Raymond Burr, the burly, impassive actor who played the defense lawyer Perry Mason and the police detective Robert T. Ironside on television, died on Sunday at his ranch in Dry Creek Valley,...

Perry Mason is an American legal drama series originally broadcast on CBS television from September 21, 1957, to May 22, 1966. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner. Many episodes are based on stories written by Gardner.

Ray’s Philosophy. Ray’s first wife Annette Sutherland died in a 1943 plane crash. He divorced his 2nd wife Isabelle Ward and lost his 3rd wife Laura Morgan to cancer in 1955. He lost his only child Michael Evan Burr to leukemia at the age of 10 in 1953.

Perry Mason was the first major hour-long show to appear on TV.

Raymond William Stacy Burr (May 21, 1917 – September 12, 1993) was a Canadian actor who had a lengthy Hollywood film career and portrayed the title roles in the television dramas Perry Mason and Ironside. Burr's early acting career included roles on Broadway, radio, television, and film, usually as the villain.