In sad news for fans of classic 50s and 60s TV, Barbara Hale, an Emmy Award-winning actress who played the loyal, confident, soft-spoken Della Street on the TV series “Perry Mason,” died last week at the age of 94.
Biographers note that Hale had been working in Hollywood for more than 10 years when she was offered the supporting role on “Perry Mason,” the CBS courtroom drama starring the unflappable Raymond Burr. The series had a remarkable nine-year run from 1957 to 1966, with Della serving as a steadying and reliable presence for the quick-thinking Mason.
“Della wasn’t really a very big role,” Hale explained in an interview for a newspaper back in 1986. “I had six days, six lines and six wardrobe changes a show. When I changed clothes, it signified another day had gone by in the script.”
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The courtroom drama was a popular hit, however, and Hale was presented the Emmy Award for best supporting actress in a dramatic series for 1959. Hale and Burr reunited for a television movie, “Perry Mason Returns,” in 1985, which was a smash hit and resulted in 29 more TV movies starring the same characters.
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In the 20 years from the end of the TV series to the start of the Perry Mason television movies, Hale performed in commercials for Amana appliances, made five films and appeared on numerous television shows in a variety of roles.
Of note, was Dean Martin’s wife in the iconic “Airport” (1970) and appeared with Mr. Katt, her son, in the 1978 surfer film “Big Wednesday” and on his 1980s TV series, “The Greatest American Hero.”
Hale married acting colleague Bill Williams in 1946, and they had three children. Williams, whose original family name was Katt, passed away in 1992. The prolific and beloved actress is survived by two daughters, Jody and Juanita Katt; as well as six grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and two half brothers.
Source: New York Times
Photo: MeTV
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THIS BELOVED ACTRESS JUST PASSED AWAY AT AGE 94
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