Voting Station

Leave it to Beaver

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TV Series

The Resume

    (October 4, 1957-September 12, 1963)
    Set in the fictional suburb of Mayfield
    First two seasons aired on CBS
    Last four seasons aired on ABC
    Barbara Billingsley as June Cleaver
    Hugh Beaumont as Ward Cleaver
    Tony Dow as Wally Cleaver
    Ken Osmond as Eddie Haskell
    and Jerry Mathers as the Beaver (Theodore Cleaver)
    Frank Bank as Clarence 'Lumpy' Rutherford
    Richard Deacon as Fred Rutherford
    Robert 'Rusty' Stevens as Larry Mondello (1957-1960)
    Madge Blake as Mrs. Margaret Mondello (1958-1960)
    Doris Packer as Cornelia Rayburn
    Stephen Talbot as Gilbert Bates
    Tiger Fafara as Tooey
    Richard Correll as Richard Rickover
    Stanley Fafara as Hubert 'Whitey' Whitney
    Burt Mustin as Gus
    Premise: Adventures of a rambunctious seven year old boy who looks up to his 12 year old brother, who in turn thinks Beaver is a pest

Why Leave it to Beaver might be annoying:

    It shifted networks from CBS to ABC.
    It was loaded to the brim with cheesy dialogue.
    June often said Ward was 'a little hard on the Beaver' when he punished him.
    What was Ward's job, exactly? (He was an accountant, but only a few knew it).
    June was the typical 50's woman, never wore slacks and obeyed her husband.
    Puberty essentially killed the show, with an awkward-looking Jerry Mathers given childish lines well into his early teens.
    In the pilot, Eddie Haskell was portrayed by Harry Shearer.
    Ken Osmond was so identified as Eddie Haskell (a troublemaker who brown-nosed adults) that he could not find other work in show business.
    It was the subject of an awful 90's movie remake.
    Its series sequel 'Still the Beaver' was called one of the worst shows of all time by TV Guide (2002).
    You could probably play a drinking game based on how many times a character says the words 'gee,' 'swell' or 'golly.'
    It never broke into the top 20 rated TV series.
    It just might be the whitest show ever to appear on television. Only one appearance was made by a black person (as a servant).

Why Leave it to Beaver might not be annoying:

    In syndication, it became a ratings smash for TBS in the 1970s.
    A resurgence in popularity placed Wally and the Beav to appear on the cover of the Kellogg's Corn Flakes box twenty years after it went off the air (1983)
    It has a huge following among baby boomers.
    It debuted the same day the Soviets launched Sputnik and ended three months before JFK's assassination.
    Its tone reflected the innocence of the era.
    It was very down-to-earth and unpretentious.
    It stressed positive values like personal responsibility and self-respect.
    Weasley Eddie Haskell ranked #2 in TV Guide's '10 Biggest Brats' (2005).
    It was the first show to show a toilet, causing widespread panic (just kidding).
    Hugh Beaumont wrote and directed a few episodes.
    The Cleaver House set is a popular draw at Universal Studio's Tour.
    Ward Cleaver ranked #28 in TV Guides '50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time' (2004).

Credit: Captain Howdy


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 19 Votes: 5.26% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 246 Votes: 49.59% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 24 Votes: 4.17% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 99 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 10 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 68 Votes: 66.18% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 18 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 113 Votes: 52.21% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 19 Votes: 42.11% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 24 Votes: 41.67% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 15 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 84 Votes: 53.57% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 139 Votes: 61.87% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 94 Votes: 37.23% Annoying
    In 2008, Out of 41 Votes: 51.22% Annoying
    In 2007, Out of 127 Votes: 43.31% Annoying
    In 2006, Out of 234 Votes: 40.17% Annoying
    In 2005, Out of 156 Votes: 42.95% Annoying