American-born Lane became a household name in Australia through The Don Lane Show.

The Gold Logie winner had been suffering from advanced dementia.

His manager Jayne Ambrose said Lane passed away this morning.

‘‘His son is devastated and Australia has suffered a great loss today,’’ she said.

Last year, it was reported that Lane had been admitted to a care facility in Sydney.

Born in New York, he emigrated to Australia in 1965.

Lane was originally hired to fill in for someone at Channel Nine for six weeks. He went on to become one of the country’s most popular stars and at one time was the highest paid person on Australian television.

He was married twice and had a son, P.J. Isaacson.

Celebrities, including Robin Williams, Billy Connelly, Dame Edna, Tony Curtis, Peter Sellers and Kiss all appeared on The Don Lane Show, which became must-see late night entertainment between 1975 and 1983.

He was a close friend of fellow entertainer Bert Newton and spoke to the ABC in 2003 about their on-screen chemistry.

‘‘We were magic from the time he walked out from the curtain…You don't try to explain those things. You just take them and you use them and you enjoy them and most of all you appreciate them, because they don't happen often, they happen once in a rare while,’’ Lane said.