UPDATE: Tony Dow Still Alive, Per Family Member
UPDATE 7/26/2022 5:01 PM ET: Tony Dow is still alive, according to a new statement via his Facebook page. The statement reads as follows: “This morning Tony’s wife, Lauren, who…
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Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesUPDATE 7/26/2022 5:01 PM ET: Tony Dow is still alive, according to a new statement via his Facebook page.
The statement reads as follows:
"This morning Tony's wife, Lauren, who was very distraught, had notified us that Tony had passed and asked that we notify all his fans. As we are sure you can understand, this has been a very trying time for her. We have since received a call from Tony's daughter-in-law saying that while Tony is not doing well, he has not yet passed. Tony's son Christopher and his daughter-in-law Melissa have also been by his side comforting him, and we will keep you posted on any future updates."
ORIGINAL STORY
Tony Dow, best known for playing Wally Cleaver on the classic sitcom Leave It to Beaver, has died. He was 77.
Dow's death was confirmed in a statement shared by his management team via his Facebook page. The statement reads as follows:
"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 warm 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.
A cause of death wasn't disclosed in the statement, but back in May, Dow and his wife of 42 year, Lauren, shared in a joint statement on Facebook that the cancer he fought years prior had returned.
Dow appeared on all 234 episodes of Leave It to Beaver where he played Wally Cleaver, the older brother of the titular Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver, who was played by Jerry Mathers. The series ran for six seasons from 1957-1963, with the first season airing on CBS and the remaining five seasons airing on ABC.
We've had to say goodbye to some big names this year in the worlds of entertainment and beyond.
Scroll through the gallery below to see the musicians, celebrities and other cultural figures we've lost in 2022
Sidney Poitier
Evening Standard/Getty Images
Bob Saget
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Ronnie Spector
Jack Kay/Daily Express/Getty Images
Peter Bogdanovich
Araya Diaz/Getty Images
André Leon Talley
Cindy Ord/Getty Images
Gaspard Ulliel
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Woodstock Music Festival co-producer Micael Lang
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Meat Loaf
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Louie Anderson
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Howard Hesseman
Matthew Peyton/Getty Images
Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Mark Lanegan
Mark Davis/Getty Images
Gary Brooker
Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Ivan Reitman
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Traci Braxton
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
William Hurt
Charley Gallay/Getty Images
Scott Hall
Larry Busacca/Getty Images
Taylor Hawkins
Scott Dudelson/Getty Images
Tom Parker of The Wanted
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Gilbert Gottfried
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Robert Morse
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Madeleine Albright
Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Naomi Judd
Stephen Cohen/Getty Images
Alan White, drummer for Yes
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Andy Fletcher, keyboardist/co-founder of Depeche Mode
Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images
Alec John Such, original Bon Jovi bassist
Theo Wargo/Getty Images For The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
James Caan
Matt Carr/Getty Images
Tony Sirico
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Ivana Trump
(Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images
William Hart, Lead Singer Of The Delfonics
(Photo by Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Paul Sorvino
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Tony Dow
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Bill Russell
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Nichelle Nichols
(Photo by Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images)Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
Olivia Newton-John
Cole Bennetts/Getty Images
Joe E. Tata (Nat from Beverly Hills, 90210)
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Mikhail Gorbachev
Photo by White House Photos/Getty Images
Bernard Shaw
Photo by Mark Mainz/Getty Images
Queen Elizabeth II
Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images
Ken Starr
Photo By Pool/Getty Images
Louise Fletcher (Nurse Ratched from 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest')
David Livingston/Getty Images
Coolio
Brad Barket/Getty Images
Wrestling icon Antonio Inoki
Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images
Sacheen Littlefeather
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Loretta Lynn
Terry Wyatt/Getty Images
Angela Lansbury
Evan Agostini/Getty Images
Robbie Coltrane
Ian Gavan/Getty Images
Leslie Jordan
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images
Jerry Lee Lewis
Evening Standard/Getty Images
Julie Powell
Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images
Jeff Cook of Alabama
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Kevin Conroy
Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
Dan McCafferty of Nazareth
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
John Aniston
Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images
Jason David Frank
Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images
Irene Cara
United Artists/Archive Photos/Getty Images
Christine McVie
Davidson/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Wilko Johnson
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
Gaylord Perry
Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Brad William Henke
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Bob McGrath of 'Sesame Street'
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Kirstie Alley
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images
Mills Lane
Ken Levine /Allsport/Getty Images
Dorothy Pitman Hughes
Monica Schipper/Getty Images
Stephen "tWitch" Boss
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Billie Moore
Gary Newkirk/Allsport/Getty Images
Dino Danelli
Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Ray Liotta
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Vin Scully
Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images
Terry Hall
Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images
Fighters Only World Mixed Martial Arts Awards 2011
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Pele
Xavi Torrent/Getty Images
Vivienne Westwood
Francois Durand/Getty Images
