towards Randi. Due to new management at Channel 9 and its expensive budget, the show was cancelled despite still having strong ratings. During its time on air the show often gained a 30 per cent share of all viewers in the ratings. The Don Lane Show ended on 13 November 1983, Lane's 50th birthday. His final episode ran for two and a half hours and featured such stars as Billy Connolly, Phyllis Diller and David Bowie as well as musical appearances by John Farnham and Colleen Hewett. After tributes from Bert Newton and many guests, Lane ended his final show with an emotional performance of Peter Allen's "Once Before I Go". He then took a final bow with "The Don Lane Show" written in lights behind him and the screen faded to black. Channel 10 When The Don Lane Show finished, Lane moved to Los Angeles in an attempt to pursue a career in film and US television. The most notable thing he auditioned for during that period was the role of Eddie Valiant in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. He was a finalist for the role when the director could not get any A-listers to accept it. In 1987 Lane was back in Australia working with Network Ten where he hosted two short-lived comedy shows: You've Got to Be Joking (which featured practical jokes) and Talkin' To Kids with Don Lane. Both were attempts to be in a popular children's show that his son could watch, then go to school and tell his classmates who were talking about it that that was his dad in the show. He also hosted the 1987 Logie Awards. The following year, Lane fronted his own talk show for Ten entitled Late Night Australia, eventually changed to Late Night Oz. The program aired five nights a week at 10:30 pm and was up against Graham Kennedy's News Show on the Nine Network and Clive Robertson's Newsworld on the Seven Network. Late Night Oz was cancelled after just six months. Sportscasting career: 1991–1996 Lane's career surged again in 1991, this time in the role of a sportscaster. Lane's passion for American football and basketball found a home on the ABC, where he continued to win fans and a new audience for the sports he loved. ABC sports boss David Salter was interested in televising NFL games from the United States with a host who could transcend