'Leave It to Beaver' co-star Tony Dow in hospice
Actor Tony Dow, best known for his role as Wally Cleaver in the 1950s American TV hit sitcom "Leave It to Beaver," is alive but seriously ill, his management team said on Tuesday. Correcting the earlier statement that he had died.
"This morning Tony's wife, Lauren, who was very upset, informed us that Tony had passed away and asked us to inform all of his fans," the statement read. "We have since received a call from Tony's daughter-in-law saying that Tony is not doing well, he is yet to pass."
His son Christopher told Fox News Digital and other media that Dow, 77, who has been diagnosed with cancer, is in hospice care.
The statement from Dow's management team said the actor's son and daughter-in-law "were comforting him on his behalf."
In "Leave It to Beaver", Dow played the teenage older brother of the title character, Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver. Dow's role on the show—which ran from 1957 to 1963 and depicted an idealized American family living a carefree life in a post-war suburb—made him a cultural icon.