Warren Mercer Oates

 Warren Mercer Oates (July 5, 1928 – April 3, 1982)

Oates was an actor best known for his performances in several films directed by Sam Peckinpah including The Wild Bunch (1969) and Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974). He starred in numerous films during the early 1970s which have since achieved cult status including The Hired Hand (1971), Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) and Race with the Devil (1975). Oates also portrayed John Dillinger in the biopic Dillinger (1973) and Sgt. Hulka in the comedy Stripes (1981). Oates was ill with flu in the weeks before his death. He died in his sleep while taking an afternoon nap on April 3, 1982 at age 53 in his house in Los Angeles, California, of a sudden heart attack following chest pains and shortness of breath which began that late morning. The autopsy showed he had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. His body was cremated, and the ashes scattered at Oates' ranch in Montana.