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Ward Cleaver Jr.Episode: "Beaver's Library Book" is a character in the American television sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Ward and his wife, June Cleaver, are often invoked as archetypal suburbs parents of the 1950s baby boomers. At the start of the show, the couple are the parents of Wally Cleaver, a 13-year-old in the seventh grade, and seven-year-old ("almost eight") second-grader Theodore, nicknamed Theodore Cleaver. A typical episode from Leave It to Beaver follows a misadventure committed by one or both of the boys, and ends with the culprits receiving a moral lecture from their father and a hot meal from their mother.
Hugh Beaumont portrays Ward in the series and directed several episodes in the later seasons of the show. Max Showalter (appearing as Casey Adams) plays Ward in the series' pilot, "It's a Small World", which aired in April 1957. Many of the Leave It to Beaver players were featured in their original roles in a reunion movie televised in 1983 ( Still the Beaver) and a sequel series called The New Leave It to Beaver that aired from 1985 to 1989. Hugh Beaumont had died in 1982, and in the 1983 reunion movie, the character of Ward Cleaver was portrayed as having died in 1977, at the age of 67. Christopher McDonald plays Ward in the 1997 reboot film adaptation Leave It to Beaver.
Ward's principal dramatic function in the series is to end each episode with moral instruction for one or both of his errant sons. Ward's relationships with his wife and his co-worker Fred Rutherford are asides that flesh out his character.
On the odd occasion, the two step out to a wedding reception, a school play, or a restaurant together. In one episode, Ward and June have the Rutherfords in for an evening of cards. Occasionally, as shown in the episode titled "Wally's Dinner Date", they play on their own. In other episodes, Ward manages the Barbecue grill on the patio for dining al fresco with guests. Among the cars Ward drives are a 1957 Ford Fairlane in the first season, and 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, and 1963 in subsequent seasons, all of them four-door sedans or hardtops. Although a 1962 model is used in the opening credits through the last season, a 1963 model can be seen in the driveway on at least one episode. Ward plays golf at a local country club, and attends church. Ward sometimes drives the family to nearby Crystal Falls or Friends Lake.
Ward played basketball in school and, in one episode, tries to give his sons and their friends a few tips on the game; however, he dominates the session with his nit-picking and the boys run off to play without his interference. He is handy with tools and does a few minor repairs around the house such as fixing squeaky doors and repairing or replacing electrical appliance cord plugs because June pulls them out of the electrical outlet by the wire instead of the plug. He occasionally dries the dishes for his wife, as well.
In early episodes, packs of cigarettes are detectable in his shirt pocket and he is shown refilling cigarette lighters in season three. He has a meerschaum pipe (the gift of Fred Rutherford), which Beaver and Larry fill with coffee grounds and smoke. He chews gum in one episode. Ward also has a bottle of brandy in the dining room credenza that Beaver gives to an alcoholic handyman and then to a tramp.
The man of the house has a home office/den in the Pine Street dwelling of the last four seasons. He uses the room to discipline the boys, make phone calls, and balance his checkbook. A large globe stands on the floor before a window, but is replaced in later episodes by a television set that is usually turned off. Though one wall is lined with books, rarely do the Cleavers read anything other than newspapers or magazines. Occasionally, a book is pulled from the shelves for Wally’s and Beaver's school assignments.
Ward masterfully handles 'outdoor cooking' (Beaver's description of Ward's barbecuing while on their backyard patio), but is usually portrayed as inept while 'indoor cooking' in the family kitchen.
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