William Preston did not start his acting career until he was at the age of 47 but subsequently appeared in more than sixty productions of Shakespeare's plays

Shakespeare's plays

William Shakespeare's plays have the reputation of being among the greatest in the English language and in Western literature. Traditionally, the 37 plays are divided into the genres of tragedy, history, and comedy; they have been translated into every major living language, in addition to being...

. He had a Master's degree in English literature from Penn State

Pennsylvania State University

The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...

. He is perhaps best known for his role as recurring character Oldie Olson on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien

Late Night with Conan O'Brien

Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...

". Among his many movie roles, he played John, the bum, from The Fisher King

The Fisher King (film)

The Fisher King is a 1991 American comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter...

 (1991), a blacksmith in Far and Away

Far and Away

Far and Away is a 1992 adventure-drama-romance film directed by Ron Howard from a script by Howard and Bob Dolman, and stars Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Cinematography by Mikael Salomon, with a music score by John Williams...

 (1992), and the flask mourner in Family Business

Family Business (film)

Family Business is a 1989 film directed by Sidney Lumet with a screenplay by Vincent Patrick, based on his novel. It stars Sean Connery, Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick.-Plot synopsis:...

 (1989). He later appeared in Waterworld

Waterworld

Waterworld is a 1995 post-apocalyptic science fiction film. The film was directed by Kevin Reynolds and co-written by Peter Rader and David Twohy. It is based on Rader's original 1986 screenplay and stars Kevin Costner, who also produced it. It was distributed by Universal Pictures...

 (1995), Reckless

Reckless (1995 film)

Reckless is a 1995 American dark comedy film directed by Norman René. The screenplay by Craig Lucas is based on his 1983 play of the same title.-Plot:...

 (1995), Blue in the Face

Blue in the Face

Blue in the Face is a 1995 comedy directed by Wayne Wang and Paul Auster. It stars Harvey Keitel, Victor Argo, Giancarlo Esposito, Roseanne Barr, Michael J. Fox, Lily Tomlin, Mira Sorvino, Lou Reed, Mel Gorham, Jim Jarmusch,and Malik Yoba....

 (1995), and The Crucible (1996).