Edward Clark "Eddie" Haskell (also referred to as Edward W. Haskell) is a fictional character on the Leave It to Beaver television situation comedy, which ran on CBS from October 4, 1957 to 1958 and then on ABC from 1958 to June 20, 1963. The character was also featured in the later series Still the Beaver, and in the film remake of the original series.

Character overview[link]

The son of George and Agnes, Eddie Haskell was the smart-mouthed best friend of Wally Cleaver. The character, played in the original series by Ken Osmond, has become a cultural reference, recognized as an archetype for insincere sycophants. Ward Cleaver once remarked that "[Eddie] is so polite, it's almost un-American".^[1] The archetype became so well known that the term "Eddie Haskell" was adopted into everyday use.

He was known for his neat grooming^[2] — hiding his shallow and sneaky character. Typically, Eddie would greet his friends' parents with overdone good manners and often a compliment such as, "That's a lovely dress you're wearing, Mrs. Cleaver" or "Hi, Mrs. Weber." However, when no parents were around, Eddie was always up to no good — either conniving with his friends, or picking on Wally's younger brother Beaver. Eddie's two-faced style was also typified by his efforts to curry favor by trying to talk to adults at the level he thought they would respect, such as referring to their children as Theodore (Beaver's much-disliked given name) and Wallace, even though the parents called them Beaver and Wally.

A weaselly wise guy, Eddie could be relied upon to connive and instigate schemes with his friends — schemes for which they would be in the position of blame, if (and usually when) caught. One of his most infamous pranks with the Cleaver boys involved fastening a chain around the rear axle of their friend Clarence "Lumpy" Rutherford's car, causing unplanned damage as the entire third member and wheels became detached when he tried to move the car. The prank has been repeated on police and gangster cars in scenes in the films American Graffiti and Gone in 60 Seconds.

[edit] The New Leave It To Beaver

In the 1980s revival series, titled The New Leave It To Beaver, Eddie is now married to Gert and they have two sons, Freddie and Edward Jr. (played by Osmond's real-life sons, Eric and Christian, respectively). Edward Jr. (nicknamed "Bomber") is enrolled at Vicksburg Military School, the result of Bomber having spilled grape juice on the Haskells' white carpeting. Both Freddie and Bomber have taken after their father.

Eddie operates an eponymously-named contracting company. He remains an avid Woody Woodpecker cartoon fan.

In popular culture[link]

• In The Simpsons, one of the main characters, Bart Simpson, is inspired by the behavior of Haskell, whom the cartoon series' creator Matt Groening considered to be his favorite character. Coincidentally, voice actor Harry Shearer, who does the voices of Mr. Burns, Smithers and Ned Flanders on The Simpsons, played the character Frankie (a precursor to the Eddie Haskell character) in the pilot episode of Leave It to Beaver.

• In the movie 8 Mile, Eminem's character raps about Eddie Haskell and Leave it to Beaver, in one of the rap battles of the movie.

• In the webcomic Achewood, character Roast Beef uses the pseudonym "Ed E. Haskell", when writing his underground zine "Man, Why You Even Got To Do A Thing".

• In the episode "Home Movies", of the teen drama TV series Dawson's Creek 3rd season, the character Joey Potter calls another character, Pacey Witter, "Eddie Haskell."

• In season 4, episode 10, of the HBO show The Wire, Major Colvin says that the young delinquent Namond Brice is putting on his "Eddie Haskell" act.^[3]

• Near the conclusion of the 1992 Cameron Crowe film Singles, Matt Dillon's character, upon getting into an elevator with his recently-ex-girlfriend (played by Bridget Fonda), remarks, "That's a very nice hat you're wearing, and I don't mean that in an Eddie Haskell kind of way."

• In season 3 of the TV crime/drama series The Sopranos, in the episode "Kaisha", a character comments on the title of the screenplay for Christopher Moltisanti's film "Cleaver" by saying "Are you sure about the title, "Cleaver"? The Eddie Haskell connection?"^[4]

• The TV comic series Beavis and Butt-Head featured the episode "Leave it to Beavis", a spoof on the original show, with Beavis as "The Beavis" and the older delinquent Todd as "Eddie".

• In the episode titled "All about Roseanne" of the sitcom Roseanne, Roseanne makes a reference to marijuana, calling it "reefer". This confuses the guest character June Cleaver, causing her to ask, "Reefer?" and Roseanne replies, "Ask Eddie Haskell."

