Skip to Search Skip to Live Player Skip to Content Skip to Footer
WRIF Rocks Detroit | Everything That Rocks Tony Dow, Wally Cleaver from 'Leave It to Beaver,' Dies at 77
  • Home
  • Latest Stories
        • Latest Stories

          • Rock News
          • Man Cave
          • Everything Detroit
          • Andy Green
        • Latest Rock News

  • On Air
        • Dave & Chuck The Freak

          • About
          • Home
          • Dave & Chuck The Freak Podcast
          • Dave & Chuck The Freak’s Tasty Bits
          • Peep Show
          • D&C Store
          • YouTube
        • Shows

          • Dave and Chuck the Freak
          • Jade Springart
          • Meltdown
          • Aimee Brooks
          • WRIF Weekends
          • Motor City Riffs
          • Midnight Metal
          • RIFF2
        • Recently Played

        • The RIFF Wants Your Feedback

          New Music Breakdown
  • Listen + Watch
        • Listen + Watch

          • Dave & Chuck The Freak Podcast
          • Dave & Chuck The Freak’s Tasty Bits
          • Dave & Chuck The Freak Peep Show
          • RIFF TV
          • Talkin’ Rock With Meltdown
          • Jade & Andy Podcast
          • Haunted Michigan with Meltdown
          • New Music Breakdown Poll
          • ROAR Around The Ring
          • All Podcasts
          • Photos
        • Podcasts

          wrif podcast logo
        • RIFF TV

          rifftv logo
        • Photos

          photos image
        • Latest Peep Shows

  • Contests
  • Events
  • Shop
        • Shop

          • The RIFF Store
          • Must Haves
        • WRIF Gear

        • Dave & Chuck The Freak Store

        • Must Haves

  • More
        • Connect

          • About WRIF | Contact Us
          • Ways To Rock With 101 WRIF
          • Download The Riff App
          • Join The WRIF CyberCrew
          • Dave & Chuck the Freak’s Daily Download
          • Beasley Best Community of Caring
          • Advertise
          • Careers
        • Join The Cybercrew

        • Advertise With RIFF

          image overlaid with text that reads advertise with us
        • 101 WRIF Rock Hall

Dave and Chuck the Freak

  • About
  • Home
  • Dave & Chuck The Freak Podcast
  • Dave & Chuck The Freak’s Tasty Bits
  • Peep Show
  • D&C Store
  • YouTube

Dave and Chuck the Freak

Dave and Chuck the Freak

  • About
  • Home
  • Dave & Chuck The Freak Podcast
  • Dave & Chuck The Freak’s Tasty Bits
  • Peep Show
  • D&C Store
  • YouTube

Tony Dow, Wally Cleaver from ‘Leave It to Beaver,’ Dies at 77

Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter
July 27th, 2022 4:34 PM

Tony Dow, best known for playing Wally Cleaver on the classic sitcom Leave It to Beaver, has died. He was 77.

Dow garnered a lot of headlines over the past 24 hours after his death was announced in a statement via his Facebook page by his management but was then recanted by a family member. However, Dow’s son, Christopher, has confirmed his death saying in a statement, “Although this is a very sad day, I have comfort and peace that he is in a better place. He was the best Dad anyone could ask for. He was my coach, my mentor, my voice of reason, my best friend, my best man in my wedding, and my hero.”

A cause of death wasn’t disclosed in the statement, but back in May, Dow and his wife of 42 years, Lauren, shared in a joint statement on Facebook that the cancer he fought years prior had returned.

Dow appeared on all 234 episodes of Leave It to Beaver where he played Wally Cleaver, the older brother of the titular Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver, who was played by Jerry Mathers. The series ran for six seasons from 1957-1963, with the first season airing on CBS and the remaining five seasons airing on ABC.

 

