Johnny Young, an Australian singer-songwriter who created Young Talent Time, died of pancreatic cancer on Aug. 14, 2026, at 79, ABC News reported.
By age 18 in 1965, Young was hosting Perth’s pop program Club Seventeen and performing with Johnny Young & the Strangers. His 1966 single Step Back/Cara-Lyn topped the Australian chart.
In 1967, Young took over as host of The Go!! Show and won the Logie Award for Best Teenage Personality, an Australian television honor. The following year, he wrote The Real Thing for Russell Morris, whose 1969 recording reached No. 1 in Australia for two weeks.
In 1971, Young created, hosted and produced Young Talent Time, a national television talent program. It ran through 1988, serving as a national platform for young performers and helping launch the careers of Tina Arena, Dannii Minogue, Jamie Redfern and Debra Byrne.
