Raymond Burr, who first made his mark in Hollywood playing hulking villains in films including "Rear Window," only to become best known as Perry Mason, television's most celebrated defense attorney, died Sunday night. He was 76.
Burr died at 8:40 p.m. at his vineyard and farm in the Sonoma County community of Dry Creek in Northern California, the Associated Press reported. Burr's friend Charles Macaulay said Burr's physician, Paul Margulio, said he died of metastatic cancer of the liver.Burr, whose "Perry Mason" was the longest running and most successful lawyer series and who also starred in NBC's "Ironside," was born Raymond William Stacy Burr on May 21, 1917, in New West-minister, British Columbia, near Vancouver.
He was the oldest of three children of William Johnston Burr, a hardware dealer, and Minerva Smith Burr, a concert pianist and music teacher. When he was 1 year old, his family moved to China, where he lived for five years. He made his first stage appearance at the age of 12 in a Vancouver stock company.
Burr moved with his mother and siblings to California after his parents separated. He was forced to give up school to help support his family, which had been battered by the Depression. His first job was working on a cattle ranch in New Mexico.
He quit after one year and returned to school but ended his formal education before completing junior high school. He later studied at Stanford University and at Columbia University in New York.
Although he held various jobs - Forest Service worker, traveling salesman, writer and store manager - he never lost his interest in the theater and appeared in many amateur productions.