Dick Preston
Background
Dick Preston is an engineer.
During the events of Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe, Season 1 Episode 4 Nightmare Typhoon played by Richard Crane
Commando Cody, Joan Gilbert and Dick listen to the radio as the announcer describes the destruction caused by the weather. Commando Cody calls radar control and asks the location of the unidentified spaceship. He then goes to a large map and shows Joan and Dick the route that the spaceship has been heading, which exactly matches that of the sudden downpours. Dick thinks it is probably The Ruler's work. Radar control tells Commando Cody that the spaceship is heading towards his direction and he decides to use his fuel pack to intercept the spaceship. Dick calls Commando Cody and tells him the exact heading of the spaceship. Commando Cody sees the R-6 drop a bomb and intercepts it and brings it back to headquarters. Commissioner Henderson goes to headquarters and tells Commando Cody, Joan and Dick that The Ruler has temporarily stopped the flooding in order to give his ultimatum. Earth must disperse the protective cosmic dust and allow his occupational forces to take over Earth. The message then continues that they must respond within 24 hours. Commando Cody comes up with the idea to delay message to The Ruler for a few days in order for him to work on a solution for countering the bombs.
Commando Cody comes up with a plan to spread a counter-gas causing the bombs to explode prematurely. He calls Post Number 1 and tells him to inform the other posts of his arrival. When he, Joan and Dick arrive, he gives Clancy the keys to his vehicle and he, Dick and Joan get into the rocket and take off. They dispense the counter-gas and Henderson contacts them and tells them that the spaceship is heading from the Moon to the east coast of the United States. After Commando Cody and the others finish dispensing the gas, they head towards the east coast. R-6 Commander drops bombs over New York City, but his spaceship is then intercepted by Commando Cody's rocket. They use their ship's weapons to attack each other and Commando Cody destroys R-6 Commander and R-6 Pilot's ship, killing them. The gas works and the storms dispel. Back at headquarters, Dick reveals that he was wearing a life preserver the entire time.
During the events of Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe, Season 1 Episode 5 War of the Space Giants played by Richard Crane
Dick is on the phone as Joan reads out coordinates to Commando Cody. Henderson walks into the room and tells Commando Cody that the research building was a total loss and continues that an epidemic has developed in all the areas hit with the explosions. Commando Cody tells him that if they follow the path of the attacks, the next target will be their city. He tells Henderson that he plans on attacking the enemy rocket before its next attack. Commando Cody, Joan and Dick drive to his rocket and Commando Cody tells Clancy that they are taking off right away. They fly the rocket and Commando Cody tells Joan that The Ruler would use germ warfare to wipe out the population. They spot the M-7 and start firing on it. Sanders starts firing back at Commando Cody's rocket. Commando Cody uses the freeze ray and then puts on his fuel pack. He flies to the M-7 and plugs up the exhaust vents, forcing M-7 Captain for turn the power off. Joan then uses a magnetic drag ray to tow the M-7. Joan lands the rocket and Commando Cody and Dick head towards the M-7. They get into a shoot out with M-7 Captain and Sanders and Sanders is shot dead. M-7 Captain runs back into the rocket and Commando Cody follows him. They get into a fist fight and Commando Cody knocks him unconscious.
Henderson stops by the office and tells Commando Cody that M-7 Captain refused to divulge much information. Commando Cody tells him that they found the anti-toxin in the M-7 and it has been passed to the pharmaceutical companies. He shows Henderson the weapon from the M-7 which uses saterium, which only comes from one of the moons on Saturn. He tells Henderson of his plan to destroy the saterium deposits so The Ruler won't be able to recharge his weapons. Commando Cody, Dick and Joan fly their rocket towards Saturn and head towards the moon with the saterium deposits. Dick lands the rocket and Commando Cody flies towards a mine. Dick fires the rocket and Commando Cody barely escapes before the rocket hits the mine. Commando Cody, Joan and Dick return to Earth and Dick wonders about the positive ways saterium could have been used.
During the events of Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe, Season 1 Episode 6 Destroyers of the Sun played by Richard Crane
Commando Cody, Joan and Dick are working when Dick notices it's getting dark earlier than usual. Joan looks out the window and calls Commando Cody over to look at the sun. Commando Cody and Dick walk to the window and see the sun start to fade away. The radio announcer says that astronomers have no ideas about why the sun is being blotted out from the sky. He continues that work in most places has continued, except in farming and that some places are seeing subzero temperatures. Henderson stops by the office and tells Commando Cody and the others that astronomers are baffled. Commando Cody thinks it is due to something The Ruler is doing.
Commando Cody tells Henderson, Dick and Joan that the astronomers think perhaps someone is affecting the atomic reactions on the sun. Commando Cody, Joan and Dick drive to his rocket and he calls Post Number 1 and tells him to clear the other posts. Post Number 1 calls post number 2 and tells him Commando Cody is on his way. Commando Cody and the others arrive at the rocket and he asks Clancy if everything is ready and then has Clancy drive the car back. They take off in the rocket and as Dick turns on the dispersal ray, it fails to work. They reverse course and Commando Cody tells them that someone must have put something in the protective cosmic that blocked the dispersal ray. Commando Cody tells Henderson that someone from Station 8 added something to the cosmic dust.
Commando Cody goes back to the office and tells Henderson that Baylor managed to escape, but he left enough paperwork to figure out that The Ruler is using a ray machine to block the sun from planet M-27. Commando Cody, Joan and Dick get back into the rocket and fly towards planet M-27. Dick notices the rocket is slowing down and Commando Cody tells him they might as well turn off the rockets. Commando Cody puts on his fuel pack and takes a nuclear bomb with him and flies towards M-27. He lands on the ray weapon and drops off a nuclear bomb. The bomb goes off, destroying the ray machine and Dick and Joan pick up Commando Cody in the rocket. Commando Cody has Dick head towards towards the tower underneath the ray machine. Commando Cody bombs the mountain with the tower, destroying the tower and then he, Joan and Dick head back home to the news that the sun has returned to normal.