Wayde Preston

Actor. Born William Erksine Strange to Bernice and John Strange, who were school teachers in Denver, Colorado. When still a child, his family moved to Laramie, Wyoming, graduating from Laramie High in 1947 before attending the University of Wyoming. He was an accomplished musician and played bass in several bands during his school years. In 1950 he was drafted and entered service as a First Lieutenant due to his training in ROTC at school. He was deployed to Korea during the UN action there. After demobilization, he served as a seasonal ranger at Grand Teton National Park before trying his hand at the rodeo circuit. In California, after a name change change to Wayde Preston, he had won a role on the television western 'Cheyenne' in 1956 when he met rising starlet Carol Ohmart. He was still an unknown, but his association with Ohmart caused enough buzz to give him a chance for the lead role of the new TV series 'Colt .45' which he then played for three seasons. His marriage to Ohmart last only two years. He guest starred as Waco Williams in a 1958 episode of 'Maverick' entitled 'The Saga of Waco Williams,' a fan favorite, garnering more viewers than any other series episode. His tenure at the studio ended when he walked off the set as part of the notorious Warner Bros. Walkout, when along with such friends James Garner and Clint Walker, he went on strike to protest low wages, long hours and the studio refusal to provide a stunt man for actors. During the 1960s, he joined the ranks turning out low budget westerns in Europe such as, 'Wrath of God' (1968); 'Death Knows No Time' (1969); and 'A Man Called Sledge' (1970). Other features included 'Man on the Spying Trapeze' (1966), 'Anzio' (1968) and 'Hollywood Man' (1976). He returned to the US by the end of the 1970s for cancer treatment. Afterward, he appeared as a guest in a small handful of television series including 'Starsky and Hutch,' and 'The Hardy Boys.' His last film role was in the 1990 feature, 'Captain America.' He succumbed to cancer two years later at the age of 62.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: May 22 2023, 15:48:45 UTC
• Reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayde_Preston

William Erksine Strange September 10, 1929 Denver, Colorado, United States Died February 6, 1992 (aged 62) Lovelock, Nevada, United States Resting place Lone Mountain Cemetery, Lovelock, Nevada Alma mater University of Wyoming Occupation Actor: Colt .45 Years active 1957–1990 Spouse(s) Carol Ohmart (m. 1956-1958) Wayde Preston (September 10, 1929 – February 6, 1992) was an American actor cast from 1957 to 1960 in the lead role in 67 episodes of the ABC/Warner Brothers western television series, Colt .45. He is also known for his appearance in the title role of an acclaimed 1959 episode entitled "The Saga of Waco Williams" of another ABC/WB western series, Maverick.

Born William Erksine Strange in Denver, Colorado, Preston was reared in Laramie in southern Wyoming by his educator parents, John and Bernice Strange. He had two younger sisters, Joan and Mary. In 1947 he graduated from Laramie High School, where he was active in football, track, the school band and the Reserve Officer Training Corps. He attended the University of Wyoming in Laramie, where he studied pharmacy. He became an accomplished musician and played in many bands during the late 1940s. In 1950 Preston was drafted into the United States Army. Trained in an artillery unit at Fort Bliss, Texas, Preston attained the rank of first lieutenant and fought in the Korean War. For a time, after his military service, he was a park ranger at Grand Teton National Park in northwestern Wyoming and rode the rodeo circuit before he got his break as an actor.

Acting Career

In Colt .45 he played Christopher Colt, a government undercover agent who masquerades as a pistol salesman traveling throughout the Old West. The series lasted until Preston, like James Garner and Clint Walker during the same period, ran afoul of the Warner Brothers studio and their production demands. Donald May replaced Preston in 1959 and 1960 in the role of Colt's cousin, Sam Colt Jr., but only in four episodes.

Preston also played the role of Christopher Colt in 1958 and 1959 in four episodes relating to "The Canary Kid" of the ABC/WB Sugarfoot series, starring Will Hutchins.[1]

"The Saga of Waco Williams" is a critical favorite that paired Preston with James Garner, as Bret Maverick, and drew more viewers than any other Maverick episode; it remains one of Preston's career milestones. Tom Selleck's recurring comical character of Lance White in NBC's later The Rockford Files, starring James Garner, is loosely based by writer/producer Stephen J. Cannell upon Waco Williams (Selleck and Preston resembled each other.) After these appearances, Selleck in 1980 immediately procured his own CBS series, Magnum, P.I.

Preston played some 20 roles in television and films between 1957-91. Following his departure from Colt .45 he went to Europe, where he appeared in numerous spaghetti westerns including Vic Morrow's A Man Called Sledge opposite James Garner as well as the 1968 film Anzio about the World War II Battle of Anzio. Preston played the role of Logan in another 1968 film, Wrath of God; he was then cast in 1969 as Marshal Johnny Silver in Death Knows No Time.[1]

Preston later appeared on episodes of NBC's Bonanza and ABC's Starsky and Hutch. His last screen appearance was a supporting role in the 1990 film version of Captain America.[1]

Find A Grave # 104920974 https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/104920974/wayde-preston

Actor. Born William Erksine Strange to Bernice and John Strange, who were school teachers in Denver, Colorado. When still a child, his family moved to Laramie, Wyoming, graduating from Laramie High in 1947 before attending the University of Wyoming. He was an accomplished musician and played bass in several bands during his school years. In 1950 he was drafted and entered service as a First Lieutenant due to his training in ROTC at school. He was deployed to Korea during the UN action there. After demobilization, he served as a seasonal ranger at Grand Teton National Park before trying his hand at the rodeo circuit. In California, after a name change change to Wayde Preston, he had won a role on the television western 'Cheyenne' in 1956 when he met rising starlet Carol Ohmart. He was still an unknown, but his association with Ohmart caused enough buzz to give him a chance for the lead role of the new TV series 'Colt .45' which he then played for three seasons. His marriage to Ohmart last only two years. He guest starred as Waco Williams in a 1958 episode of 'Maverick' entitled 'The Saga of Waco Williams,' a fan favorite, garnering more viewers than any other series episode. His tenure at the studio ended when he walked off the set as part of the notorious Warner Bros. Walkout, when along with such friends James Garner and Clint Walker, he went on strike to protest low wages, long hours and the studio refusal to provide a stunt man for actors. During the 1960s, he joined the ranks turning out low budget westerns in Europe such as, 'Wrath of God' (1968); 'Death Knows No Time' (1969); and 'A Man Called Sledge' (1970). Other features included 'Man on the Spying Trapeze' (1966), 'Anzio' (1968) and 'Hollywood Man' (1976). He returned to the US by the end of the 1970s for cancer treatment. Afterward, he appeared as a guest in a small handful of television series including 'Starsky and Hutch,' and 'The Hardy Boys.' His last film role was in the 1990 feature, 'Captain America.' He succumbed to cancer two years later at the age of 62.

Bio by: Iola

• Reference: Ancestry Genealogy - SmartCopy: May 22 2023, 18:16:40 UTC schwartz