Theodore Cleaver
Encyclopedia
Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver is the fiction
al title character in the American
television series Leave It to Beaver
. Seven-year-old ("almost eight") Beaver is son to June
and Ward Cleaver
(Barbara Billingsley
and Hugh Beaumont
) and sibling to thirteen-year-old Wally Cleaver
(Tony Dow
).
Beaver prefers "messin' around" with his pals and reading comic books to attending church or taking dance lessons. Most episodes in the series feature Beaver getting into some sort of trouble at home, in school, or around the neighborhood and then receiving timely and appropriate moral instruction from his father regarding his misbehavior.
Leave It to Beaver was created by writers Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who found inspiration for dialogue and plot lines among their own children. Beaver was based on Connelly's son Ricky.
Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver is portrayed by Jerry Mathers
in the pilot "It's a Small World"
, the original series, the spinoff telemovie, Still the Beaver and the sequel series, The New Leave It to Beaver
. In the reunion telemovie and the sequel series, Beaver is a divorced father of two children living at home with his widowed mother, June. In the 1997 feature film adaptation of the original series Leave It to Beaver
, Beaver is played by Cameron Finley
.
as the Cleavers' family car.
), who makes a few appearances in the series. Billy, a world traveller, is not entirely trusted by June because he fills her sons' heads with fancies of irresponsible living. Beaver also has a maternal great aunt, Martha Bronson (Madge Kennedy
), who buys Beaver a short pants suit and wants him to attend a hoity toity prep school on the east coast. Beaver was named for Martha's brother, Theodore, and, in one episode, Martha gives Beaver Theodore's heirloom ring. Beaver also has a maternal aunt named Peggy, and an infant cousin (neither of whom appear on the show). No grandparents or other relatives appear on the show, though Ward and June occasionally mention their parents while recalling incidents from their childhoods.
, Gilbert Bates, Whitey Whitney, and the elderly Gus, a fireman. While Beaver's peers cannot always be trusted or relied on in times of trouble, Gus can always be counted on to be sympathetic to Beaver's woes and to steer the boy along the straight and narrow.
Beaver is sometimes led astray by his school friends. In one episode, for example, Larry Mondello tells Beaver the principal has a spanking machine in her office and Beaver steals in to take a peek. He is accidentally locked in the office and calls the fire department to be freed. His parents are furious.
Beaver's enemies are loud-mouthed, snitching classmate Judy Hensler in the early episodes, and, in the later seasons, snooty Penny Woods. Wally's obnoxious pals, Eddie Haskell
and Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford
pick on Beaver at every opportunity (though Lumpy seems to be more friendly towards Beaver in the final season). Wally ably defends his brother against their nasty onslaughts.
Beaver is often exploited by others or becomes the victim of malicious persons. In one episode, Wally's classmate Mary Ellen Rogers makes friends with Beaver in order to snaggle a date with Wally. As soon as Mary Ellen has the date settled, she drops Beaver. In another episode, Beaver kindly lets a strange boy ride his bike — only to have the boy steal it.
and Tom Sawyer
. In one episode, he tries to pull the wool over his teacher's eyes by watching The Three Musketeers
on TV rather than reading the book. In one episode, he takes part in a TV quiz show. He plays football and receives the team's "Most Inspirational" award.
(Diane Brewster
) in the first season and Miss Alice Landers (Sue Randall
) in the remaining seasons. In one early episode, he is so smitten with Miss Landers he persuades his parents to invite her for dinner. He is shocked beyond words when she shows up on the doorstep in a cocktail dress and a pair of open-toed pumps. Eventually, Miss Landers disappoints Beaver by marrying. In another early episode, Beaver's classmate Linda Dennison becomes sweet on him and invites him to her all-girl birthday party. He wins a big doll in a party game and retreats from the feminine frills and furbelows to the den where Linda's father (Lyle Talbot
) entertains him by exhibiting his gun collection.
. Producers took advantage of Dow's popularity and scripted episodes delving into Wally's dating life, his after school jobs, his pals, and his car. Beaver was relegated to the background.
and has claimed its place in TV history as the first prime time sitcom episode specifically written as a series finale. In the episode, the Cleavers reminisce over old photos in a scrapbook while flashback clips are played from previous episodes. It is during the course of the last episode the viewer learns how Beaver got his nickname. The show ends with Beaver and Wally playing with a wind up toy and laughing like children.
