William Talman, best known as the perennial courtroom loser District Attorney Hamilton Burger on “Perry Mason,” played a far more serious real-life role in his final years. A lifelong heavy smoker, Talman became the first Hollywood actor to film an anti-smoking public service announcement for the American Cancer Society — knowing he was dying of lung cancer and requesting the commercials not air until after his death. Born William Whitney Talman Jr. on February 4, 1915, in Detroit, Michigan, Talman founded the drama club at the Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills.
He continued acting at Dartmouth College and the University of Michigan before working in summer stock theater and taking jobs at an iron foundry, boatyards, and as a car salesman. He began his Broadway career in the early 1940s with appearances in “Beverly Hills,” “Yoko Boy,” and “Of Mice and Men. ” He was performing in “Spring Again” at Henry Miller’s Theatre in January 1942 when he received his draft notice. Talman served in the United States Army in the Pacific Theater during World War II, entering as a private in 1942 and eventually rising to the rank of major.
After the war, he returned to Broadway and then transitioned to films, with his first picture being “Red, White and Blue” in 1949, followed by “The Racket” in 1951. In 1953, Talman played a sadistic psychotic killer in the film “The Hitch-Hiker,” a performance that caught the attention of Gail Patrick Jackson, executive producer of the CBS television series “Perry Mason. ”
Talman was cast as Hamilton Burger, the Los Angeles District Attorney who spent nine years losing courtroom battles to Perry Mason, played by Raymond Burr. Over the course of the series, Burger lost all but three cases.
But in March 1960, Talman faced a real-life legal battle that threatened his career. Sheriff’s deputies raided a private party in Beverly Hills on March 13, 1960, suspicious of marijuana use. Talman was a guest at the gathering. The deputies reported finding Talman and seven other defendants either nude or semi-nude.
All were arrested for possession of marijuana and vagrancy-lewdness charges. On June 17, Municipal Judge Adolf Alexander dismissed all charges against Talman and the others for lack of proof. Despite the dismissal, CBS fired Talman without giving a reason. Public support was immediate.
Viewers launched a massive letter-writing campaign, and Gail Patrick Jackson staunchly supported Talman. Raymond Burr, a close friend, also backed him. CBS eventually relented and rehired Talman. In addition to his role on “Perry Mason,” Talman guest-starred in numerous television series, including “Wagon Train,” “Have Gun – Will Travel,” “Cimarron City,” and “Gunsmoke.
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After “Perry Mason” was canceled in 1966, Talman embarked on a six-week tour of Vietnam to entertain troops. When he returned home, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. Talman kept working, appearing on “The Wild Wild West” and in a first-season episode of “The Invaders,” which became his final on-screen acting role. His personal life included three marriages.
His first wife was actress Lynn Carter, whom he married just before leaving for military service in 1942. They had one daughter, Linda, and divorced in September 1952. He married actress Barbara Reid in 1953, and the couple had two children before divorcing in 1960. His third wife was Margaret Flanigan, whom he married in 1963.
Margaret brought two children, Timothy and Susan, into the marriage. As his health declined, Talman agreed to film two anti-smoking public service announcements for the American Cancer Society. Aware that he was dying, he spoke directly to viewers: “You know, I didn’t really mind losing those courtroom battles, but I’m in a battle right now I don’t want to lose. All because if I lose it, it means losing my wife and those kids you just met.
I’ve got lung cancer. So take some advice about smoking and losing from someone who’s been doing both for years. If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you do smoke, quit.
Don’t be a loser. ”
Talman requested that the commercials not be aired until after his death. Four weeks after filming the second announcement, he died of lung cancer on August 30, 1968, at the age of 53. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.
His widow, Margaret “Peggy” Louise Talman, joined him there when she died in January 2002 at the age of 73. After her husband’s death, she continued his anti-smoking efforts, but within a few years she resumed smoking and ultimately died of lung cancer as well.
