From the Publisher:
Though he never reached the lead actor status he labored so relentlessly to ahieve, Warren Oates (1928-1982) is one of the most memorable and skilled character actors of the 1970s. With his rugged looks and measured demeanor; Oates crafted complex characters who were at once brazen and thoughtful, wild and subdued. Oates began his career in the late 1950s with bit parts in television Westerns. Though hardly lucrative work, it was during this time Oates met renegade director Sam Peckinpah, establishing the creative relationship and destructive friendship that produced some of Oates's most unforgettable roles in Ride the High Country (1962), Major Dundee (1965) and The Wild Bunch (1969), as well as a leading part in Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974). Though Oates maintained a close association with Peckinpah, he had a penchant for working with a variety of visionary directors who were eager to enlist the subtle talents of the consummate character actor. With supporting roles in In the Heat of the Night (1967), The Hired Hand (1971), Badlands (1973), 1941 (1979), and Stripes (1981), Oates delivered solid performances for filmmakers as diverse and talented as Norman Jewison, Peter Fonda, Terrence Malick, Steven Spielberg, and Ivan Reitman.

Oates's offscreen personality was just as complex as his on-screen persona. Notorious for being a nightlife reveler; he was as sensitive and introspective as he was outgoing and prone to periods of exuberent, and at times illegal, excess.Though he never became a marquee name, Warren Oates continues to influence actors like Billy Bob Thornton and Benicio Del Toro,as well as directors such as Quentin Tarantino and Richard Linklater; all of whom have cited Oates as a major inspiration. In Warren Oates: A Wild Life, author Susan Compo skillfully captures the story of Oates's eventful life, indulgent lifestyle, and influential career.

What Others Are Saying:
"A highly readable blow-by-blow ofthe actor's rocky and too-short life...The parts of Warren Oates' life are greater than its sum; he was not a visionary bt a chameleon always searching for a new skin to inhabit. Behind the facade, Compo finds an ordinary human..."-Los Angeles Times

"Susan Compo skillfully captures the story of Oates' eventful life, indulgent lifestyle, and influential career."
     -Turner Classic Movies

"Incredibly voluminous, fact-packed." -Sunday Star Ledger

"Compo's gem-laden playland of tales, ancedotes, gossip, and deep character study gets you right up close to the second golden era of the silver screen, and better takes you on one of the greatest life-trips ever lived." - G.Q.com

About the Author:
Susan A. Compo is a lecturer in the Master of Professional Writing Program at the University of Southern California. She is the author of three works of  fiction, including Pretty Things and Life After Death and Other Stories.

Softcover. 536 pages. 31 photographs. Shipping weight is approximately 1 lb.