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IMDbPro

Warren Oates(1928-1982)

  • Actor
  • Music Department
  • Stunts
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Warren Oates in Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
Official Trailer
Play trailer1:31
Blue Thunder (1983)
25 Videos
99+ Photos
Warren Oates was an American character actor of the 1960s and 1970s and early 1980s whose distinctive style and intensity brought him to offbeat leading roles.

Oates was born in Depoy, a very small Kentucky town. He was the son of Sarah Alice (Mercer) and Bayless Earle Oates, a general store owner. He attended high school in Louisville, continuing on to the University of Louisville and military service with the U.S. Marines.

In college he became interested in the theatre and in 1954 headed for New York to make his mark as an actor. However, his first real job in television was, as it had been for James Dean before him, testing the contest gags on the game show Beat the Clock (1950). He did numerous menial jobs while auditioning, including serving as the hat-check man at the nightclub "21".

By 1957 he had begun appearing in live dramas such as Studio One (1948), but Oates' rural drawl seemed more fitted for the Westerns that were proliferating on the big screen at the time, so he moved to Hollywood and immediately stared getting steady work as an increasingly prominent supporting player, often as either craven or vicious types. With his role as one of the Hammond brothers in the Sam Peckinpah masterpiece Ride the High Country (1962), Oates found a niche both as an actor and as a colleague of one of the most distinguished and distinctive directors of the period. Peckinpah used Oates repeatedly, and Oates, in large part due to the prominence given him by Peckinpah, became one of those rare character actors whose name and face is as familiar as those of many leading stars. He began to play roles which, while still character parts, were also leads, particularly in cult hits like Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) and Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974).

Although never destined to be a traditional leading man, Oates remained one of Hollywood's most valued and in-demand character players up until his sudden death from a heart attack on April 3, 1982 at the age of 53. His final two films, Tough Enough (1983) (filmed in early 1981) and Blue Thunder (1983) (filmed in late 1981), were released over one year after his death and were dedicated to his memory.
BornJuly 5, 1928
DiedApril 3, 1982(53)
BornJuly 5, 1928
DiedApril 3, 1982(53)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • Awards
    • 1 win & 2 nominations

Photos102

Warren Oates in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Jeff East, Warren Oates, and Johnny Whitaker in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates and Johnny Whitaker in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates and Johnny Whitaker in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Warren Oates in Tom Sawyer (1973)
Kate Manx and Warren Oates in Private Property (1960)
Warren Oates in Private Property (1960)
Corey Allen and Warren Oates in Private Property (1960)
Corey Allen and Warren Oates in Private Property (1960)

Known for

The Wild Bunch (1969)
The Wild Bunch
7.9
  • Lyle Gorch
  • 1969
Bill Murray in Stripes (1981)
Stripes
6.8
  • Sgt. Hulka
  • 1981
Badlands (1973)
Badlands
7.7
  • Father
  • 1973
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia
7.4
  • Bennie
  • 1974

Credits

Edit
IMDbPro

Actor

  • Tales of the Unexpected (1979)
    Tales of the Unexpected
    • Harry
    • TV Series
    • 1985
  • Tough Enough (1983)
    Tough Enough
    • James Neese
    • 1983
  • Blue Thunder (1983)
    Blue Thunder
    • Braddock
    • 1983
  • The Blue and the Gray (1982)
    The Blue and the Gray
    • Preacher
    • Maj. Welles
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1982
  • Jack Nicholson in The Border (1982)
    The Border
    • Red
    • 1982
  • Bill Murray in Stripes (1981)
    Stripes
    • Sgt. Hulka
    • 1981
  • East of Eden (1981)
    East of Eden
    • Cyrus Trask
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1981
  • Baby Comes Home (1980)
    Baby Comes Home
    • Michael Kramer
    • TV Movie
    • 1980
  • 1941 (1979)
    1941
    • Col. 'Madman' Maddox
    • 1979
  • My Old Man (1979)
    My Old Man
    • Frank Butler
    • TV Movie
    • 1979
  • And Baby Makes Six (1979)
    And Baby Makes Six
    • Michael Kramer
    • TV Movie
    • 1979
  • Black Beauty (1978)
    Black Beauty
    • Jerry
    • TV Mini Series
    • 1979
  • Insight (1960)
    Insight
    • Man
    • TV Series
    • 1979
  • The Brink's Job (1978)
    The Brink's Job
    • Specs O'Keefe
    • 1978
  • China 9, Liberty 37 (1978)
    China 9, Liberty 37
    • Matthew
    • 1978

Music Department

  • Dixie Dynamite (1976)
    Dixie Dynamite
    • musical artist
    • 1976

Stunts

  • Bud Collyer in Beat the Clock (1950)
    Beat the Clock
    • stunt tester
    • TV Series
    • 1950

Videos26

Trailer
Trailer 2:56
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 3:49
Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 3:06
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:53
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 1:49
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 1:42
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 1:59
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:33
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:38
Official Trailer
Trailer
Trailer 2:23
Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:58
Official Trailer
Official Trailer
Trailer 2:46
Official Trailer

Personal details

Edit
  • Alternative names
    • Warren M. Oates
  • Height
    • 5′ 11¼″ (1.81 m)
  • Born
    • July 5, 1928
    • Depoy, Kentucky, USA
  • Died
    • April 3, 1982
    • Los Angeles, California, USA(heart attack)
  • Spouses
      Judy A. JonesAugust 24, 1977 - April 3, 1982 (his death)
  • Children
      Jennifer Oates
  • Parents
      Bayless Earl Oates
  • Relatives
    • Gordon Oates(Sibling)
  • Other works
    Unsold pilot: Starred with Gary Conway in a pilot for a WW 2 drama called "Attack".
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Biographical Movie
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 4 Articles
    • 1 Pictorial
    • 1 Magazine Cover Photo

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    He had been suffering from chest pains for six months before his death, but refused to see a doctor.
  • Quotes
    I feel most uncomfortable in a western role, because my image of the western man is John Wayne and I'm just a little shit.
  • Trademarks
      Often played violent-tempered, prideful characters

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