. The series aired until 1989. In 1997, the feature film Leave It to Beaver
was released starring young Cameron Finley
as Beaver.
In Still the Beaver and The New Leave It to Beaver, Beaver is divorced from Kimberly (played by Joanna Gleason
); the couple had two sons, Ward (named after his grandfather; he goes by the nickname, "Kip") and Oliver (whose nickname is "Ollie"). Kimberly and Beaver had clashed over her dream of becoming a veterinarian, and that plus other problems had strained their marriage to its breaking point. Beaver (who is unemployed) wins custody of his sons, although they have a stormy relationship because they resent having to move to Mayfield. He and his sons move in with their widowed mother and grandmother June (Ward had died several years earlier) until he can get back on his feet. Eventually, Beaver finds work at Fred Rutherford's company, but even when he begins collecting regular paychecks, he decides that he appreciates the living arrangement and continues to live with his mother.
By the time The New Leave It to Beaver began, Beaver was partners with Lumpy Rutherford
at the Cleaver and Rutherford Co.; what exactly they did was never clearly explained. Kip, the older of Beaver's sons, is a student at Mayfield High School while the younger Oliver attends Grant Avenue School.
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al title character in the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television series Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver is an American television situation comedy about an inquisitive but often naïve boy named Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver and his adventures at home, in school, and around his suburban neighborhood...
. Seven-year-old ("almost eight") Beaver is son to June
June Cleaver
June Evelyn Bronson Cleaver is a principal character in the American television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. June and her husband, Ward, are often invoked as the archetypal suburban parents of the 1950s. The couple are the parents of two sons, Wally and "Beaver"...
and Ward Cleaver
Ward Cleaver
Ward Cleaver is a fictional character in the American television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Ward and his wife, June, are often invoked as archetypal suburban parents of the babyboomer 1950s. The couple are the parents of Wally, a thirteen-year-old in the eighth grade, and seven-year-old ...
(Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley
Barbara Billingsley was an American film, television, voice and stage actress. She gained prominence in the 1950s movie The Careless Years, acting opposite Natalie Trundy, followed by her best–known role, that of June Cleaver on the television series Leave It to Beaver and its sequel Still...
and Hugh Beaumont
Hugh Beaumont (actor)
Eugene Hugh Beaumont was an American actor and television director. He was also licensed to preach by the Methodist church...
) and sibling to thirteen-year-old Wally Cleaver
Wally Cleaver
Wallace "Wally" Cleaver is a fictional character in the iconic American television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Wally is the thirteen-year-old son of archetypal 50s suburban parents, Ward and June Cleaver and the older brother of the seven-year-old title character, Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver...
(Tony Dow
Tony Dow
Tony Lee Dow is an American film producer, director, sculptor, and a television child actor of the 1950s and 1960s.Dow is best known for his role in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver, which ran in primetime from 1957 to 1963...
).
Beaver prefers "messin' around" with his pals and reading comic books to attending church or taking dance lessons. Most episodes in the series feature Beaver getting into some sort of trouble at home, in school, or around the neighborhood and then receiving timely and appropriate moral instruction from his father regarding his misbehavior.
Leave It to Beaver was created by writers Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who found inspiration for dialogue and plot lines among their own children. Beaver was based on Connelly's son Ricky.
Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver is portrayed by Jerry Mathers
Jerry Mathers
Gerald Patrick "Jerry" Mathers is an American television, film, and stage actor. Mathers is best known for his role in the television sitcom series Leave It to Beaver , in which he played Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, the younger son of archetypal suburban couple June and Ward Cleaver , and the brother...
in the pilot "It's a Small World"
It's a Small World (Leave It to Beaver episode)
"It's a Small World" is the pilot episode from the iconic American television series Leave It to Beaver . The pilot was first televised April 23, 1957 on a syndicated anthology series, Studio 57, without a laugh track nor the series' well known theme song, "The Toy Parade"...