• In the season 3 episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air titled "Robbing the Banks," Uncle Phil's brown-nosing assistant is named "Edward Haskell" and played by Phil LaMarr.^[5] His last name comes out when under arrest by uniform officers, having only been Edward for most of the episode.

• In the song "Deceived" the band Why? sings "gotta get out of my Eddie Haskell pattern."

• In an episode of Designing Women, somebody the quartet is talking about is described with the line "He's such an Eddie Haskell.", to which Suzanne Sugarbaker responds, "Who's Eddie Haskell?" Jean Smart's Charlene Frazier remarks, Who's Eddie Haskell?, surprised at Suzanne's apparent unfamialarity with the TV character.

• In an episode of "My Wife and Kids" titled "Papa Said Knock You Out", Michael Kyle refers to his daughter Claire's boyfriend Tony as a "religious Eddie Haskell".

Reception[link]

In 1999 TV Guide ranked him number 20 on its '50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time' list.^[6]

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

• Applebaum, Irwyn. The World According to Beaver. TV Books, 1984, 1998. (ISBN 1575000520).
• Bank, Frank. Call Me Lumpy: my Leave It To Beaver days and other wild Hollywood life . Addax, 2002. (ISBN 1886110298), (ISBN 978-1886110298).
• Brooks, Tim and Earl Marsh, "The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 9th Ed." Ballantine Books, Random House, New York City, New York, 2007. (ISBN 0-34549-773-2).
• Colella, Jennifer. The Leave It to Beaver Guide to Life: wholesome wisdom from the Cleavers! Running Press, 2006. (ISBN 0762427736), (ISBN 9780762427734).
• Leave It to Beaver: the complete first season. Universal Studios, 2005.
• Leave It to Beaver: the complete second season. Universal Studios, 2006. (ISBN 1417074876)
• Mathers, Jerry. ... And Jerry Mathers as "The Beaver". Berkley Boulevard Books, 1998. (ISBN 0425163709)
• Terrace, Vincent, "Television Character and Story Facts: Over 110,000 Details From 1,008 Shows, 1945-1992," McFarland & Co. Inc., Jefferson, North Carolina, 1993. (ISBN 0-89950-891-X).

External links[link]

• Character profile at TVLand.com^{[dead link]}

Ken Osmond
Osmond, circa 1962
Born	Kenneth Charles Osmond (1943-06-07) June 7, 1943 (age 69) Glendale, California U.S.A.
Occupation	Actor, police officer
Years active	1953–1997 (actor) 1970–1988 (police officer)
Spouse	Sandra Purdy (1969–present)
Children	Eric Osmond (b. 1971) Christian Osmond (b. 1974)

Kenneth Charles "Ken" Osmond (born June 7, 1943) is an American actor. Beginning a prolific career as a child actor at the age of four, Osmond is best known for his iconic role as Eddie Haskell on the 1950s television situation comedy Leave It to Beaver, and for reprising the role on the 1980s revival series The New Leave It to Beaver.

Early life[link]

Osmond was born on June 7, 1943 in Glendale, California.^[1][2] His father was a carpenter and his mother, a home-maker, whom Osmond has described as "a typical movie mother", with ambitions to get him and his brother, Dayton into show business.^[2][3] Osmond began going on professional auditions at the age of four, and was soon landing work in commercials.^[2] Soon, Mrs. Osmond began taking him and his brother to lessons every day after school, where he studied dance, drama, diction, dialects, martial arts, and equestrian riding.^[2]

Career[link]

Early years[link]

Osmond first broke into feature films working as an extra, the first job he remembers being an appearance in the film Plymouth Adventure with Spencer Tracy and Gene Tierney.^[2] He landed his first speaking role at the age of 9, with a small role in the film So Big starring Jane Wyman and Sterling Hayden.^[2] In the following years, he continued to appear in small roles in feature films such as Good Morning Miss Dove, and Everything But the Truth, as well as making numerous guest-starring appearances on episodic television series, including Lassie, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Fury, Circus Boy, and The Loretta Young Show.^[2][3]

[edit] Leave it to Beaver

In the fall of 1957, 14-year-old Osmond was called in to a typical "cattle call" audition to read for the role for which he would become most identified, that of Wally Cleaver's best (and worst) friend, Eddie Haskell on the family sitcom Leave It To Beaver.^[2][3] After a series of call-backs to narrow down the field, Osmond eventually landed the role.^[2] The character of Eddie was originally intended to be a "one shot" guest appearance, but those involved with the show were impressed with Osmond's portrayal, and Eddie Haskell would eventually become one of the most memorable characters on the series throughout its entire six season run.^[2][3]

