He graduated from Lawrenceville in 1937. At Princeton, he majored in English (winning the Wanamaker Prize his junior year) and was a member of Terrace Club.
During World War II, he joined the Coast Guard and served in the sailboat patrol, which was engaged in anti-U-boat activity in the North Atlantic, until he separated from the service in 1945.
Ray earned a master’s degree in English literature at the University of North Carolina in 1950.
An interest in theater led Ray to become a professional puppeteer, performing for youth in schools and clubs from 1952 to 1970. Then, as a playwright, he became interested in scholarly materials that could be produced as puppet plays. He especially enjoyed using scenes and characters from George Peele, a contemporary of Shakespeare. Ray was an active member of the Connecticut Guild of Puppetry and National Guild of Puppetry.
Ray is survived by his wife of 59 years, Elizabeth Keyes Mount; his sons, Richard and David; and four grandsons.