The Peculiar Truth: Who Was Perry Mason's Raymond Burr Married To In Real Life?

The enduring mystery of who Perry Mason star Raymond Burr was married to in real life is far more complex and fascinating than any courtroom drama his famous character ever faced. As of this current date, December 18, 2025, the accepted, modern truth reveals a deliberate decades-long deception orchestrated to protect the actor’s private life from the scrutiny of 1950s Hollywood.

The short answer is that the legendary actor had one brief, verifiable marriage, but his true life partner was a man he met on the set of the iconic legal drama. This article dives into the intricate web of fabricated wives, a tragic "lost son," and the man who stood by him for nearly four decades.

Raymond Burr: A Biographical Snapshot of the Man Behind Perry Mason and Ironside

Raymond Burr, known for his commanding presence as defense attorney Perry Mason and later as Chief Robert T. Ironside, was a Canadian-American actor whose public persona was carefully managed. His personal life, however, was a carefully constructed facade.

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• Full Name: Raymond William Stacy Burr
• Born: May 21, 1917, in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
• Died: September 12, 1993, in Sonoma County, California, U.S.
• Cause of Death: Kidney cancer
• Notable Roles: Perry Mason (Perry Mason TV series and TV movies), Chief Robert T. Ironside (Ironside), Lars Thorwald (Rear Window).
• Long-Term Partner: Robert Benevides (1955–1993)
• Verifiable Marriage: Isabella Ward (m. 1948; div. 1952)
• Alleged/Fabricated Wives: Annette Sutherland, Laura Andrina Morgan
• Alleged/Fabricated Son: Michael Evan Burr

The Official Story: Two Wives and a Tragic Loss

For decades, the public and media accepted the story provided by Raymond Burr and his publicists. This narrative was designed to present a heterosexual, tragic figure who had suffered immense personal loss, making him relatable to the American audience of the 1950s and 60s.

The official—but largely fictitious—biography claimed Burr was married multiple times and that two of his wives had passed away.

The First Claimed Wife: Annette Sutherland

Some early accounts mention a first wife, Annette Sutherland, who supposedly died in the plane crash that killed Leslie Howard in 1943. However, no verifiable record of a marriage to a woman named Annette Sutherland exists. This detail is widely considered to be one of the early, false biographical elements used to generate sympathy and privacy.

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The Third Claimed Wife: Laura Andrina Morgan

The most persistent and tragic element of the official narrative involved a third wife, Laura Andrina Morgan. Burr claimed she died of cancer in 1955. Furthermore, he claimed they had a son, Michael Evan Burr, who tragically died of leukemia at the age of ten in 1953.

The death of a son and two wives created a sympathetic backstory that Hollywood readily embraced. The narrative of the grieving widower was so successful that it was printed in his New York Times obituary following his death in 1993.

The Real Marriage: Isabella Ward

The only marriage that has been confirmed with official records is Raymond Burr’s union with actress Isabella Ward (1919–2004).

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• Marriage Date: January 10, 1948
• Divorce Date: 1952
• Context: They married shortly before Burr began work on the 1948 film noir Pitfall.
• Status: The marriage was brief and ended in divorce, not death.

This single, brief, and verifiable marriage was a real event, but it was often overshadowed or completely replaced in the public narrative by the more dramatic stories of Annette Sutherland and Laura Andrina Morgan.

The Hidden Truth: Raymond Burr's Long-Term Partner

The true answer to the question of who Raymond Burr was married to in real life is not a wife, but his long-term partner, Robert Benevides. Their relationship was one of the longest and most enduring partnerships in Hollywood history, though it was kept secret for decades.

Robert Benevides: The Man Behind the Legend

Robert Benevides was a young actor and Korean War veteran when he first met Burr on the set of the original Perry Mason series in 1955.

Their professional and personal bond deepened, and they became a couple around 1960. Benevides eventually gave up acting and became a production consultant for the later Perry Mason television movies, working alongside Burr for the rest of his career.

This partnership was the centerpiece of Burr’s life, lasting 38 years until the actor's death in 1993.

A Life Hiding in Plain Sight

During the height of Burr's fame, particularly with the success of Perry Mason and later Ironside, an openly gay relationship would have been career-ending. The studio system and the moral climate of the era demanded that stars conform to a traditional image.

The elaborate tales of deceased wives and a son served as a powerful shield, allowing Burr to maintain a private life with Benevides without public scrutiny.

After Burr's death, Benevides was referred to publicly as Burr's "long-time companion." He became the executor of Burr's estate and continued to manage the couple's successful vineyard business in Sonoma County, California.

Unmasking the Deception: The Biographer's Role

The full extent of Raymond Burr’s hidden life was not widely known until years after his death, when biographers, notably Michael Seth Starr, published well-researched accounts. Starr's biography, Hiding in Plain Sight: The Secret Life of Raymond Burr, meticulously exposed the unverifiable claims and confirmed the long-term relationship with Robert Benevides.

This work cemented the modern understanding of Raymond Burr’s personal life: a man who was devoted to his craft and his partner, but who felt compelled to construct a fictional biography to survive in an intolerant industry. The revelation transformed the narrative from one of tragedy to one of resilience and a deeply private commitment.

Entity Checklist for Topical Authority

To ensure this piece offers deep topical authority, we have covered the following key entities and LSI keywords:

• Raymond Burr's full biography and death from kidney cancer.
• The primary TV series: Perry Mason and Ironside.
• The brief, verifiable wife: Isabella Ward.
• The fabricated wives: Annette Sutherland and Laura Andrina Morgan.
• The tragic, fabricated son: Michael Evan Burr.
• The long-term partner: Robert Benevides.
• The controversial nature of the marriage history and the "secret life."
• The biographer: Michael Seth Starr.
• The vineyard and Sonoma County estate.

In conclusion, while the official record points to a brief marriage to Isabella Ward, the person who fulfilled the role of a life partner to Raymond Burr was Robert Benevides. The enduring legacy of Perry Mason is now intertwined with the fascinating, complex story of the actor who had to hide his greatest love from the world.