Osmond's portrayal of Eddie Haskell became a cultural reference, recognized as an archetype for the "behind-your-back" rebel. Teenager Eddie Haskell would be polite and obsequious to grownups, but derided adults' social conventions behind their backs. He was constantly trying to involve his friends in activities that would get them into trouble. Eddie was the kind of friend parents such as Ward and June Cleaver wish their children would limit association with, but need to have to gain learning experiences. Even today, the term "Eddie Haskell" is known to refer to an insincere flatterer or a suck-up.^[4]

Typecast[link]

After Leave it to Beaver ended in 1963, Osmond continued to make occasional appearances on such television series as Petticoat Junction, The Munsters, and a return appearance on Lassie, as well as appearing in the feature films C'mon Let's Live a Little, and With Six You Get Eggroll. However, he found himself typecast as "Eddie Haskell" and had difficulty finding steady work.^[2][3] In 2008, Osmond told radio host, Stu Shostak in a radio interview - "I was very much typecast. It's a death sentence. In Hollywood you get typecast. I'm not complaining because Eddie's been too good to me, but I found work hard to come by. In 1968 I bought my first house, in '69 I got married, and we were going to start a family and I needed a job, so I went out and signed up for the LAPD."^[2]

Law enforcement[link]

In 1970 Osmond joined the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and grew a mustache which helped to secure his anonymity.^[2][5][6] During his time on the force he worked in vice and narcotics, and as a motorcycle officer.^[7][8] On September 20, 1980, Osmond was hit by three bullets while in a foot chase with a suspected car thief.^[3][9][10] He was protected from two of the bullets by his bulletproof vest, with the third bullet ricocheting off of his belt buckle.^{[3][9][10][11]} Osmond was placed on disability and eventually retired from the force in 1988.^[10] The shooting was later dramatized in a November 1992 episode of the CBS series Top Cops.^[12]

Urban legends[link]

In the early 1970s, a story was widely reported that Osmond had become rock star, Alice Cooper.^[4] According to Cooper, the rumor began when a college newspaper editor asked him what kind of kid he was, to which Cooper replied "I was obnoxious, disgusting, a real Eddie Haskell"; however, the story ended up reporting that Cooper was the real Eddie Haskell.^[4] Cooper would later tell the New Times - "It was the biggest rumor that ever came out about me. Finally, I got a t-shirt that said 'No, I am not Eddie Haskell'. But people still believed it."^[4]

Another widely reported urban legend of the 1970s was that Osmond had grown up to become adult film star John Holmes.^[13][14][15] The story apparently began when fan magazines falsely reported that Osmond had embarked on such a career.^[16] The rumor was dispelled when a Los Angeles movie theater lit up its marquee advertising "Eddie Haskell of TV in 'Behind the Green Door' - X-rated", prompting Osmond himself, then an LAPD officer, to go into the theater to request that the theater's manager pull the plug on the marquee.^[16]

Return to acting[link]

Osmond returned to acting in 1983 reprising his role as Eddie Haskell in the CBS made-for-television movie, Still the Beaver, which followed the adult Cleaver boys, their friends, and their families.^[3][6][17] The television movie was a success and led to the revival comedy series The New Leave It to Beaver which premiered the following year.^[6][18][19] The show ran for four seasons from 1984 to 1989, starting on The Disney Channel, and later moving to the TBS network.^[18][20][21] On the show, Osmond played Eddie Haskell as a husband and father, while his character's two sons, Freddie Haskell and Edward "Bomber" Haskell Jr., were played by Osmond's two real-life sons, Eric Osmond and Christian Osmond, respectively.^[2][20]

In 1987, Osmond was honored by the Young Artist Foundation with its Former Child Star "Lifetime Achievement" Award for his role as Eddie Haskell.^[22] He continued to make television appearances throughout the 1980s and 1990s on the shows Happy Days, Rags to Riches and the television movie High School U.S.A.,^[23] as well as cameo appearances in his role as Eddie Haskell on such television shows as Parker Lewis Can't Lose, and Hi Honey, I'm Home!. Osmond would once again reprise his role as Eddie Haskell in the 1997 feature film Leave It to Beaver. In the film, Osmond played Eddie Haskell, Sr., and Adam Zolotin played his son Eddie Haskell, Jr.^[2]

Personal life[link]

