Ronald Gordon King-Smith OBE, Hon.M.Ed. , better known by his pen name Dick King-Smith, was a prolific English children's author, best known for writing The Sheep-Pig, retitled in the United States as Babe the Gallant Pig, on which the movie Babe was based. He was awarded an Honorary Master of Education degree by the University of the West of England in 1999 and appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2010 New Year Honours. King-Smith grew up in the West Country, where his family ran several paper mills, and was educated at Beaudesert Park School and Marlborough College.... King-Smith was a soldier in World War II, serving with the Grenadier Guards in Italy and a farmer for 20 years before he became a teacher and author. King-Smith's first book was The Fox Busters, published in 1978. He was one of Britain's most prolific authors and wrote over a hundred books, which have been translated into twelve languages. In later life he lived in Queen Charlton, a small farming village near Bristol, contributing to the maintenance and conservation of the local area as the vice-president of the Avon Wildlife Trust.
more
| Birthdate: | March 27, 1922 |
| Birthplace: | Gloucestershire |
| Date of death: | January 4, 2011 |
| Education: | Marlborough College |