Biography

Barbara Hale (April 18, 1922 - January 26, 2017) was an American actress best known for her role as legal secretary Della Street on more than 250 episodes of the long-running Perry Mason television series and in 30 made-for-TV movies. Hale was born in DeKalb, Illinois, to Luther Ezra Hale, a landscape gardener, and his wife, Wilma Colvin. She is of Scots-Irish ancestry. Hale graduated from high school in Rockford, Illinois, then attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, planning to become an artist. Her performing career began in Chicago when she started modeling to pay for her education. She moved to Hollywood in 1943, and made her first screen appearances playing small parts (often uncredited). Hale was under contract to RKO Radio Pictures through the late 1940s. She appeared in Higher and Higher (1943) with Frank Sinatra; played leading lady to Robert Mitchum in West of the Pecos (1945); enjoyed top billing in both Lady Luck (1946) opposite Robert Young and The Window (1949) with Arthur Kennedy; and co-starred in Jolson Sings Again (1949), with Larry Parks playing Al Jolson and Hale as Jolson's wife, Ellen Clark. She played the top-billed title role in Lorna Doone (1951) and portrayed …

Filmography

Title	Character	Year	Rating
Perry Mason: The Case of the Wicked Wives	Della Street	1993	6.75
Perry Mason: The Case of the Killer Kiss	Della Street	1993	7.444
Perry Mason: The Case of the Skin-Deep Scandal	Della Street	1993	7.227
Perry Mason: The Case of the Heartbroken Bride	Della Street	1992	7.778
Perry Mason: The Case of the Reckless Romeo	Della Street	1992	7.25
Perry Mason: The Case of the Ruthless Reporter	Della Street	1991	6.545
Perry Mason: The Case of the Glass Coffin	Della Street	1991	7.35
Perry Mason: The Case of the Maligned Mobster	Della Street	1991	6.7
Perry Mason: The Case of the Silenced Singer	Della Street	1990	7.55
Perry Mason: The Case of the Scandalous Scoundrel	Della Street	1987	7.4
Perry Mason: The Case of the Sinister Spirit	Della Street	1987	7.583
Perry Mason Returns	Della Street	1985	7.175
The Giant Spider Invasion	Dr. Jenny Langer	1975	4.12
Chester, Yesterday’s Horse	Mrs. Belle Kincaid	1973	—
Airport	Sarah Demerest	1970	6.483
The Oklahoman	Anne	1957	5.769
The Houston Story	Zoe Crane	1956	6.0
7th Cavalry	Martha Kellogg	1956	6.053
The Far Horizons	Julia Hancock	1955	6.261
Last of the Comanches	Julia Lanning	1953	6.364
Seminole	Revere	1953	5.603
A Lion Is in the Streets	Verity Wade	1953	5.313
The Window	Mary Woodry	1949	6.946
The Clay Pigeon	Martha Gregory	1949	5.69
Jolson Sings Again	Ellen Clark	1949	6.364
The Boy with Green Hair	Miss Brand	1948	6.228
First Yank into Tokyo	Abby Drake	1945	6.0
The Falcon in Hollywood	Peggy Callahan	1944	6.154
The Falcon Out West	Marion Colby	1944	5.308
Higher and Higher	Katherine	1943	6.25

Known for	Acting
Credits	30
Born	1922
From	DeKalb, Illinois, USA

🎭 Browse Actors 🎬 Browse Movies 📺 Browse TV Shows ⭐ Top Rated Films 🌐 Top Websites 📝 Blog