, the original series, the spinoff telemovie, Still the Beaver and the sequel series, The New Leave It to Beaver
The New Leave It to Beaver
The New Leave It to Beaver is an American sitcom sequel to the 1950s and '60s series, Leave It to Beaver. The New Leave It to Beaver began with the 1983 CBS TV movie Still the Beaver, and was picked up in 1984 as a Disney Channel series with the same name; however, it only lasted one season...
. In the reunion telemovie and the sequel series, Beaver is a divorced father of two children living at home with his widowed mother, June. In the 1997 feature film adaptation of the original series Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver (film)
Leave It to Beaver is a 1997 film that is a remake of the TV series of the same name. There are many in-jokes related to the original series within the movie.-Plot:...
, Beaver is played by Cameron Finley
Cameron Finley
Joseph Cameron Finley is an American former child actor.Finley was born in Garland, Texas, the son of Lexa Iann , a spiritual healer, and Charles David "Chuck" Finley, a software developer. He has two siblings, Taz and Stopher. When he was three, he was taken by his parents to an acting seminar...
.
Beaver's family
Beaver is the seven-year-old son to suburbanites Ward and June Cleaver, and brother to thirteen-year-old Wally. The Cleavers live in fictional Mayfield. Ward is a white-collar, brief case-toting professional; he states he is an engineer, and one would imply a civil engineer based on his experience in the Seabees. June is a full-time homemaker. In the second season, Wally is a high schooler, and, being five years older than Beaver, often acts as a bridge between his parents and Beaver. He puts communications from the parents into kidspeak for Beaver, and keeps his parents apprised of Beaver's plans, feelings, and activities. The Cleavers dwell in a spacious house on Mapleton Drive during the first two seasons, then move to a similar house on nearby Pine Street for the remaining four seasons. The family drives a Ford Fairlane.Some episodes show a PlymouthPlymouth (automobile)
Plymouth was a marque of automobile based in the United States, produced by the Chrysler Corporation and its successor DaimlerChrysler.-Origins:...
as the Cleavers' family car.
Beaver's relatives
Beaver has a paternal great uncle, Billy (Edgar BuchananEdgar Buchanan
Edgar Buchanan was an American actor with a long career in both film and television, most familiar today as Uncle Joe Carson from the Petticoat Junction, Green Acres and The Beverly Hillbillies television sitcoms of the 1960s...
), who makes a few appearances in the series. Billy, a world traveller, is not entirely trusted by June because he fills her sons' heads with fancies of irresponsible living. Beaver also has a maternal great aunt, Martha Bronson (Madge Kennedy
Madge Kennedy
Madge Kennedy was a movie and stage actress of the silent film era....
), who buys Beaver a short pants suit and wants him to attend a hoity toity prep school on the east coast. Beaver was named for Martha's brother, Theodore, and, in one episode, Martha gives Beaver Theodore's heirloom ring. Beaver also has a maternal aunt named Peggy, and an infant cousin (neither of whom appear on the show). No grandparents or other relatives appear on the show, though Ward and June occasionally mention their parents while recalling incidents from their childhoods.
Beaver's friends and enemies
Beaver's best friends are Larry MondelloLarry Mondello (television character)
Larry Mondello is a fictional character from the iconic American television series Leave It to Beaver . He is portrayed by child actor Robert "Rusty" Stevens. Larry Mondello appears in 68 of the show's 234 episodes over the first few seasons...
, Gilbert Bates, Whitey Whitney, and the elderly Gus, a fireman. While Beaver's peers cannot always be trusted or relied on in times of trouble, Gus can always be counted on to be sympathetic to Beaver's woes and to steer the boy along the straight and narrow.
Beaver is sometimes led astray by his school friends. In one episode, for example, Larry Mondello tells Beaver the principal has a spanking machine in her office and Beaver steals in to take a peek. He is accidentally locked in the office and calls the fire department to be freed. His parents are furious.
Beaver's enemies are loud-mouthed, snitching classmate Judy Hensler in the early episodes, and, in the later seasons, snooty Penny Woods. Wally's obnoxious pals, Eddie Haskell
Eddie Haskell
Edward Clark "Eddie" Haskell is a fictional character on the Leave It to Beaver television situation comedy, which ran on CBS from October 4, 1957 to 1958 and then on ABC from 1958 to June 20, 1963...
and Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford
Clarence Rutherford
Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford is a fictional character in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. The show aired from October 4, 1957 to June 20, 1963. Lumpy is a bit of a bully and, with Eddie Haskell, is one of Wally Cleaver's friends....
pick on Beaver at every opportunity (though Lumpy seems to be more friendly towards Beaver in the final season). Wally ably defends his brother against their nasty onslaughts.
