Would love to see Leave it to Beaver DVD (1 Viewer)

Everyone plugged their favorite so I thought I'd mention this show in case someone has any inside info on a possible DVD release. I'm currently watching it on TVLand over and over again. Just love all the characters in the show.

No info, but it's one of my favorite shows of all time. I'd definitely buy it. All seasons, too. Many people hate it when the Beav is older, but I like those years, too.

I agree. The latter years (1961-1963) are good because they've turned the attention mainly to stories revolving around Wally (and his friends -- Eddie and "The Lump" ). The later shows were much better when Wally was the focal point of the script, IMO. (Not to mention the bevy of fetching gal friends Wallace escorted to various functions. )

BTW...Actress Cheryl Holdridge (a LITB veteran) puts in a rather eye-appealing guest appearance on The Dick Van Dyke Show (during Season 3). Cheryl played TWO different Wally love interests -- "Gloria Cusick" and "Julie Foster".

In the "You Learn Something New Every Day About Classic Television Programs" category .........

I had no idea that Jonny Quest (Tim Matheson) was ever in "Leave It To Beaver". Tim appeared twice in fact. I'll be French-dipped! Seen 'em all a thousand times, and never realized one of Beaver's pals was Tim M.

http://www.geocities.com/alcus2/beavercredits1.html

Elizabeth Parkins was in one episode where she was Beaver's babysitter. She was cute.

Other crushes: June, Ms Landers, Ms Lanfields (sp?)

I wonder what happened to Larry. Would have been nice to see him in the latter years.

Concerning the latter episode with Beaver being older. The problem I have with that is he's in the 8th grade and Wally was in the 7-8th grade when the show began and Wally wasn't as dumb as Beaver was at the same age. For Beaver to be doing all those stupid things just show you that Wally IQ is way up there compared to his brother . What was my point? I don't know ; ).

Anyone watched Leave it to Beaver and wish they lived or grew up during that era?

An urban legend has it that a young Harrison Ford appeared in one of the early episodes of the series as one of Wally's friends. That, of course, turned out to be untrue.

I remember taping off TV the original pilot episode for LITB, which featured a different Ward Cleaver, and IIRC a different Wally. This was back around 1987-88 in which it was shown. If this series ever makes it to DVD, then the original pilot should be included.

Miss Canfield, played by the stunningly beautiful Diane Brewster. I *still* have a crush on her when those episodes play.

And, yes, Beaver was an exceptionally stupid kid the older he got. I agree with David that the main appeal of the later years was Wally and his adventures. One of my favorite episodes is also one of the last: where Wally takes the girl to the lock-in. It's not really a stand-out, particularly, but there's just something about it I like.

Oh yeah, Canfield. My mistake. She looks like Grace Kelly. No I got the actress name from you, time to go over to internet movie database .

You're right. There is a strong resemblance to Grace Kelly. Seeing as I consider Grace Kelly and Gene Tierney to be perhaps the most beautiful women Hollywood ever produced, she's in good company.

Hmm. Gene Tierney sort of has the same basic look as Grace Kelly and Diane Brewster. Maybe I've found my type.

I love the first few seasons Jerry Mahters was such a cute kid and a good young actor

I always remember those round glasses they use to drink their milk in and those glass bottles?? It's so 50's

You mean Barbara Parkins. Of Peyton Place fame.
Yes, she was mighty comely..I agree. She's 61 now.

Yes. Plus Sue Randall (Miss Landers). Sue was a lovely dish as well (IMO).

Brewster, btw, played "Helen Kimble" on "The Fugitive" (just after Beaver ended). Which meant she had the distiction of playing a character who was dead throughout the program's entire four-year run.

Perhaps Ford's name got mixed up, somehow, with Ryan O'Neal, who DID appear in a Beaver ep. (as "Tom Henderson", a newlywed friend of Wally's).

