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Ward Preston(1932-2016)

  • Production Designer
  • Art Director
  • Art Department
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
William "Ward" Preston started his career in architecture, opening his own firm in Tarzana, CA after graduating from USC. His good friend Norm Baron invited him to come work at Warner Bros. studios as a set designer in 1965 and his career in show business began. He is known for his work on The Poseidon Adventure (1972), Airplane! (1980), and Purple Rain (1984). He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Art Direction for his work on The Towering Inferno (1974).
BornApril 20, 1932
DiedJanuary 17, 2016(83)
BornApril 20, 1932
DiedJanuary 17, 2016(83)
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Add photos, demo reels
  • Nominated for 1 Oscar
    • 1 nomination total

Known for

Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in The Towering Inferno (1974)
The Towering Inferno
7.0
  • Art Director
  • 1974
Ernest Borgnine, Gene Hackman, Leslie Nielsen, Red Buttons, Roddy McDowall, Stella Stevens, Shelley Winters, Jack Albertson, Carol Lynley, Pamela Sue Martin, Arthur O'Connell, and Eric Shea in The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
The Poseidon Adventure
7.1
  • Art Department
  • 1972
'Weird Al' Yankovic in UHF (1989)
UHF
6.9
  • Production Designer
  • 1989
Prince and Apollonia Kotero in Purple Rain (1984)
Purple Rain
6.5
  • Production Designer
  • 1984

Credits

IMDbPro

Production Designer

  • The Last Leaf (1993)
    The Last Leaf
    6.8
    Short
    • Production Designer
    • 1993
  • Staying Afloat (1993)
    Staying Afloat
    6.0
    TV Movie
    • Production Designer
    • 1993
  • In a Child's Name (1991)
    In a Child's Name
    7.8
    TV Mini Series
    • Production Designer
    • 1991
  • David Caruso, Richard Thomas, Stacy Keach, and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa in Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis (1991)
    Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis
    6.3
    TV Movie
    • Production Designer
    • 1991
  • Over My Dead Body (1990)
    Over My Dead Body
    7.2
    TV Series
    • Production Designer
    • 1990
  • 'Weird Al' Yankovic in UHF (1989)
    UHF
    6.9
    • Production Designer
    • 1989
  • Nightingales (1988)
    Nightingales
    6.9
    TV Movie
    • Production Designer
    • 1988
  • Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman in Beauty and the Beast (1987)
    Beauty and the Beast
    7.0
    TV Series
    • Production Designer
    • 1987
  • The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory (1987)
    The Alamo: Thirteen Days to Glory
    6.1
    TV Movie
    • Production Designer
    • 1987
  • Treat Williams in J. Edgar Hoover (1987)
    J. Edgar Hoover
    6.6
    TV Movie
    • Production Designer
    • 1987
  • Mitch Gaylord in American Anthem (1986)
    American Anthem
    4.9
    • Production Designer
    • 1986
  • The Twilight Zone (1985)
    The Twilight Zone
    7.7
    TV Series
    • production designed by
    • 1985–1986
  • Prince and Apollonia Kotero in Purple Rain (1984)
    Purple Rain
    6.5
    • Production Designer
    • 1984
  • Robert Mitchum, Martin Sheen, Paul Sorvino, Bruce Dern, and Stacy Keach in That Championship Season (1982)
    That Championship Season
    6.3
    • Production Designer
    • 1982
  • Soggy Bottom, U.S.A. (1981)
    Soggy Bottom, U.S.A.
    5.4
    • Production Designer
    • 1981

