Tony Dow, who played big brother Wally Cleaver in the golden age television classic “Leave It to Beaver,” was hospitalized with pneumonia over the weekend after a hard 24-hour wait for to sleep.
Lauren Shulkind, wife of the former star of the 76-year-old boy, confirmed to TMZ that, thanks to the shortage of hospital beds caused by the increase in variants varying from the Delta in California, her 41-year-old husband went spend “24 hours” suffering in the waiting room before being treated. Los Angeles County health officials have reported that 30 percent of new COVID-19 cases are “advanced” infections among fully vaccinated Los Angeles residents, as the number of deaths in the area exceeds 25,000.
Shulkind told the media that the veteran actor, who played Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver’s older brother for 243 episodes from 1957 to 1963, tested negative for COVID-19 “five times” after being rushed to the emergency room on Thursday. night.
“On behalf of Tony and myself, we thank you for your concern for him,” Shulkind said at the exit, announcing that her husband is now “in process” and “doctors think he could be released in a while. week “.
The Hollywood-born actor got the role of Wally through a casting call with almost no acting experience. After six years in the series’ big comedy, she took on starring roles in “My Three Sons,” “Dr. Kildare,” “Lassie” and “The Greatest Show on Earth,” before tackling a recurring role in ” Mr. Novak “.
Unlike many doomed child stars, when his career stalled, Dow explored new areas of professional life: he took a break from the entertainment industry to serve in the National Guard from 1965 to 1968, and in the 70s, he attended journalism school while working in hiring and building luxury condominiums, according to his IMDb biography.
Later, the Dow returned to the small screen in the 1970s with guest spaces on “Adam-12,” “The Mod Squad” and “Love American Style,” and continued to work throughout the 1980s on “Knight Rider.” “Square Pegs” and “Murder, He Wrote,” among many others.
He revived his signature role as Wally with Jerry Mathers in “The New Leave It to Beaver” from 1983 to 1989.
Dow continued to direct in the 1990s, moving behind the camera to direct episodes of “Coach,” “Babylon 5” and “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” and also devoted himself to visual effects work for to programs like “Doctor Who.” and “Babylon 5.”
Dow was also reportedly a prominent sculptor who spent the 2000s creating art in his Topanga Canyon home, TMZ reported. One of his bronze sculptures was even accepted into the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts in 2008, a 150-year-old art exhibition held annually at the Louvre in Paris, France.
