Jerry Mathers, actor who played Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver on the TV series Leave It To Beaver, is 73 years old today.
Mathers reportedly got the role of Beaver Cleaver when he told the show's producers he would rather be at his Cub Scout meeting than auditioning for the part. The producers found his candidness appealing and perfect for the role.
Mathers played the Beaver for six years, appearing in all 234 episodes of the series. He was the first child actor ever to make a deal to get a percentage of the merchandising revenue from a television show.
The Leave It to Beaver show still generates merchandise revenue today — more than 50 years after its original production run ended. The original sitcom has been shown in over 80 countries in 40 languages.
Mathers has noted that the Leave It to Beaver phenomenon is worldwide. "I can go anywhere in the world and people know me," he said.
In addition to acting, Mathers has also owned and operated a catering business and has done commercial work for national and regional spots for advertisers such as PET Condensed Milk, Kellogg’s (he and Tony Dow were the first non-athletes on a box of corn flakes), General Electric, Purina, Kern International, Chevrolet, Toyota, General Mills, AOL, Coca Cola, Jim Beam and Biogen.
Above, the cast of Leave It To Beaver, 1998