Yes. Casey Adams (aka: Max Showalter) played Ward. .....

http://www.geocities.com/alcus2/smallworld.html

It's very interesting to note that Harry Shearer played a role in that Beaver pilot. Shearer is now, of course, multiple voices on "The Simpsons".

Shearer is the boy on the right below....



Notice the remarkable resemblance?? (Especially around the "liver spot"
area.) "Ex-cellent!"

If I recall correctly, the reason he disappeared from the show was because his family decided to move back to the east coast. Due to the distance, he wasn't able to keep doing the Larry Mondello role. Sad too, as he was pure gold in those early episodes. But, as funny as Larry was, his mother getting all worked up about just about everything (mainly because his father was always out of town) was just that much funnier.

Something else that always fascinated me was how June Cleaver was one of the first women on television sitcoms that didn't take any crap from anybody. Every time I see Ward mess up and her give him "that look", I absolutely crack up.

Truly a wonderful show, and one that I'd buy in a second on DVD.

Michael...I totally agree with you. June was always "giving it" to Ward for something or other, esp. in the early years of the series.

I, too, have heard that explanation you gave re. Larry Mondello (moved away from California, therefore couldn't do the show any more).

Yes indeed.
Mr. Mondello was NEVER once seen in the series. He was always in Cincinnati on business.

It always seemed funny to me, too, that Madge Blake (who played Larry's mom) seemed much more suited to play his grandmother, rather than his mother. Madge was 61 during her last (of 3) years on the show (1960), meaning she would have given birth to son Larry at the age of 51!

By comparison -- Barbara Billingsley (June) was only 34 when LITB first aired. Goodness heavens, Mrs. Mondello was, in reality, old enough to be June's mother!

At any age, Mrs. Mondello cracked me up too. Madge would later go on to become "Aunt Harriet" in Batman.

"Why can't you do these things when your father is around?"

I think that's from the "money fell from a pilot's pockets" carnival episode.

For what it's worth, I've only known Tim Matheson as the ex-Vice President of the United States (Sorkin fans will know what I'm talking about)! Is this the same Tim Matheson?

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More on topic: This is one of the truly great classics that has aged beautifully. The cutesy humor is still so damn cute. Beaver's antics -- like getting his head stuck in a picket fence -- are as priceless today as they were then. Perhaps even more so now than back then.

Of course, there are two classic "Beaver" moments that stand out in my memory:

1. The episode in which Beaver takes the dare (I think it was from Eddie "The Rascal" Haskell - my nickname for him!) to climb into the oversized bowl to see if it really had soup in it or not, and it turned out that it had nothing but steam coming out of it. This was duplicated for the feature film.

2. The episode where Wally and Eddie tie a chain to the rear axle of Lumpy's car, and as he prepares to drive off, the rear axle of the car comes out, and the car crashes to the ground! And Lumpy's reaction is priceless: "DADDY!!!!!" I still howl at that one! George Lucas' inspiration for that same moment in American Graffiti remains a classic.

Great scenes! That reminds me of an early, early episode where Ward tells the boys about the time he placed barrel hoops in the alley and lured his tormenter out to his trap. Later, Fred Rutherford turns up injured and says, "Some kids put barrel hoops in my driveway!"

And, of course, a bit of dialog that probably couldn't go in 2004. Beaver wants wheels for his go-kart, and he gets a doll carriage from a girl. June asks Ward, "What would you have done if you had seen a little boy pushing a doll carriage?" "We'd have clobbered him, of course!" This episode also featured another example of Beaver being a borderline idiot. Out of embarrassment, he gives up the carriage to Gilbert and Richard (I believe). They don't seem to be overly embarrassed. And, they end up with wheels.

Ward actually had quite a bit of racy dialog. Remember when Beaver said, "I bet a fellow could get in a lot of trouble kissing a married lady!" to which Ward, with a wistful look on his face says, "You sure could."

The good news is, I think it's only a matter of time before this show sees a DVD release. Universal really seems to be gearing up for a bit of a flood. This show's to classic to miss the boat.