Beaver Cleaver

Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver is the fictional title character in the American television series Leave It to Beaver. Originally played by Jerry Mathers, Beaver is the son of June and Ward Cleaver (Barbara Billingsley and Hugh Beaumont, respectively) and the brother of Wally Cleaver (Tony Dow).

The Beaver prefers "messin' around" with his pals and reading comic books to attending church or taking dance lessons. Most episodes in the series feature the Beaver getting into trouble at home, in school, or around the neighborhood and then receiving timely and appropriate moral instruction from his father regarding his misbehavior.

Leave It to Beaver was created by the writers Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, who found inspiration for dialogue and plot lines among their own children. The Beaver was based on Connelly's son Ricky.

Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver was portrayed by Jerry Mathers in the pilot, "It's a Small World"; the original series; the spinoff telemovie, Still the Beaver; and the sequel series, The New Leave It to Beaver. In the reunion telemovie and the sequel series, the Beaver is a divorced father of two children living at home with his widowed mother, June. In the 1997 feature film adaptation of the original series Leave It to Beaver, the Beaver was played by Cameron Finley.