Celebrity Deaths 2022: Musicians, Entertainers & Cultural Figures We Lost

  • Sidney Poitier

    Share

    Evening Standard/Getty Images

  • Bob Saget

    Share

    Mike Coppola/Getty Images

  • Ronnie Spector

    Share

    Jack Kay/Daily Express/Getty Images

  • Peter Bogdanovich

    Share

    Araya Diaz/Getty Images

  • André Leon Talley

    Share

    Cindy Ord/Getty Images

  • Gaspard Ulliel

    Share

    Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

  • Woodstock Music Festival co-producer Micael Lang

    Share

    Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

  • Meat Loaf

    Share

    Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

  • Louie Anderson

    Share

    Ethan Miller/Getty Images

  • Howard Hesseman

    Share

    Matthew Peyton/Getty Images

  • Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst

    Share

    Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

  • Mark Lanegan

    Share

    Mark Davis/Getty Images

  • Gary Brooker

    Share

    Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

  • Ivan Reitman

    Share

    Theo Wargo/Getty Images

  • Traci Braxton

    Share

    Theo Wargo/Getty Images

  • William Hurt

    Share

    Charley Gallay/Getty Images

  • Scott Hall

    Share

    Larry Busacca/Getty Images

  • Taylor Hawkins

    Share

    Scott Dudelson/Getty Images

  • Tom Parker of The Wanted

    Share

    Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

  • Gilbert Gottfried

    Share

    Kevin Winter/Getty Images

  • Robert Morse

    Share

    Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

  • Madeleine Albright

    Share

    Mark Wilson/Getty Images

  • Naomi Judd

    Share

    Stephen Cohen/Getty Images

  • Alan White, drummer for Yes

    Share

    Mike Coppola/Getty Images

  • Andy Fletcher, keyboardist/co-founder of Depeche Mode

    Share

    Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images

  • Alec John Such, original Bon Jovi bassist

    Share

    Theo Wargo/Getty Images For The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

  • James Caan

    Share

    Matt Carr/Getty Images

  • Tony Sirico

    Share

    Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

  • Ivana Trump

    Share

    Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images

  • William Hart, Lead Singer Of The Delfonics

    Share

    Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

  • Paul Sorvino

    Share

    Kevin Winter/Getty Images

  • Tony Dow

    Share

    Hulton Archive/Getty Images

  • Bill Russell

    Share

    Ethan Miller/Getty Images

  • Nichelle Nichols

    Share

    Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images

  • Olivia Newton-John

    Share

    Cole Bennetts/Getty Images

  • Joe E. Tata (Nat from Beverly Hills, 90210)

    Share

    Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images

  • Mikhail Gorbachev

    Share

    Photo by White House Photos/Getty Images

  • Bernard Shaw

    Share

    Photo by Mark Mainz/Getty Images

  • Queen Elizabeth II

    Share

    Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images

  • Ken Starr

    Share

    Photo By Pool/Getty Images

  • Louise Fletcher (Nurse Ratched from ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’)

    Share

    David Livingston/Getty Images

  • Coolio

    Share

    Brad Barket/Getty Images

  • Wrestling icon Antonio Inoki

    Share

    Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images

  • Sacheen Littlefeather

    Share

    Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

  • Loretta Lynn

    Share

    Terry Wyatt/Getty Images

  • Angela Lansbury

    Share

    Evan Agostini/Getty Images

  • Robbie Coltrane

    Share

    Ian Gavan/Getty Images

  • Leslie Jordan

    Share

    Vivien Killilea/Getty Images

  • Jerry Lee Lewis

    Share

    Evening Standard/Getty Images

  • Julie Powell

    Share

    Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images

  • Jeff Cook of Alabama

    Share

    Kevin Winter/Getty Images

  • Kevin Conroy

    Share

    Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images

  • Dan McCafferty of Nazareth

    Share

    Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

  • John Aniston

    Share

    Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images

  • Jason David Frank

    Share

    Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images

  • Irene Cara

    Share

    United Artists/Archive Photos/Getty Images

  • Christine McVie

    Share

    Davidson/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

  • Wilko Johnson

    Share

    Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

  • Gaylord Perry

    Share

    Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

  • Brad William Henke

    Share

    Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

  • Bob McGrath of ‘Sesame Street’

    Share

    Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

  • Kirstie Alley

    Share

    Bryan Bedder/Getty Images

  • Mills Lane

    Share

    Ken Levine /Allsport/Getty Images

  • Dorothy Pitman Hughes

    Share

    Monica Schipper/Getty Images

  • Stephen “tWitch” Boss

    Share

    Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

  • Billie Moore

    Share

    Gary Newkirk/Allsport/Getty Images

  • Dino Danelli

    Share

    Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

  • Ray Liotta

    Share

    Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

  • Vin Scully

    Share

    Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images

  • Terry Hall

    Share

    Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

  • Fighters Only World Mixed Martial Arts Awards 2011

    Share

    Ethan Miller/Getty Images

  • Pele

    Share

    Xavi Torrent/Getty Images

  • Vivienne Westwood

    Share

    Francois Durand/Getty Images

Erica Banas is a rock/classic rock news blogger who's well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights
WRIF Rocks Detroit | Everything That Rocks

Sign me up for the 101 WRIF Cybercrew email newsletter!

