Raymond Burr when they began casting the role of Los Angeles district attorney Hamilton Burger in the CBS-TV series "Perry Mason". As a young man Burr weighed more than 300 lbs., which limited his on-screen roles. "But in radio this presented no problems, given the magnificent quality of his voice," reported "The Globe and Mail". "He played romantic leads and menacing villains with equal authority, and he earned a steady and comfortable income." Working steadily in radio since the 1940s, often uncredited, Burr was a leading player on the West Coast. He had a regular role in Jack Webb's first radio show,
Raymond Burr the creators of "Gunsmoke". He played the role of Lee Quince, captain of the cavalry, in the series set at a post-Civil War military post where disease, boredom, the elements and the uncharted terrain were the greatest enemies of "ordinary men who lived in extraordinary times". The half-hour transcribed program aired Sundays at 5:30 p.m. ET January 22 – October 28, 1956. Burr told columnist Sheilah Graham that he had received 1,500 fan letters after the first broadcasts, and he continued to receive letters praising the show's authenticity and presentation of human dignity. In August 1956, CBS announced that Burr