Ellen DeGeneres, Neil Patrick Harris and Lena Waithe are just three of the many celebrities featured in Visible: Out On Television , a new docuseries that takes a stunningly comprehensive look at the evolution of LGBTQ representation on TV.

In one clip from the series , Harris and others reflect on the legacy of Perry Mason star Raymond Burr . The Canadian actor, who died in 1993, kept quiet about his sexuality as well as his 33-year relationship with Robert Benevides during his lifetime. But, as co-star William Katt recalls, Burrs now well-documented private life was very much an open secret among Hollywood cohorts.

The power of television within the LGBTQ rights movement cant be understated. Shows like The Golden Girls and Designing Women , as well as other era-defining hits like My So-Called Life and Glee , generated discourse about queer lives among audiences when they first aired. The collective influence of TV as a medium, however, has rarely been as thoroughly examined as it is over the course of the five Visible episodes.