Join the 101 WRIF Cybercrew to get everything that rocks sent right to your inbox from The Riff! You’ll get updates on concerts and your favorite bands, along with exclusive chances to win. Plus news and stories from all around metro Detroit!

*
*
By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.
Author Erica Banas // Rock Music Reporter
Category:
  • Celebs
  • Dave and Chuck the Freak
  • Rock Dirt
Tags:
Celebrity Deaths

More Celebs

Driver Gets Into High Speed Police Chase While Hauling An Entire House

What Crazy Thing Did Doctors Find In An Old Guy’s Colon?

Britney Spears Shares Topless Good Morning Video On IG

Ben Stiller’s 6 Funniest Movies Ranked

Hannah Waddingham and Brendan Hunt Sing B-52’s’ ‘Love Shack’

Andy Goes to Texas!

Two People With Very Bad Things Stuck In Very Different Places

What Naughty Discovery Was Uncovered About A School’s Sex Ed Instructor?

Woman Attempts To Eat Evidence During Arrest In Counterfeit Cash Scam

Woman Stabs Boyfriend In Eye With Needle After Catching Him Look At Another Woman

Taika Waititi Only Directed ‘Thor’ Because He Needed Money

John Mulaney ‘Identified’ with Matthew Perry’s Addiction Struggles

Glory Hole Tales

Some Tips That Can Boost Your Action In The Bedroom During A Dry Spell

Beer Thief Cracks Open A Beer And Chats With Witnesses While Waiting For The Police

10 Year Walmart Employee Goes Viral After Signing Off For Last Time

Pest Control Worker Busted Exposing Himself To Elderly Homeowners

John Travolta Details Near-Death Experience Piloting Plane

Gordon Ramsay Says to Never Order This at a Restaurant

Sugar Baby Gone Wrong

$1 Burrito Event Leaves Many People On The Toilet For Days

Streaker Removed From Disneyland’s ‘It’s A Small World’ Ride (NSFW)

OnlyFans Model Accuses Another Of Stealing Her Captions Sparking An Online Cat Fight

Woman’s Joyful Reaction to Friends’ Birthday Surprise

Guy Gets Into A Spit Fight With A Llama And Loses

How-To Steps For Introducing Sex Toys Into The Bedroom

Mom and Son Robbery

Flash from the Past, the “Melt Off Sauna Suit” with Space Age Design

Parents Prank Toddler Who’s Pretending to Be Asleep

Martha Calls Thanksgiving Hotline

A TikTok’er Parodies the Absurd Dialogue in a Hallmark Christmas Movie

Comedian Interrupts His Own Show to Check on His Southwest Flight

Peed on a Plane

Family Doles Out Thanksgiving Day Duties Like The NFL Draft

Woman Rushed To Hospital After Being Exposed To Live Christmas Tree

Watch A ‘Possessed’ Airline Passenger Freak Out During Flight

Nicholas Hoult to Play Lex Luthor in ‘Superman: Legacy’

These Celebrities Have a December Birthday

Letterman Appears On ‘Late Show’ For the 1st Time Since 2015

Golden Shower Gunfire

Balenciaga Selling A $925 Skirt That Looks Like You’re Wearing A Towel

Tourist Bloodied And Knocked Out During 20 Woman Brawl In Thai Strip Club

Which Star Had A ‘Nippleologist’ On The Set Of Their TV Show?

Organism Rick is Alive?

Watch The Look On Baby’s Face When Reacting To Dad’s Terrible Singing

Former Employee Alleges Taco Bell Holiday Party Included 3-Way Sex Romps And Vomit In The Guacamole

Flight Attendant Has Perfect Response After Passenger Goes On X-Rated Rant (NSFW)

Mailman Busted By Doorbell Cam Cropdusting Home Owners Porch

Load More
Beasley Media Group
Download our station app

Download the app to LISTEN LIVE wherever you are and connect with us like never before!

Download on the App Store Download on the Google Play
Newsletter sign up

Don't miss on pre-sales, member-only contests and member only events.

WRIF Rocks Detroit Newsletter
About
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA
  • EEO
  • Terms and Conditions
  • FCC Public File
  • FCC Applications
Connect
  • About WRIF | Contact Us
  • Beasley Best Community of Caring
  • General Contest Rules
  • Contest Rules Archive
  • Listen Help
  • Learn How To Advertise On Detroit Radio
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram