You might have heard that actor Tony Dow, best known for his role as Wally Cleaver on
Leave it To Beaver, passed away, but shortly after his management team announced that he
had died, they were forced to retract that statement because, as it turns out, he's still
alive.
That being said, Tony Dow is in rapidly declining health and has been moved into hospice care.
A post on Dow's Facebook page signed by his representatives Frank Bilotta and Benee James
had previously said that Dow had died on Tuesday, July 26th, 2022, after succumbing to cancer.
Fox News, however, spoke to his son Chris who said that his father is still alive, albeit
under hospice care.
A subsequent Facebook message put out by Dow's management explained that Tony's Wife, who
was naturally very distraught given the circumstances, had mistakenly told the media that Tony had
passed away on Tuesday morning and asked that his fans be notified of his death.
The message went on to say that they had received a phone call from Tony's daughter-in-law saying
that while Dow is not doing well, he has yet to pass.
Tony's son Christopher and his daughter-in-law Melissa have been by his side, comforting
him in his final hours.
It's reasonable to assume that we will receive more updates on Tony's condition in the near
future.
This terrible news comes just over two months after we learned that the 77-year-old actor
had been diagnosed with cancer.
Dow released a joint statement with Lauren Shulkind in May stating that he was battling
the disease.
In that statement it was noted that Tony was 'approaching this reality bravely', but it
was still 'truly heartbreaking'.
Dow has previously been very transparent about his health conditions.
Keep watching to learn what struggles Dow has been dealing with health-wise in the last
few years while also hearing a bit about his life story.
He Landed The Role Of Wally With No Acting Experience
Tony Dow was born in Hollywood, California, on April 13, 1943.
His father was a designer and general contractor named John Stevens, while his mother, Muriel
Virginia Dow, was a stunt woman who worked in Early Westerns.
At one point, she was even Clara Bow's movie double.
As a boy, Dow trained as a swimmer and was even a Junior Olympics diving champion.
Dow's acting career began after he landed the role of Wally Cleaver in Leave it to Beaver
in an open casting call.
When he showed up to the audition, Dow had next to no acting experience and was still
very much so your average American 12-year-old boy.
Tony continued to perform on the iconic sitcom for six years until it ended in 1963.
After the series was over, he appeared on various other TV series, including Dr. Kildare,
The Greatest Show on Earth, My Three Sons, Mr. Novak, and Never Too Young.
After graduating from high school, Dow enlisted in the US National Guard, where he served
his country from 1965 to 1968.
During this time, he took a break from acting but returned to Hollywood after he was discharged.
Upon his return to acting, Dow guest starred in the series, Love American Style, Square
Pegs, The Hardy Boys, Emergency, The Mod Squad, Knight Rider, and Adam-12.
In 1969, Dow married his first wife, Carol Marlow.
Their marriage lasted 11 years before they separated and divorced in 1980.
The couple had one child together, Chris, who was born in 1973.
After Dow and Marlow divorced, Tony married his second wife, Lauren Shulkind, in June
of 1980.
Throughout the 70s, Dow continued to act while working in the construction industry on the
side.
Television might have been an exciting realm for a young man like himself to be in, but
he knew that he couldn't expect to rely on it forever.
If he wanted to have some kind of security in life and not merely bank upon acting and
paying his bills for the rest of his life, he knew that he had to expand his horizons.
That's why in addition to working in construction, Dow also studied Journalism and filmmaking.
From 1983 to 1989, Dow reprised his role as Wally in the Leave it to Beaver television
reunion film and its subsequent spin-off series, The New Leave it to Beaver.
In 1986.
Tony even wrote an episode of the show.
The following year he was honored by the Young Artist Foundation with its prestigious Former
Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award.
After that series wrapped up, Dow made his directorial debut with an episode of yet another
reboot series, The New Lassie.
Following that, he directed episodes of shows like Coach, Harry and the Hendersons, Babylon
5, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Crusade.
In addition to his work as a television director, Dow also served as the visual effects supervisor
on Babylon 5.
In 1996, Dow provided the visual effects for the Doctor Who television film that aired
on Fox.
Dow's most recent acting role was in the 2003 film Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star.
Following that appearance, Dow was seen in April of 2019 promoting reruns of Leave It
To Beaver on the MeTV television network.
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Dow's A Skilled Sculptor
While most people know him as an actor, Tony is also a gifted sculptor who enjoys creating
bronze sculptures.
In reference to his work, he has been quoted as saying that the figures that he makes aren't
meant to represent reality, but instead they are meant to reflect the truth of the interactions
he experiences as he sees and feels them.
To create his works of art, Dow said that he sources the wood he uses in the hills of
the Topanga Canyon in southern California.
As far as inspiration goes, Dow has said that each piece flows from his subconscious.
Dow has produced nine limited editions of each of his works using what's known as the
'lost wax process' while utilizing molds from the original burl sculptures.
One of his pieces was once on display in the backyard garden of his former Leave It To
Beaver co-star Barbara Billingsley whom you might remember as June Cleaver.
Barbara passed away at the age of 94 in 2010.
In December of 2008, Dow was chosen as one of three sculptors to display their work at
the Societe Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition at the Carrousel du Louve in Paris.
At that exhibit, he represented the US delegation, which was made up of artists from the Karen
Lynne Gallery.
The piece selected to be displayed at the Parisian underground shopping mall was an
abstract titled 'Unarmed Warrior'.
The bronze figure depicted a woman holding a shield.
Tony's Been Battling Health Issues For Years
In the 1990s, Tony revealed that he had been suffering from Clinical Depression.
He later starred in a series of self-help videos that chronicled his battle with this
debilitating condition, including the 1983 film Beating the Blues.
In October 2021, Tony was hospitalized after coming down with pneumonia.
Six months later, in May of 2022, he revealed that he had cancer.
And as we all know by now, especially after being erroneously reported to be dead, Dow
is now spending his final days in a hospice in Topanga, California.
Jerry Mathers Is Still Alive And Well
It's impossible to discuss Leave it to Beaver without bringing up the show's titular star,
Beaver Cleaver.
The Beaver was played by actor Jerry Mathers.
After hearing the reports that Tony Dow had passed away, Mathers told the press that the
loss of his TV brother left an empty place in his heart.
He went on to describe Dow as always being the kindest, most generous, loving, gentle,
sincere, and humble man he has ever known.
He wrapped up his heartfelt message by saying that while the world may have lost a star,
the heavens gained another.
Jerry has yet to put out a statement following the announcement that Tony is still alive.
Like Tony, Jerry got his start as an actor at a very early age.
After appearing as a child model for a department store ad at 2, Jerry starred in a commercial
for PET Milk.
He then went on to appear in films such as 1954s This Is My Love and Alfred Hitchcock's
1955 black comedy The Trouble with Harry.
Not long after appearing in those roles, Mathers landed the role of the title character on
Leave it to Beaver.
Apparently, at his audition, he told the producers that he would rather be at his Cub Scout Meeting.
They found his candid honesty so endearing that they immediately handed him the role
without hesitation.
Mathers continued to play the Beaver for the next six years.
He later reprised his role in the reunion film and the reboot series, just as Tony had.
In 1962, Mathers briefly took a stab at a recording career when he released a 45 single
which featured the songs Don't Cha Cry and Wind-Up Toy.
Later in his life, after Leave It To Beaver had ended, he served in the Air Force before
working as a commercial loan officer for several years.
In 1978, he starred with Tony Dow in a production of the comedy play Boening, Boeing.
After that, he and Tony toured the dinner theater circuit with a production of So Long,
Stanley.
After doing the Beaver reboot, Mathers continued his film and television career.
In the 90s, he appeared on shows like Parker Lewis Can't Lose, Diagnosis Murder, and Married...With
Children.
In 2007, he made his Broadway debut in the Tony Award-winning musical Hairspary, and
from 2018 to 2019, he could be seen promoting Leave It To Beaver on MeTV.
It's heartbreaking to learn that Tony Dow is in such dire straits.
We send his friends and family our best wishes as they comfort him during these challenging
times.
We're just about out of time for this video, but we'd love to hear from you.
Did you know that Tony Dow was diagnosed with cancer and that it had been mistakenly reported
that he had died?
Let us know in the comments.
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