Raymond William Stacy Burr was born May 21, 1917, in New Westminster, British Columbia. His father William Johnston … See more

Burr grew up during the Great Depression and hoped to study acting at the Pasadena Playhouse, but he was unable to afford the tuition. By his own account, in 1934 he joined a repertory theatre company in Toronto tha… See more

Burr appeared in more than 50 feature films between 1946 and 1957, creating an array of villains that established him as an icon of film noir. Film historian Alain Silver concluded that Burr's most significant work in the genr… See more

By the age of 12, Burr was appearing in national radio dramas broadcasting in nearby San Francisco.
As a young man Burr weighed more than 300 pounds (140 kg), which limited his on-screen role… See more

Burr emerged as a prolific television character actor in the 1950s. He made his television debut in 1951, appearing in episodes of Stars Over Hollywood, The Bigelow Theatre, Family Theater and the debut episo… See more

Burr said that he weighed 12.75 pounds (5.8 kg) at birth, and was chubby throughout his childhood. "When you're a little fat boy in public school, or any kind of school, you're just persecuted something awful," he s… See more