Diane Brewster appears as Miss Simms, a secretary, with Richard Deacon as Mr. Baxter, Miss Simms' boss. A growth spurt. Showcase yourself on IMDbPro Add to list More at IMDbPro Contact info Agent info Known for Leave It to Beaver 7.6 TV Series Wally Cleaver 1957 1 ep Official Detective 8.0 TV Series Tommy Harrison 1957 1 ep Studio 57 7.9 TV Series Wally Cleaver Traveling with kids can seem like a daunting prospect if youve never done it before. Fearing bad publicity should a well-loved child star be killed in action, he was told he wouldnt be deployed. Here's What Happened to the 'Leave It to Beaver' Cast - Closer Weekly He also included their friends in the friends of both Beaver and Wally. Given the character he portrayed, its hard to image Lumpy as anything akin to suave. He was 77. Leave it to Beaver: Jerry Mathers Said Show Had to Move On from Original Wally Cleaver for One Reason. Current "New Leave It to Beaver" cast member Janice Kent, who is also in the audience, discusses becoming a part of the family in the new series. ", Kami Cotler AKA Elizabeth from 'The Waltons' Is Now a Mom of Two 41 Years after the Show Inside Her Life, Tim Allen Left Ex-wife of 15 Years In the Back Seat When He Found Fame Despite Her Support in His Career, Jon Provost, Who Played Little Timmy in 'Lassie', Was 'Lucky' to Escape the Child Star Curse He Is 71 Now, Jenna Bush Hager Proposed to Her Future Husband a Few Months after the Worst First Date - He Said No', Roseanne Barr Blamed Sara Gilbert for Destroying Her Her Family-Oriented Life After the Scandal. His dating life is sometimes frustrating as he tries to deal with the thoughts and emotions of teenaged girls. Paul Sullivan Wally Cleaver Richard Deacon Mr. Baxter Diane Brewster Miss Simms Joseph Kearns Mr. Fred Crowley (as Joe Kearns) Russell Thorson Man with Milk Bottles (as Russ Thorson) Leonard Bremen Milk Bar Proprietor (as Lennie Bremen) Harry Shearer Frankie Bennett Tommy Randall Frankie's Friend Tim Graham Doc Virginia Carroll Nurse Rory O'Connor In 1983, CBS aired the reunion telemovie Still the Beaver starring Jerry Mathers. The pilot was misplaced but was found and aired as the third season premiere for the 1980s revival series The New Leave It to Beaver on October 4, 1987, 30 years after the original series premiered on CBS. The toilet was shown in an episode when Wally and Beaver tried to keep a baby alligator in the toilet tank. Instead, Mathers decided to join the United Air Force Reserve. Some of that stems from the fact that Tony Dow himself was an accomplished athlete, even before he made it onto the show. Tony Dow had grown into an attractive, athletic young man and was often featured in "heartthrob"-type magazines aimed principally at teen girls. [1] It never aired as an episode within the series. UnlikeBeaver,Happy Days was filmed during the 1970s, even though it took place in the 1950s. June Cleaver had a different longer hairstyle and looked actually prettier with it. If you were to go on a tour of the Universal lot, theres still a chance you too could visit the Cleaver house. Wally then becomes romantically involved with Mary Ellen Rogers, though the viewer often hears about her rather than sees her. Child actor Paul Sullivan, however, portrays the character in the series pilot, "It's a Small World", which aired in April 1957. Today, many of the show's cast members including Hugh Beaumont (Ward Cleaver), Barbara Billingsley (June Cleaver), and Frank Dank (Lumpy Rutherford), are no longer alive, but the memories of them are still fresh. Dow portrays an adult Wally Cleaver in both the reunion telemovie, Still the Beaver (1983), and in the sequel series The New Leave It to Beaver (19851989). It never was.Jeanne Moreau (b. He became a Christmas tree farmer in the '60s but was forced to retire due to a stroke in 1972. He had to leave his family in Minnesota to work on the show. One episode ofLeave it to Beaverwas actually censored by the Federal Communications Commission when it showed a toilet on screen. In another episode, however, Beaver mentions being only 30 miles from the beach. Based on the success of the show and the character of Wally, the decision appeared to be the correct one. 1961-1962 Leave It to Beaver TV Series Bill Scott Scott. But for Pens & Patron is a travel site dedicated to wandering spirits. It was released to DVD in 2005. It just so happened that playing Ward Cleaver was the best way to do so. It's been over five decades since the show "Leave It to Beaver" aired its last episode in 1963. When considering the most iconic 1950s cool guy, most people think of Fonzy fromHappy Days before rememberingLeave It To Beaver. The wise father of two boys would often advise Beaver and Wally in hopes that something might stick. In my day, the collecting instinct was strong in every American boy worth his salt. Somehow, a myth was begun and perpetuated that Mathers had in fact been killed in Vietnam, which is ironic because the military wouldnt let him serve for that reason. Unlike most TV shows today, the pilot that was shot for Leave It To Beaver featured several different actors than the ones who would later become famous for the show. We spent a lot of time together. 'The Vampire Diaries' Cast: Where Are the Actors of the Iconic Show Now? The series pilot episode was originally filmed and casted by Max Showalter, and he played Ward Cleaver. It stars Barbara Billingsley, Hugh Beaumont, Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers ("as The Beaver", as the opening credits put it). Osmond passed away in May 2020. Itd be weird if a show didnt tie up all of its loose ends. In the later seasons, Wally has a few after school jobs and buys a used car. He would later play the role in spin-offs. Tony Dow, Barbara Billingsley and Jerry Mathers in a scene from "Leave it to Beaver." Before acting onLeave it to Beaver,Hugh Beaumont was a Methodist minister. Actor Paul Sullivan appeared only in the pilot as Wally Cleaver. Neither song got very much air time, which was fortunate, because they werent considered to be that good. He carves the roast at dinner and monitors Beaver's behavior. Wally - this was the weirdest and worst aspect of the pilot. Family matriarch June Cleaver was played by the gorgeous Barbara