In 1969, Osmond married Sandra Purdy.^[2][24] The couple have two sons, Eric E. Osmond (born October 8, 1971^[25]) and Christian S. Osmond (born June 12, 1974^[26]).^[2][3][20] Since his retirement from the police force, Osmond handles rental properties in the Los Angeles area, and makes occasional personal appearances at film festivals, collectors' shows and nostalgia conventions. On September 18, 2007, Osmond filed a class action lawsuit against the Screen Actors Guild, alleging that SAG had collected $8 million in foreign residuals for U.S. actors, but had not distributed them to the actors.^[27][28][29] In August 2011, Osmond began appearing as a celebrity spokesman for St. Joseph aspirin.^[30]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Ken Osmond at the Internet Movie Database
• Ken Osmond at TVGuide.com
• Ken Osmond at TVLand.com

Hoodie Allen
Background information
Birth name	Steven Markowitz
Born	(1988-08-19) August 19, 1988 (age 23) Plainview, New York, United States
Origin	Old Bethpage, New York, United States
Genres	Experimental hip hop, pop rap, hipster hop
Years active	2009–present
Website	hoodieallen.com

Steven Markowitz (born August 19, 1988), better known by his stage name Hoodie Allen, is an independent American hip-hop artist and rapper.

Early life[link]

Hoodie was born in New York City and raised in a Jewish household on Long Island^[1][2] He started writing lyrics as a child, and would perform raps for his friends at house parties.^[3][4] Growing up, his nickname was "Hoodie."^[5] He wanted a rapper name that "would stick in peoples' minds and be a little bit funny and representative of who I am," so he settled on "Hoodie Allen."^[5]

He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 2010, where he studied finance and marketing at The Wharton School, and was a brother in the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity.^[4][6] While there, he met his producer, RJF.^[7][8] After graduating, he worked at Google as an AdWords associate in their START (Standardized AdWords Reseller Training) program.^[9] He would leave at 7 AM for a bus ride to the Google offices in Mountain View, work a full day at Google, return at 6 PM, and then write songs, answer fan emails, and schedule concerts until 2 or 3 AM.^[4] Reflecting on this, Hoodie said, "I was moving so fast, and even while I was at Google there was so much going on that I felt like I was doing two full-time jobs."^[9] His dream and passion was music, so when he got opportunities to do live shows, he decided to leave Google.^[9]

Career[link]

[edit] 2009–2012: From Bagels & Beats to Leap Year

Hoodie's first two album releases were "Bagels & Beats" and "Making Waves," which garnered him an MTVU Best Music on Campus Award in 2009.^[10] In June 2010, he released "You Are Not a Robot," which sampled 'I Am Not A Robot' by Marina & the Diamonds and which hit #1 on Hype Machine, an aggregator that collects the most-blogged about music in the world.^[4] After seeing the response, he spent the summer working, and finished his mixtape Pep Rally by September.^[7] The album was produced by RJ Ferguson, and sampled songs from Death Cab for Cutie, Flight Facilities, Marina & the Diamonds and Two Door Cinema Club. He picked the name “Pep Rally” because he said that it “captured the energy of the record. Something new and exciting.”^[11] When asked about the writing process, Hoodie said: “Throughout Pep Rally, the ideas for samples were very collaborative. We would camp out in [RJF]’s basement for a weekend and not leave till we had 3 songs done—that was the mentality.”^[7] The mixtape was downloaded over 200,000 times.^[4] He self-financed a video for “You Are Not A Robot,” which has over 3 million views.^[12][13]

In July 2011, Hoodie released his third mixtape, Leap Year, which was also produced by friend and producer RJ. It reached 250,000 SoundCloud plays in its first week of release.^[14] On the title for his mixtape, Hoodie explains: "It basically just talks to the leap of faith I took this year leaving everything else behind to be an artist."^[15] In support of the album, Hoodie headlined a 15 city tour across North America, including stops in San Francisco, New York City, and Montreal.^[16] Previously, he had toured with The Cataracs, Das Racist, Chiddy Bang, Mike Posner, and RJD2.^[17][18]

Hoodie collaborated with the cartoon band Your Favorite Martian to write the song "8-Bit World", which he raps in. He was also featured in CollegeHumor's "Jake and Amir" sketch series and in Zak Downtown's "Rock The Show."^[19]

