AlexandraJune’s Wardrobe Was Highly Criticized
Barbara Billingsley is the actress that acted as Beaver and Wally’s mother. It was her wardrobe that was mostly criticized by the audience. She had to always wear pearl necklaces, scarves or tight shirts to cover a hollow spot she had due to a previous surgery. Another regular comment was on her heels since she took care of housework in those. As explained, it was due to the fact that the sons of June grew taller as seasons passed and the producers wanted to keep the mother taller than them. Whether you believe these as good explanations or not, the truth is that all her clothing choices had an explanation.
Billingsley Decided To Travel Afterward
Typecasting was a general issue for this show’s actors after it was finished. Billingsley was no exception, having had a hard time finding acting jobs after Leave it to Beaver. That is why she took time until the late 1970s to travel the world. She got back to the show business in 1980 when she played a passenger in Airplane! and kept acting from then.
Hugh Beaumont Regretted Being On The Show
Hugh Beaumont was a minister before landing the role as Ward Cleaver, Beaver’s father. The reason why he decided to join the show business was the fact that instructing churchgoers about life did not pay the bills. Initially, he commuted to films, but that did not work once it became a permanent role. While the Beaumont family was driving out to Los Angeles, there was a car accident that resulted in his mother-in-law’s death. That is why he regrets being on the show.
Beaumont Wrote And Directed Many Episodes
Beaumont is not the only actor to write and direct episodes besides acting. It is actually a common practice. He wrote and directed several episodes of Leave it to Beaver while acting in them as well. One example of an episode written by him is “Family Scrapbook”. Ben Affleck, Charlie Chaplin, Clint Eastwood, Johnny Depp and Woody Allen are other triple threat actors.
Lumpy, The Womanizer
Frank Bank acted as Lumpy, a kid that really enjoyed to pick on the main character, Beaver. He was a “muddled, dumpy, awkward” kid, as Bank described. After being in 50 of this series’ episodes, he was in 101 in the The New Leave it to Beaver, in the Leave it to Beaver movie and even wrote an autobiography inspired by those experiences. Whoever read his book, inform that he slept with over 1000 women during his lifetime! He was another victim of typecasting and ended up becoming a stockbroker.
Eddie Was Supposed To Be Only In One Episode
Ken Osmond was supposed to only appear in one episode as Eddie Haskell, who turned out to be Wally’s best friend. He got the part and seemed to exceed the expectations. His performance and the fact that he immediately blended in with the rest of the cast impressed the writers and producers. They decided that he would stay for the six seasons and he did not turn the opportunity down!