'Leave It to Beaver' star Tony Dow hospitalized with pneumonia, waited 24 hours for a bed due to COVID
Tony Dow, who played Wally Cleaver on Leave It to Beaver, is hospitalized with pneumonia — and his wife said it took 24 hours to get him a bed due to COVID.
"Thanks for your patience on this update," his manager Frank Bilotta wrote Monday on Facebook. "Tony has been diagnosed with pneumonia but is in good spirits and is doing well. He was up walking around yesterday and his doctors think he should be able to return home within the week."
Bilotta previously noted that "COVID has been ruled out." Dow's wife, Lauren Shulkin, elaborated on the topic in an interview with TMZ. She said the 76-year-old actor and director was taken to the ER on Thursday. He was tested five times for COVID — and all the tests were negative. However, Dow remained in the ER for 24 hours because there were no beds available at the hospital — due to the Delta variant.
Dow and his wife reside in Topanga, Calif., which is in western Los Angeles County. There are currently 1,692 COVID hospitalizations in the county, according to Sunday data. A CDC report last week, using data out of L.A. county, found that while there continue to be "breakthrough" cases among fully vaccinated individuals, unvaccinated people are over 29 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID.
In the statement released by Dow's manager, Shulkin thanked his fans for their support. She's been married to Dow since 1980.
Dow became a TV star in 1957 after landing the role of Beaver's big brother, Wally Cleaver. He remained on the show for the duration of its run, which ended in 1963. Dow continued to act and also directed and produced. He is also an accomplished sculptor.
