‘Leave it to Beaver’ star Tony Dow dies at 77

(CNN) – Tony Dow, the actor and director best known for his role as his older brother Wally Cleaver in Leave It to Beaver, has died, his representatives have reported. He was 77 years old.

“It is with great sadness that we share with you the death of our beloved Tony this morning,” announce Frank Pelotta and Renee James, representing Dow, in a statement. “Tony was a beautiful soul: kind, compassionate, cheerful and down-to-earth. He was really a joy to be around. His soft voice and down-to-earth style immediately comforted him and you couldn’t help but love him.”

The cause of death has not been reported, but Dow revealed her cancer diagnosis in May.

Dow rose to stardom at the age of 12, when he was cast in the soon-to-be hit comedy Leave It to Beaver. Through his role, Dow helped create the archetype of the suburban family and became a household name to millions of viewers. The program aired between 1957 and 1963.

In a January interview with CBS Sunday Morning, Dow remembered eating a barley burger when he found out he was offered the part after an audition on a whim.

He said, “My life is gone.”

Wally Cleaver, the character of the teenage son, sports star and boy scout, has become closely associated with The Dow, who said he has struggled to maintain his own personality.

He told CBS, “It’s sad to be famous at the age of 12 or so. And then you grow up and be a real person, and nothing happens to you.”

Dow, who said he struggled with undiagnosed depression in his twenties and forties, has spoken for decades about his mental health struggles. Specifically, long before it was common for celebrities to publicly disclose this information. In 1993, he was Honorary Speaker at the National Depression and Bipolar Society conference.

“I realize there is a paradox in this,” he told her. He said in the diary Baltimore Sun about his depression in 1993. “You know, the fact that I was on a TV show that epitomized the so-called ideal world in the fifties, and I’m here with depression. But I’m just one of millions,” he added.

Dow told CBS that once his diagnosis was accepted and treatment started, he found hope. He channeled that hope into art, too, sculpting ornate pieces in his studio.

“I think people have to take a leap of faith to feel better,” he said.

Dow continued his career in Hollywood, starring in television series and even reprise his role in “The New Leave It to Beaver” in the 1980s, and directed episodes of such series as Harry and the Hendersons, “Coach” and “Star”. wars. Journey: Deep Space Nine.

Jerry Mathers, who starred alongside Dow as Beaver in his popular comedy, told fans earlier this month that he had been in touch with Dow, whose representatives reported that he was “in and out of hospital with various complications and treatments.”

Pelotta and James Dow thanked for his work, “for the reflections of a simpler time, the laughter, the friendship, and the feeling that we are the big brother to us all.”