Emmy-winning actress Barbara Hale dead at 94

Actress Barbara Hale, who was famous for playing the loyal legal secretary Della Street on the long-running TV series "Perry Mason" has passed at 94.
The icon died on January 27 at her home in California's Sherman Oaks, reported Entertainment Weekly.
Hale's son, actor William Katt confirmed her death on Facebook.
Remembering his mother, Katt wrote that she was, "A wonderful actress and smart business woman she was most of all a treasure as a friend and mother!"
Hale featured in all nine seasons of "Perry Mason", starring opposite Raymond Burr, which aired on CBS from 1957 to 1966. She won her Emmy for the same in the year 1959.

The actress hailed from DeKalb, Illinois. In her initial stint in career, Hale worked as a contract player for RKO and Columbia.

Before she landed the role of Della Street, she had appeared in films like "Higher and Higher", "West of the Pecos", and "A Lion Is In the Streets".
She was married to actor Bill Williams, with whom she featured in "The Clay Pigeon". Williams died of brain tumour at the age of 77 on September 21, 1992.
She was later seen in movies like "Airport", "The Giant Spider Invasion", and "Big Wednesday", the latter of which also starred Katt.

Hale is survived by her son and her two daughters, Johanna Katt and Juanita King.