Beaver is often exploited by others or becomes the victim of malicious persons. In one episode, Wally's classmate Mary Ellen Rogers makes friends with Beaver in order to snaggle a date with Wally. As soon as Mary Ellen has the date settled, she drops Beaver. In another episode, Beaver kindly lets a strange boy ride his bike — only to have the boy steal it.
Beaver's pets
Beaver has several pets on the show — none, however, lasting longer than an episode. In "Captain Jack", he has both an alligator and a terrier. In another episode, he becomes attached to a lost chihuahua until his owner comes to claim him. He has a horse named Nick for a night, a rabbit (first named Henry and then Henrietta when she gives birth), a toad called Herbie, a monkey named Stanley, and a pigeon who dies and is buried in the back yard. Beaver also has a sapling which he digs up and moves from the Mapleton Drive house to the new house on Pine Street. In one episode, he retrieves his old Teddy Bear from a trash can after Ward has cleaned the garage.Beaver's education
Beaver is a good, average student at Grant Avenue Grammar School who struggles with his homework but gets it done. His teacher in the first season is Miss Canfield. Miss Alice Landers takes over for the next several seasons. In the late seasons, Beaver has male teachers and occasionally, Mrs. Cornelia Rayburn, the principal. Beaver takes clarinet lessons in one episode, and ballroom dancing lessons at a studio on Saturdays. He appears in school plays as a mushroom and a Dutch boy. He reads several classic novels during the show's run including The Last of the MohicansThe Last of the Mohicans
The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757 is a historical novel by James Fenimore Cooper, first published in February 1826. It is the second book of the Leatherstocking Tales pentalogy and the best known...
and Tom Sawyer
Tom Sawyer
Thomas "Tom" Sawyer is the title character of the Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer . He appears in three other novels by Twain: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , Tom Sawyer Abroad , and Tom Sawyer, Detective .Sawyer also appears in at least three unfinished Twain works, Huck and Tom...
. In one episode, he tries to pull the wool over his teacher's eyes by watching The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
on TV rather than reading the book. In one episode, he takes part in a TV quiz show. He plays football and receives the team's "Most Inspirational" award.
Beaver's crushes and girlfriends
Beaver suffers crushes on his Grant Avenue Grammar School teachers, Miss CanfieldMiss Canfield (television character)
Miss Canfield is a fictional character in the American television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Miss Canfield is portrayed by Diane Brewster.The character appeared in four first season episodes. Brewster then left the series without explanation...
(Diane Brewster
Diane Brewster
Diane Brewster was an American television actress most noted for playing three distinctively different roles in US TV series of the 1950s and 60s: confidence trickster Samantha Crawford in Maverick; pretty young second-grade teacher Miss Canfield in Leave It to Beaver; and doomed wife Helen...
) in the first season and Miss Alice Landers (Sue Randall
Sue Randall
Marion Burnside Randall, who acted under the name Sue Randall, was an American actress best known for her role as the kindly Alice Landers, Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver's grade-school teacher in ABC's sitcom, Leave It to Beaver.Philadelphia-born Randall's debut on the small screen was in the 1955...
) in the remaining seasons. In one early episode, he is so smitten with Miss Landers he persuades his parents to invite her for dinner. He is shocked beyond words when she shows up on the doorstep in a cocktail dress and a pair of open-toed pumps. Eventually, Miss Landers disappoints Beaver by marrying. In another early episode, Beaver's classmate Linda Dennison becomes sweet on him and invites him to her all-girl birthday party. He wins a big doll in a party game and retreats from the feminine frills and furbelows to the den where Linda's father (Lyle Talbot
Lyle Talbot
Lyle Talbot , born Lisle Henderson, was an American actor on stage and screen, best known for his long career in movies from 1931 to 1960 and for his frequent appearances on TV in the 1950s and '60s, including his decade-long role as Joe Randolph on television's The Adventures of Ozzie and...