Art Director

  • The Price of Heaven (1997)
    The Price of Heaven
    6.3
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1997
  • The Twilight Zone (1985)
    The Twilight Zone
    7.7
    TV Series
    • Art Director
    • 1985
  • Callahan (1982)
    Callahan
    6.2
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1982
  • The Long Summer of George Adams (1982)
    The Long Summer of George Adams
    7.2
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1982
  • The Ghosts of Buxley Hall (1980)
    The Ghosts of Buxley Hall
    5.6
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1980
  • Power (1980)
    Power
    5.5
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1980
  • Ike: The War Years (1979)
    Ike: The War Years
    7.0
    TV Mini Series
    • art director: U.S.
    • 1979
  • To Kill a Cop (1978)
    To Kill a Cop
    6.6
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1978
  • Fire (1977)
    Fire
    5.3
    TV Movie
    • Art Director
    • 1977
  • Joan Blondell, Bruce Dern, Madeline Kahn, Art Carney, and Augustus von Schumacher in Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976)
    Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
    4.8
    • Art Director
    • 1976
  • Ben Gazzara in Capone (1975)
    Capone
    5.7
    • Art Director
    • 1975
  • Fred Astaire, William Holden, Paul Newman, Richard Chamberlain, Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, O.J. Simpson, Robert Vaughn, Robert Wagner, Susan Blakely, and Jennifer Jones in The Towering Inferno (1974)
    The Towering Inferno
    7.0
    • Art Director
    • 1974
  • Insight (1960)
    Insight
    7.4
    TV Series
    • Art Director
    • 1971–1974
  • The Stone Killer (1973)
    The Stone Killer
    6.1
    • Art Director
    • 1973
  • Lee Marvin and Jeanne Moreau in Monte Walsh (1970)
    Monte Walsh
    7.0
    • Art Director (uncredited)
    • 1970

Art Department

  • Sssssss (1973)
    Sssssss
    5.4
    • assistant art director (uncredited)
    • 1973
  • Ernest Borgnine, Gene Hackman, Leslie Nielsen, Red Buttons, Roddy McDowall, Stella Stevens, Shelley Winters, Jack Albertson, Carol Lynley, Pamela Sue Martin, Arthur O'Connell, and Eric Shea in The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
    The Poseidon Adventure
    7.1
    • assistant art director
    • 1972
  • The Other (1972)
    The Other
    6.8
    • assistant art director (uncredited)
    • 1972
  • Crosscurrent (1971)
    Crosscurrent
    5.9
    TV Movie
    • assistant art director
    • 1971
  • James Garner and Louis Gossett Jr. in Skin Game (1971)
    Skin Game
    7.0
    • assistant art director (uncredited)
    • 1971
  • Walter Matthau and Barbra Streisand in Hello, Dolly! (1969)
    Hello, Dolly!
    7.1
    • assistant art director (uncredited)
    • 1969
  • Robert Mitchum and George Kennedy in The Good Guys and the Bad Guys (1969)
    The Good Guys and the Bad Guys
    6.1
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1969
  • Angie Dickinson, Dick Van Dyke, Johnny Mandel, Heywood Hale Broun, Rosemary Forsyth, Connie Gilchrist, Howard Hesseman, Gerald Hirschfeld, Garson Kanin, Zohra Lampert, Walter Mirisch, Melba Moore, Jennifer O'Neill, Elliott Reid, Pippa Scott, Carole Shelley, and Beverly Todd in Some Kind of a Nut (1969)
    Some Kind of a Nut
    4.4
    • assistant art director (uncredited)
    • 1969
  • Rod Steiger in The Illustrated Man (1969)
    The Illustrated Man
    5.8
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1969
  • Audrey Hepburn in Wait Until Dark (1967)
    Wait Until Dark
    7.7
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1967
  • Camelot (1967)
    Camelot
    6.6
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1967
  • Michael Caine and Shirley MacLaine in Gambit (1966)
    Gambit
    7.1
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1966
  • Jane Fonda, Jason Robards, and Dean Jones in Any Wednesday (1966)
    Any Wednesday
    6.0
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1966
  • Sean Connery and Joanne Woodward in A Fine Madness (1966)
    A Fine Madness
    5.5
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1966
  • Henry Fonda, Jason Robards, and Joanne Woodward in A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966)
    A Big Hand for the Little Lady
    7.3
    • set designer (uncredited)
    • 1966

Personal details

  • Born
    • April 20, 1932
    • Torrance, California, USA
  • Died
    • January 17, 2016
    • West Hills, California, USA(natural causes)
  • Other works
    Book: "What An Art Director Does", Los Angeles: Sillman James Press ISBN 1-879505-18-5

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