Warren Beatty a Hollywood star, he decided to work as a stagehand at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C. during the summer before his senior year. After graduation, he was reportedly offered ten football scholarships to college, but turned them down to study liberal arts at Northwestern University (1954–55), where he joined the Sigma Chi fraternity. After his first year, he left college to move to New York City, where he studied acting under Stella Adler at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. Fearing that his acting career would be interrupted by being drafted, Beatty used a well-thought-out scheme to resolve the
Warren Beatty issue of military service without ever serving on active duty. He enlisted in the California Air National Guard on February 11, 1960 under his original name Henry W. Beaty. On January 1, 1961, he was given a dishonorable discharge from the Air National Guard and the United States Air Force Reserve. This made him ineligible for the draft and any military service. Beatty started his career making appearances on television shows such as "Studio One" (1957), "Kraft Television Theatre" (1957), and "Playhouse 90" (1959). He was a semi-regular on "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis" during its first season (1959–60).