Leave It to Beaver is a sitcom that ran from 1957 until 1963. The family sitcom focused on Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, and became a cultural touchstone for its supposedly idyllic depiction of suburban life.
The character of Beaver Cleaver was ranked number 74 in Bravo's list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters, with TV Guide ranking the theme song as one of the 50 All-Time Favorite TV Themes.
References[]
- In the Muppet Babies episode "I Want My Muppet T.V.," Baby Bunsen suggests making a show called "Leave It to Beaker."
- In the fifth season Muppet Babies episode "Elm Street Babies," Gonzo's dream parodies the series as The Leave It to Weirdo Show. Gonzo himself stars as "The Weirdo," with Scooter and Skeeter as Ward and June, Fozzie as brother "Off-the-Wally," and Kermit as sneaky Kermie Haskell.
- Another fifth season episode "He's a Wonderful Frog" referenced the series as The Leave It to Piggy Who I Love Who Knows Best Show, mashing up several 1950s sitcom elements.
- In "Elmo's World: Teeth," Dorothy imagines Elmo as a beaver. As he bites a tree down, he finds it falls down easily and believes another beaver must have been there first. He remarks, "Leave it to beavers!"
- In Before You Leap, when writing about his father, Kermit the Frog states that "my dad is a classic father-- kind of like the Beaver's dad. (Not the TV Beaver, but the one who lived in the dam downstream by us.)"
- The fifth issue of the Farscape comic book is titled "Leave It To Crichton," and the B cover features a parody of Leave It to Beaver. In the issue itself, John Crichton has a dream that spoofs 1950s sitcoms. After waking up, he tells Aeryn that he has doubts about settling down in one place: "I mean, let's face it, we ain't exactly the white-picket-fence types. We're a lot closer to Reed and Sue Richards than Ward and June Cleaver."
- "Leave it to Beaker" is one of several shows that Fozzie Bear pitches to Scooter in the Muppets Now episode "Fever Pitch."
Connections[]
- Christina Applegate played Mandy on The New Leave It to Beaver (2 episodes, 1989)
- Cindy Begel wrote for The New Leave It to Beaver (1983-1989)
- Barbara Billingsley played June Cleaver
- Corey Feldman played Corey Cleaver in Still the Beaver (1983 TV movie)
- Jerry Mathers played Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver
- William Schallert played Mr. Bloomgarden in "Beaver's Short Pants" (1957)
- Harry Shearer played Frankie Bennett in the pilot version It's a Small World (1957)
- Hal Smith played a restaurant manager in "Beaver Won't Eat" (1960)
- Jean Vander Pyl played Mrs. Woods and others (5 episodes, 1959-1962)
- William Woodson played Mr. Gaines in "Uncle Billy's Visit" (1963)