[edit] 2012–present: All American

On March 4, 2012, Hoodie announced via Twitter that his upcoming EP would be titled All American.^[20] He decided on this title because he credits his success to America, because he felt the songs showcased his best music to date, and because of a hometown restaurant with the same title. Hoodie spent five months developing the album, building tracks from scratch with his producer, RJF, instead of using sampled beats.^[21] Regarding the writing process, Hoodie states that "I would describe it as liberating... It was like, 'Okay, I hear this idea in my head, I hear these original ideas, [and] I'm putting them and piecing them together.'"^[21] On March 29, 2012, Hoodie released the first single from All American entitled "No Interruption."^[22] The music video was posted to YouTube and was featured on the front page the same day. It currently has 2.7 million views.^[23]

The night before the album's release, Hoodie announced that he would personally call every fan that buys the album.^[24] All American was released on April 10, 2012 and debuted as the #1 album on iTunes.^[25] He is set to take a 22 stop US tour during April and May 2012 in support of All American featuring Wax^[26], Jared Evan, and others (varies from show to show)^[27]. On March 23, 2012, Hoodie hinted at an upcoming announcement of a "UK tour for June," and officially announced the four dates on April 19 via Facebook^[28]. The "I Work Better In The UK Tour" will be his first time performing overseas.

Reception[link]

In July 2011, he cracked the Top 10 of Billboard’s Uncharted Territory.^[29] For the week of August 5, 2011, Hoodie was #2 on Billboard’s Uncharted Territory, with Billboard noting that his "growing popularity is undeniable."^[14]

On April 10, 2012, his EP "All American" went to #1 on the iTunes charts within hours of its release. All American also debuted at #10 on Billboard's Top Albums.^[30]

Discography[link]

EPs[link]

Mixtapes[link]

• Making Waves (2009)
• Pep Rally (2010)
• Leap Year (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Hoodie Allen's channel on YouTube
• Hoodie Allen on Twitter

Tony Dow
Dow (top) with the cast of Leave It to Beaver, circa 1959.
Born	Tony Lee Dow (1945-04-13) April 13, 1945 (age 67) Hollywood, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor, Director, Producer, Sculptor
Years active	1949–2003
Spouse	Shulkind, Lauren C. (1980-present) Marlow, Carol M. (1969-1978) (divorced) 1 child

Tony Lee Dow (born April 13, 1945) is an American film producer, director and sculptor, and a television child actor of the 1950s and 1960s.

Dow is best known for his role in the television sitcom Leave It to Beaver, which ran in primetime from 1957 to 1963. Dow played Wallace "Wally" Cleaver, the elder son of June (Barbara Billingsley) and Ward Cleaver (Hugh Beaumont), and the brother of Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver (Jerry Mathers).

Early life and career[link]

Dow was born in Hollywood, California, to John Stevens, a designer and general contractor, and Muriel Virginia Dow (née Montrose) (May 27, 1906–April 30, 2001),^[1] a stunt woman in early Westerns and Clara Bow's movie double in Hollywood. In his youth, Dow was a Junior Olympics diving champion.^[2] He won the role of Wally Cleaver in a casting call, with almost no previous acting experience.^[3]

Dow remained on the series until it ended in 1963. After the run of Leave It to Beaver, he appeared on My Three Sons, Dr. Kildare, Mr. Novak (five episodes in three different roles), The Greatest Show on Earth, and Never Too Young. From 1965 to 1968, Dow served in the National Guard, interrupting his acting career.^[4] On his return to acting, he guest-starred in Adam-12, Love American Style, Square Pegs, The Mod Squad, The Hardy Boys and Emergency!

During the 1970s, Dow continued acting while working in the construction business and studying journalism and filmmaking.^[5] In 1987, he was honored by the Young Artist Foundation with its Former Child Star "Lifetime Achievement" Award for his role as Wally Cleaver.^[6]

Dow's most recent screen appearance was in the 2003 film Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star.

Behind the camera[link]

In 1986, he wrote an episode of The New Leave It to Beaver, and in 1989, he made his directorial debut with an episode of The New Lassie, followed by episodes of Get a Life, Harry and the Hendersons, Swamp Thing, Coach, Babylon 5, Crusade, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Dow also served as the visual effects supervisor for Babylon 5. In 1996, he provided visual effects for the Fox TVM Doctor Who.

Personal life[link]

Dow attended Van Nuys High School and graduated in 1963, the same year Beaver ended.^{[citation needed]} On June 14, 1969, Dow married Carol M. Marlow. In 1973, they had a son, Christopher T. Dow, before divorcing in 1978.

Dow is currently married to Lauren Shulkind, whom he wed in 1980. They live in the Santa Monica mountains.