Billingsley. This just proves that Beaumont was a man of many talents. "Leave It to Beaver" might be a hit series of its time, but initially it was canceled by CBS after the first season ended in 1958. As for the heels, she wore them to appear taller than the boys as they grew up. "Tony was a beautiful soul kind, compassionate, funny and humble," they said. Theres more to the tale of the toilet onLeave It To Beaver than simply being censored for wanting to show a toilet. In his later years, he became a stockbroker, after finding it hard to break allusions that he really was Lumpy. By 1963, no TV show had ever had a proper series finale, butBeaver found itself in a bit of a pickle. Jerry Mathers didnt have a normal audition. And Im grateful for it and I enjoy it. He often showed off his personal flare by coming up with constant nicknames for the other characters, most of which were improvised by Ken Osmondon the spot. Toilet scenes were not shown on television back then, but "Leave It to Beaver" became the first although it was just the tank. Frank Bank (April 12, 1942 - April 13, 2013) was an American actor, particularly known for his role as Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford on the 1957-1963 situation comedy television series Leave It to Beaver.. Bank was cast in fifty episodes of Leave It to Beaver between January 24, 1958, until the series finale on May 30, 1963. The first episode of the main series revolved around Wally and Beaver buying an alligator, which they needed to put in water. In the original Leave it to Beaver pilot, Wally was played by actor Paul Sullivan. Jerry Mathers was around 8-years-old at the time he auditioned for the role. Ward was originally portrayed by Max Showalter in the pilot episode, while Wally was played by Paul Sullivan. In one episode, he infuriates his mother by wearing his hair in a greasy "tango dancer" style and in another episode he irks both his parents when he buys a garish suit in a men's wear store. Leave It to Beaver - Wikipedia 9. Mathers didnt end up pursuing a music career in the end. | Source: Wikimedia Commons. Tony Dow Dead: 'Leave It to Beaver' Star Dies at 77, Reps Confirm - The Tony Dow, , 77, juvenile TV actor (Leave It to Beaver,'( - Google Groups It was the first series to have a true finale. In a play taken straight from Beavers life, Mathers was shooting an episode where Beaver cares for a neighbors cat. Hugh Beaumont, Tony Dow, Barbara Billingsley, and Jerry Mathers in an episode of "Leave it to Beaver." Before shows likeLeave it to Beaver, it wasnt couth to show bodily functions on screen, or even imply them. While many people seek side jobs in order to support their acting dreams, Beaumont got into acting for the paycheck. A few episodes deal with Wally's teen taste in hairstyles and clothing. [1] The series made its CBS debut several months later on October 4, 1957, with the episode, "Beaver Gets 'Spelled". At the beginning episodes of the show, Barbara Billingsley wore flat shoes. Jerry Mathers - Wikipedia In Still the Beaver and The New Leave It to Beaver, Wally is married to high school-sweetheart Mary Ellen and is an attorney engaged in private practice. Despite the fact that Beavers friend Lumpy was seen as the ultimate nerd throughout the show, when the actor, Frank Bank wrote his autobiography as a result, he claimed that he was rather gifted when it came to his romantic relationships. The producers werent able to figure out a way for the show to go on without him, so they decided it would be best forLeave It To Beaver to go off the air. We believe that every person's story is important as it provides our community with an opportunity to feel a sense of belonging, share their hopes and dreams. In order to be able to see the boys sitting in the back seat of the car, the glass was therefore removed, which solved the problem of glare. david kent actor leave it to beaver - lineartdrawingsnature Sadly, he passed away in 1982 from a heart attack at just 79 years old. Billingsley passed away due to Polymyalgia at age 94 in 2010. Mathers genuinely had a cub scout meeting to go to after his audition, which he was anxious to get too. Apparently it was so bad, that nobody listened to it. And to celebrate our own enjoyment of the show, we're taking a look at the lives and careers of Hugh, Barbara, Tony and Jerry. 'Leave It to Beaver': A look back at the cast of the beloved TV show Beaver may not have been reliant on pop culture for its storylines, but it certainly made mention of the Sputnik launch during several episodes. Actor Paul Sullivan played Wally Cleaver in the show's pilot. Paul Sullivan did not have much of an acting career outside of this pilot. She only began wearing heels as the two boys began growing, so she could better appear to tower over them, especially when dealing with their many misdeeds. | Source: Wikimedia Commons. Then, as Wally leaves the room with a parting bon mot and the canned laughter kicks in, the camera catches June's bewildered, dazed, or amused facial expression. In the 1997 film adaptation of the original series, Leave It to Beaver, Wally is portrayed by Erik von Detten. For the main series, producers cast Tony Dow to take Paul Sullivan's place as Wally. Under their guidance, Jerry recorded two singles, Dontcha Cry and Wind Up Top. However, the actor didn't quite follow through with his early career. When the show first debuted in 1957, its ratings were only so so, which caused executives at CBS to rethink their commitment to the program. What Cooper had meant was that he behaved a lot like the character of Haskell as a child, not that he portrayed him. Many audience members reminisce about how June Cleaver was always pristine, even while engaging in all sorts of housework. We actually became much closer as adults, because in the 80s we toured together for 18 months in a play called So Long, Stanley and spent a lot more quality time together.. By the time those pesky Alice Cooper rumors spread, Ken Osmond had been a police officer for over 18 years! There were tons of brands ranging from board games to comic books that were featured during the show. When the purebred show cat was put in the tree for the scene, however, it was spooked by its surroundings and ran away.