‘Leave It to Beaver’: Inside Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers’ Friendship
Leave It to Beaver fans are mourning the death of Tony Dow. The actor, best known for his role as Wally Cleaver on the classic TV series, died on July 27, 2022. Among those grieving are Dow’s co-star and friend Jerry Mathers.
‘Leave It to Beaver star Jerry Mathers mourns friend and co-star Tony Dow
Dow and Mathers rose to fame as brothers Wally and Theodore “The Beaver” Cleaver on the classic sitcom. Just like their onscreen characters, Dow and Mathers had a tight bond. Their friendship spanned over six decades and sadly ended with Dow’s death.
Dow died at the age of 77 on July 27, and immediately friends responded with condolences. In a Facebook post, Mathers described Dow as “generous, loving, sincere, and humble.” Mathers’ heartfelt message also reflected on the pair’s friendship, “He was not only my brother on TV but in many ways in life as well. Tony leaves an empty place in my heart that won’t be filled.”
Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers rose to fame on ‘Leave It to Beaver’
In 1957, Dow and Mathers’ lives changed forever when they were cast on Leave It to Beaver. The sitcom revolved around the picture-perfect family, The Cleavers. Ward and June Cleaver (Hugh Beaumont and Barbara Billingsley) are loving parents who instill important life lessons to their sons. In every episode, Wally and Beaver land into trouble, which ends in a lecture from their parents.
Mathers was nine when he joined the show, and Dow was 12 years old. The sitcom became an instant success and launched the cast into stardom. The cast was as close onscreen as they were offscreen. According to Outsider.com, Mathers said he and Dow hit it off from the start, and he admired his co-star’s athleticism.
“Tony was a great athlete. I’m the oldest in my family, so I never had a big brother. But Dow was an AUU swimming and diving champion.”
The actors took different career paths after the show ended
Leave It to Beaver ran for one year on CBS before being picked up by ABC, where it gained a huge following. After a successful six-season run, the show aired its final episode on June 20, 1963. Following the show’s end, Dow and Mathers took different career paths.
Mathers retired from acting to concentrate on high school and later enlisted in the United States Air Force Reserve. Later the actor would graduate from the University of California, Berkley, with a degree in philosophy. Mathers worked as a loan officer and a real estate developer. However, he did return to acting with guest appearances on Married…with Children and The Love Boat.
As for Dow, he continued working in Hollywood as an actor, director, and writer. Some of his other acting credits include The Kentucky Fried Movie and Back to the Beach. Aside from acting, Dow was a well-known sculptor whose art was featured in numerous exhibits.
Dow and Mathers would team up for several appearances later in their careers. They performed together in dinner theater and, in 1980, made a guest appearance on Saturday Night Live. In 1983, they reprised their roles as Wally And Beaver for the TV movie Still the Beaver and the TV reboot The New Leave It to Beaver.
