Dick Smith (entrepreneur)
| Dick Smith, AC | |
|---|---|
Smith in 2013
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| Born |
Richard Harold Smith 18 March 1944 Roseville, New South Wales |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Education | North Sydney Technical High School |
| Known for | Entrepreneur, businessman, aviator, philanthropist, political activist. |
| Spouse(s) | Phillipa Aird McManarney |
| Children | Hayley, Jenny |
| Awards | Companion of the Order of Australia |
Richard Harold "Dick" Smith, AC (born 18 March 1944) is an Australian entrepreneur, businessman, aviator, philanthropist, and political activist. He is the founder of Dick Smith Electronics, Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic, and was selected as the 1986 Australian of the Year. In 2010 he founded the media production company Smith&Nasht with the intention of producing films about global issues. In 2015 he was awarded the Companion of the Order of Australia, and is a fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry.
Smith's father was a salesman and his mother a housewife. His maternal grandfather was pictorialist photographer Harold Cazneaux.
As a child, Smith was considered hopeless and, having a speech defect, called himself 'Dick Miff'. From his home in East Roseville, Smith attended Primary School at Roseville Public School at which, for the Fifth Grade, he ranked academically 45th in a class of 47. He joined the 1st East Roseville Scout Group as a Wolf Cub in 1952, aged 8 and later as a Boy Scout and Rover until 1967, earning the Baden-Powell Award in 1966. Smith gained his amateur radio licence at the age of 17 and holds call sign VK2DIK. In his early 20s, Smith worked as a taxi radio repair technician for several years.
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