topic Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER in TV and Movies

TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Pearlee — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:18:59 GMT

Tony Dow, Wally on Leave It To Beaver who was Beaver's older brother, has been diagnosed with cancer. The type of cancer has not yet been revealed.

Source: NY Post citing TMZ

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

4kitties — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:20:32 GMT

Sure hope it is treatable and he beats it!

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

drizzellla — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:25:10 GMT

Pearlee - Sad, I also read about it.

Not much was mentioned but it did state - " Tony has once again been diagnosed with cancer."

That is generally not a good sign. Hope they caught it in time.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Pearlee — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:32:21 GMT

@drizzellla wrote:
Pearlee - Sad, I also read about it.

Not much was mentioned but it did state - " Tony has once again been diagnosed with cancer."

That is generally not a good sign. Hope they caught it in time.

@drizzellla The article in the NYP did not say "once again." It mentioned he had pneumonia in August and had to wait for a hospital bed due to COVID.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

catter70 — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:38:53 GMT

Very sorry to hear this. Hoping all goes well for him. Still watching this show on ME TV.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Johnnyeager — Fri, 06 May 2022 13:40:55 GMT

From Tony and his wife on his Facebook page:

Dear Friends & Fans of Tony Dow,

I have some very sad news to share with you.

Unfortunately, Tony has once again been diagnosed with cancer.

He is approaching this reality so bravely, but it is truly heartbreaking.

We want to thank you in advance for your caring thoughts.

Our Love,

Lauren & Tony

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Judaline — Fri, 06 May 2022 14:43:15 GMT

All the light just went out of my computer.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Pearlee — Fri, 06 May 2022 14:55:43 GMT

@Johnnyeager You illustrate the importance of giving sources, something many here seem to resent. Accounts may vary.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Love my grandkids — Fri, 06 May 2022 18:23:23 GMT

I record the show on 2 channels daily. ALWAYS liked Tony Dow as Wally. So sorry to hear this.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

BoopOMatic — Fri, 06 May 2022 18:25:22 GMT

He's an excellent artist; has anyone seen his sculptures?

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

faeriemoon — Fri, 06 May 2022 18:26:00 GMT

Weird but true TD observation: Even as a little kid he always pronounced words starting with "wh" correctly. I'm pretty certain most of America doesn't even know how "wh" is supposed to be pronounced.

Carry on; enough faerie trivia for today.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Spurt — Fri, 06 May 2022 18:28:39 GMT

So sorry to hear this....I had read somewhere he was ill but they didnt give the cause....

I work from home and watch LEAVE IT TO BEAVER every morning before I start my work day..... MY PRAYERS TO TONY!

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Moonlady — Fri, 06 May 2022 20:41:44 GMT

How sad. Catching a rerun of Leave IT To Beaver always makes me smile.

Tony Dow has survived both prostate and gallbladder cancers. Maybe one of those has recurred. And maybe he'll beat it again. I sure hope and pray that he does!

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

twinsister — Fri, 06 May 2022 21:11:25 GMT

@Pearlee wrote:
@drizzellla wrote:
Pearlee - Sad, I also read about it.

Not much was mentioned but it did state - " Tony has once again been diagnosed with cancer."

That is generally not a good sign. Hope they caught it in time.
@drizzellla The article in the NYP did not say "once again." It mentioned he had pneumonia in August and had to wait for a hospital bed due to COVID.

@Pearlee & @drizzellla - I read about this yesterday - very sad. In the article I read, it stated he previously had prostate cancer and gall bladder cancer, but overcame both.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

twinsister — Fri, 06 May 2022 21:16:05 GMT

@BoopOMatic wrote:
He's an excellent artist; has anyone seen his sculptures?

@BoopOMatic - I have seen pictures of his sculptures from his gallery and they are available to purchase. Very talented.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Judaline — Fri, 06 May 2022 22:43:55 GMT

Still cute!

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Pearlee — Fri, 06 May 2022 23:21:00 GMT

He was very cute in LITB and aged well.

@twinsister He was in a Murder She wrote that wasn't a favorite of mine. I remember being excited he was in one, and then it was "meh."

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

twinsister — Sat, 07 May 2022 00:15:46 GMT

@Pearlee wrote:
He was very cute in LITB and aged well.
@twinsister He was in a Murder She wrote that wasn't a favorite of mine. I remember being excited he was in one, and then it was "meh."

@Pearlee - Yes - he was a cutie in LITB, which I still watch every morning!! I vaguely remember him in MSW.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

Duckncover — Sat, 07 May 2022 03:44:06 GMT

Prayers for Tony that he is able to beat this newly diagnosed cancer.

Re: TONY DOW (LEAVE IT TO BEAVER) DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER

drizzellla — Sat, 07 May 2022 20:29:31 GMT

The news that Tony Dow was being treated for cancer made me read more about the 'Leave It To Beaver' show and cast.

I had noticed that Robert "Rusty" Stevens (Larry Mondello) disappearred after 3 years and was replaced by Stephen Talbot (Gilbert).

So I found this tidbit on the ME TV website - "

According to Leave It to Beaver star Barbara Billingsley, the issue may have been that producers weren’t fans of Stevens' overbearing mother. The TV mom claimed Stevens was fired.

Whatever happened, Rusty's family moved to Pennsylvania, and the last few projects he had acted in continued airing over the next few years, as Rusty gave up the life of a child star and traded it back for a normal childhood."

Then I found a smiilar story on "Rewind back" website -
"Earlier research led me to believe that the reason for Rusty's demise from the Leave It To Beaver cast was because his father took a job out of state, and so the family moved away from Burbank, California to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, therefore ending his career on the show. But, as one commenter on this blog pointed out, Barbara Billingsley provides a different reason. In an interview conducted in July 2000 with the Archive of American Television, Barbara said, "We all loved Rusty so much. He was so good in that role. And, unfortunately they had to let him go... Because his mother was such a pain." She went on to mention that Rusty's mother would go to the producer's office and "make demands." So, "Finally, they let him go."