) entertains him by exhibiting his gun collection.
Later seasons
As Beaver grew into an awkward young teen, he sometimes took a back seat to his older brother Wally, a student in his final years of high school. Tony Dow had grown into an attractive, athletic young man and was often featured in magazines aimed principally at teen girlsTeen idol
A teen idol is a celebrity who is widely idolized by teenagers; he or she is often young but not necessarily teenaged. Often teen idols are actors or pop singers, but some sports figures have an appeal to teenagers. Some teen idols began their careers as child actors...
. Producers took advantage of Dow's popularity and scripted episodes delving into Wally's dating life, his after school jobs, his pals, and his car. Beaver was relegated to the background.
Finale
In June 1963, the series came to a close at milestones in the lives of Wally and Beaver: high school grad Wally preparing for State college and Beaver looking forward to entering Mayfield High. The last episode was a retrospective one called "Family Scrapbook"Family Scrapbook (Leave It to Beaver episode)
"Family Scrapbook" is the final episode of the iconic American television series Leave It to Beaver. It first aired on ABC on June 20, 1963. It was the 39th episode in the show's sixth and final season, and the 234th episode in the complete series....
and has claimed its place in TV history as the first prime time sitcom episode specifically written as a series finale. In the episode, the Cleavers reminisce over old photos in a scrapbook while flashback clips are played from previous episodes. It is during the course of the last episode the viewer learns how Beaver got his nickname. The show ends with Beaver and Wally playing with a wind up toy and laughing like children.
Subsequent history
In 1983, CBS aired the reunion telemovie Still the Beaver starring Jerry Mathers. Other members of the original series cast reprised their roles. In 1985, a sequel to the original series was produced called Still the Beaver, again starring Jerry Mathers and other original cast members. The series lasted one season on the Disney Channel before being picked up by TBS in 1986 and renamed The New Leave It to BeaverThe New Leave It to Beaver
The New Leave It to Beaver is an American sitcom sequel to the 1950s and '60s series, Leave It to Beaver. The New Leave It to Beaver began with the 1983 CBS TV movie Still the Beaver, and was picked up in 1984 as a Disney Channel series with the same name; however, it only lasted one season...
. The series aired until 1989. In 1997, the feature film Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver (film)
Leave It to Beaver is a 1997 film that is a remake of the TV series of the same name. There are many in-jokes related to the original series within the movie.-Plot:...
was released starring young Cameron Finley
Cameron Finley
Joseph Cameron Finley is an American former child actor.Finley was born in Garland, Texas, the son of Lexa Iann , a spiritual healer, and Charles David "Chuck" Finley, a software developer. He has two siblings, Taz and Stopher. When he was three, he was taken by his parents to an acting seminar...
as Beaver.
In Still the Beaver and The New Leave It to Beaver, Beaver is divorced from Kimberly (played by Joanna Gleason
Joanna Gleason
Joanna Gleason is a Canadian actress and singer. She is a Tony Award-winning musical theatre actress and has also had a number of notable film and TV roles.-Early life:...
); the couple had two sons, Ward (named after his grandfather; he goes by the nickname, "Kip") and Oliver (whose nickname is "Ollie"). Kimberly and Beaver had clashed over her dream of becoming a veterinarian, and that plus other problems had strained their marriage to its breaking point. Beaver (who is unemployed) wins custody of his sons, although they have a stormy relationship because they resent having to move to Mayfield. He and his sons move in with their widowed mother and grandmother June (Ward had died several years earlier) until he can get back on his feet. Eventually, Beaver finds work at Fred Rutherford's company, but even when he begins collecting regular paychecks, he decides that he appreciates the living arrangement and continues to live with his mother.
By the time The New Leave It to Beaver began, Beaver was partners with Lumpy Rutherford
Clarence Rutherford
Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford is a fictional character in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. The show aired from October 4, 1957 to June 20, 1963. Lumpy is a bit of a bully and, with Eddie Haskell, is one of Wally Cleaver's friends....
at the Cleaver and Rutherford Co.; what exactly they did was never clearly explained. Kip, the older of Beaver's sons, is a student at Mayfield High School while the younger Oliver attends Grant Avenue School.