injured in a car crash in Chattanooga, Tennessee; while driving to Shreveport, Louisiana, for an invitation to appear on Louisiana Hayride hosted by Jim Reeves, Dawson absent-mindedly ran a red light and his car was hit by a Cadillac going the opposite direction; he was hospitalised and his appearance on Louisiana Hayride never eventuated. When Dawson returned to Australia in September 1952 he was hailed as an "Australian singing 'cowboy' who has made good in the US at the expense of the world's best". For trick riding his palomino horse, Flash (1951–1982), was bedecked in American-style tack rather than Australian. Flash lived to be 31 years old and Dawson supplemented his feed by giving him porridge with a spoon. The Adventures of Smoky Dawson radio show Echoing US singing cowboy, Roy Rogers, on 8 December 1952 Dawson starred in his own radio show, The Adventures of Smoky Dawson, which stayed on the air for ten years until 1962. At its peak, Dawson's show was broadcast on 69 stations across the country. Dot also had her own radio shows for children. A related comic book of the same name was published from 1953 to 1962 and both featured "Dawson's persona [which] became 'Australia's favourite cowboy', with his faithful sidekick Jingles, his horse Flash and their young friend Billy fighting the evil outlaw Grogan, adhering to Smoky's 'code of the west', pausing for a song, a moral and sometimes a bowl of cornflakes, courtesy of the program's sponsor". For the radio show Dawson provided "rendition[s] of a magpie, kookaburra, rooster, turkey, pig, cow, an impatient horse, a posse with bloodhounds (with the bandit being shot), a pack of dogs fighting and next door's dog howling in the middle of the night". In 1957 he founded the Smoky Dawson Ranch on farm at Ingleside as a venue to host country music shows, a horse riding school and a holiday camp for children. Television In 1974 a TV series, Luke's Kingdom, was shot at Dawson's ranch. The following year he featured on This Is Your Life hosted by Mike Willesee. In 1988 he appeared in two episodes of TV soap opera, A Country Practice, as a drifter, "Charlie McKeahnie", who passes through the fictional location of Wandin Valley and proposes to town gossip, "Esme Watson" (portrayed by Joyce Jacobs). His performance was so popular with viewers that he made another appearance the following year.