programs described as soap operas have existed as an entertainment long enough for audiences to recognize them simply by the term soap....
 Neighbours
Neighbours

Neighbours is a long-running multiple Logie Award-winning Australian soap opera, which first aired in March 1985. The series follows the daily lives of several families who live in the six houses at the end of Ramsay Street, a short cul-de-sac in the fictional middle-class suburb of Erinsborough....
 from 1987 to 1991 and then from 1996 before switching to recurring status from 2008 until 2009, becoming one of its longest serving characters.

Smith was 54 when his mother Connie Smith, realising she had twenty-four hours to live, finally admitted to him that he had been adopted
Adoption

Adoption is the act of Family law placing a child with a parent or parents other than those to whom they were born. An adoption order has the effect of severing parental responsibilities and rights of the original parent and transferring those responsibilities and rights to the adoptive parent....
. After her death, Smith went in search of his natural mother Peg Kline, whom he finally found. According to Kline's story, Smith was conceived when she was thirteen, the product of rape
Rape

Rape, also referred to as sexual assault, is an assault by a person involving sexual intercourse with or sexual penetration of another person without that person's consent....
 by her uncle, and was put up for adoption
Adoption

Adoption is the act of Family law placing a child with a parent or parents other than those to whom they were born. An adoption order has the effect of severing parental responsibilities and rights of the original parent and transferring those responsibilities and rights to the adoptive parent....
. Kline eventually married and had two children from this marriage. She never told anyone besides her husband about her first son until she was contacted by Smith via a letter.

She contacted his wife Gail Smith, who mentioned that her son was a prominent Neighbours
Neighbours

Neighbours is a long-running multiple Logie Award-winning Australian soap opera, which first aired in March 1985. The series follows the daily lives of several families who live in the six houses at the end of Ramsay Street, a short cul-de-sac in the fictional middle-class suburb of Erinsborough....
 actor, to which Kline replied, "I've never seen Neighbours in my life". Smith and Kline were reunited and he has built a strong relationship with his mother and two half-brothers, although Smith says that he doesn't feel a mother–son relationship. He calls Kline "one of my best friends". Peg Kline died in May 2005 after a battle with cancer.

Smith first told the story to the public in an exclusive interview
Interview

An interview is a conversation between two or more people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee....
 on the biographical
Biography

A biography is a description of someone's life, usually published in the form of a book or essay, or in some other form, such as a film. An autobiography is a biography by the same person it is about....
 documentary
Documentary film

Documentary film is a broad category of visual expression that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to "document" reality. Although "documentary film" originally referred to movies shot on film stock, it has subsequently expanded to include video and new media productions that can be either direct-to-video or made for a televis...
 series Australian Story
Australian Story

Australian Story is a weekly biography program, produced and broadcast on ABC Television.Australian Story has covered many people from diverse backgrounds and reputations....
 on 14 March 2005.

Smith announced his retirement as a full-time member of the Neighbours cast in November 2007, but added that he would be returning to make several guest appearances during 2008. He will film his final ever episode in October 2008, which will be shown on Australian screens in February 2009.

Selected filmography

  • Neighbours
    Neighbours

    Neighbours is a long-running multiple Logie Award-winning Australian soap opera, which first aired in March 1985. The series follows the daily lives of several families who live in the six houses at the end of Ramsay Street, a short cul-de-sac in the fictional middle-class suburb of Erinsborough....
     (1987-1991, 1996-2009).... Harold Bishop
  • Body Melt
    Body Melt

    Body Melt is a satire Australia horror film directed by Philip Brophy, influenced by "splatstick" Peter Jackson films like Bad Taste and Braindead ....
     (1993) .... Dr. Carrera
  • Blue Heelers
    Blue Heelers

    Blue Heelers is a long-running Australian Police procedural series which depicted the lives of the police officers stationed at the fictional Mt....
     (1994) .... Clive Burton
  • Prisoner
    Prisoner (TV series)

    Prisoner is an Australian television soap opera which was set in the Wentworth Detention Centre, a List of fictional prisons women's prison....
     (1979-1983).... Ted Douglas
  • Chopper Squad
    Chopper Squad

    Chopper Squad is an Australian television series produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation for the 0-10 Network .The series was based around the work of a helicopter rescue team operating on Dee Why beach in Sydney....
     (1978)
  • Glenview High
    Glenview High

    Glenview High is an Australian television drama series produced by the Reg Grundy Organisation for the Seven Network between 1977 and 1978....
     (1977) .... Rocky
  • Bluey
    Bluey

    Bluey is a 39 episode Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network in 1976.The series was another crime show from Crawford's, but was different from previous shows - Homicide , Division 4, Matlock Police - in that it focused on a single detective rather than an ensemble, and that the charac...
     (1977) .... Sen. Det. Davidson
  • Division 4
    Division 4

    Division 4 was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Nine Network between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes....
     (1975) .... Mike Chapman
  • Matlock Police
    Matlock Police

    Matlock Police was an Australian Police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the 0-10 Network between 1971 and 1975....
     (1973) .... Larry Fisher
  • Homicide
    Homicide (TV series)

    Homicide was an Australian police procedural television series made by Crawford Productions for the Seven Network between 1964 and 1977.The series dealt with the homicide squad of the Victoria police force and episodes revolved around the various cases the detectives are called upon to investigate....
     (1972) .... Johnny Reid
  • Detective
    Detective

    A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators . Informally, and primarily in fiction, a detective is any licensed or unlicensed person who solves crimes, including historical crimes, or looks into records....
    (1969) .... Dick Spencer
  • Belbird
    Bellbird (TV series)

    Bellbird was a soap opera produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation at its Melbourne studios in Elsternwick, Victoria. It ran from August 28 1967 until December 1977....
     (1967) .... Russell Ashwood


External links