Update: The family of Leave It To Beaver star Tony Dow told media outlets that the actor has not died as it has been reported earlier, but is in his last hours and under hospice care.

Dow, who played big brother Wally to Jerry Mather’s Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver in the 1950s sitcom Leave It To Beaver is battling cancer. Earlier on Tuesday, Tony Dow’s management team – Frank Bilotta and Renee James – announced the actor had died via Facebook post, as seen below:

“It is with an extremely heavy heart that we share with you the passing of our beloved Tony this morning. Tony was a beautiful soul - kind, compassionate, funny and humble. It was truly a joy to just be around him. His gentle voice and unpretentious manner was immediately comforting and you could not help but love him. The world has lost an amazing human being, but we are all richer for the memories that he has left us. From the warn reminiscences of Wally Cleaver to those of us fortunate enough to know him personally - thank you Tony. And thank you for the reflections of a simpler time, the laughter, the friendship and for the feeling that you were a big brother to us all. We will miss you.”

Actor Continues to Battle Health Issues, Including Cancer

     Today.com

Dow’s wife, Lauren Shulkind, announced on May 5th that her husband’s cancer had returned but that he was approaching the illness “bravely.” After a brief hospitalization for pneumonia last August, a worried Shulkind shared that Dow was forced to wait 24 hours for a hospital bed due to surges of the Delta variant COVID-19 cases in California. She added that despite a “violent cough” that was causing pain on the top of his head, her husband was in good spirits with no fever. On Thursday, Beaver co-star Jerry Mathers asked for prayers and healing for the actor.

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The actor appeared in all 234 episodes of Leave It To Beaver and also starred in other television classics such as My Three Sons, Dr. Kildare and Lassie. A few years later, Dow showed up on The Mod Squad, Emergency!, Quincy M.E., Knight Rider, Charles in Charge and Murder, She Wrote and portrayed a cop on the daytime soap opera General Hospital. He also directed several episodes of 1993’s Babylon 5 and 1999 episodes of Crusade and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.