In the 1990s, Dow revealed that he has struggled and was eventually diagnosed with clinical depression. He has since starred in self-help videos chronicling this battle, including "Beating the Blues" (1998).^[7]

Dow has become a serious, and respected amateur sculptor, creating abstract bronze sculptures. In his artist statement, he says the following about his work: "The figures are abstract and not meant to represent reality but rather the truth of the interactions as I see and feel them. I find the wood in the hills of Topanga Canyon and each piece evolves from my subconscious. I produce limited editions of nine bronzes using the lost wax process from molds of the original burl sculpture."^[8] One of his bronze pieces was on display in the backyard garden of Barbara Billingsley, who played his mother on Leave It to Beaver. Dow was chosen as one of three sculptors to show at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition, in the Carrousel du Louvre, in Paris, France, in December 2008. He represented the United States delegation, which was composed of artists from the Karen Lynne Gallery. His abstract shown at the Louvre was titled, "Unarmed Warrior," a bronze figure of a woman holding a shield.^[9]

Filmography[link]

Actor[link]

• NBC Children's Theatre (1 episode, 1949)
• Leave It to Beaver (234 episodes, 1957–1963)
• The Eleventh Hour as Bob Quincy in "Four Feet in the Morning" (1963)
• Dr. Kildare (1 episode, 1963)
• The Greatest Show on Earth (1 episode, 1964)
• My Three Sons (1 episode, 1964)
• Mr. Novak (5 episodes, 1963–1965)
• Never Too Young (Unknown episodes, 1965)
• Adam-12 (1 episode, 1970)
• Love, American Style (1 episode, 1971)
• The Mod Squad (1 episode, 1971)
• Emergency! (Brushfire episode, 1972)
• A Great American Tragedy (1972)
• Death Scream (1975)
• General Hospital (Unknown episodes, 1975)
• The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977)
• The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries (1 episode, 1977)
• The Ordeal of Bill Carney (1981)
• Square Pegs (2 episodes, 1982)
• Still the Beaver (1983)
• Quincy M.E. (1 episode, 1983)
• Knight Rider (1 episode, 1983)
• High School U.S.A. (1983)
• Murder, She Wrote (1 episode, 1987)
• Back to the Beach (1987)
• The New Leave It to Beaver aka Still the Beaver (1985–1989)
• Charles in Charge (1 episode, 1989)
• Freddy's Nightmares aka Freddy's Nightmares: A Nightmare on Elm Street The Series (2 episodes, 1990)
• The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space (1995)
• Playing Patti (1998)
• Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction (1 episode, 1998)
• Diagnosis: Murder (2 episodes, 1999)
• Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003)

Visual effects[link]

• Babylon 5 (Unknown episodes)
• The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space (1995)
• Doctor Who (1996)

Producer[link]

• The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space (1995)
• It Came from Outer Space II (1996)

Writer[link]

• The New Leave It to Beaver (1 episode, 1986)

Production Manager[link]

• Terry and June (1979)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Tony Dow at the Internet Movie Database
• Tony Dow at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Tony Dow's Sculpture Website

This article relies on references to primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject, rather than references from independent authors and third-party publications. Please add citations from reliable sources. (June 2008)

James F. Hawkins (born November 13, 1941), known as Jimmy Hawkins, and later, Jim Hawkins, is an American actor and film producer whose career began as a child actor to such Hollywood stars as Lana Turner, Spencer Tracy, James Stewart, and Donna Reed. His acting career spans the time frame from 1944–1974, after which he devoted his energies to the production of films and later to his construction/contracting business. Hawkins had starring roles in several television series: The Ruggles (1949–1952), Annie Oakley (1954–1957, syndicated), The Donna Reed Show (1958–1966, ABC), and Petticoat Junction (CBS, the first four seasons, 1963–1967). He also had recurring roles as (1) a friend of the Nelson brothers on ABC’s The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and (2) as Jonathan Baylor on CBS's Ichabod and Me sitcom with Robert Sterling and George Chandler in the 1961-1962 season. He guest starred in many other programs during his childhood and young adult years.

Hawkins was born in Los Angeles to Thomas J. Hawkins (1913–1993) ^[1] and Bette C. Hawkins (born ca. 1916). His first roles—as a two-year-old—were uncredited – Spencer Tracy’s The Seventh Cross and Lana Turner’s Marriage Is A Private Affair at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios. His mother was the force behind his early childhood acting. He graduated from the Roman Catholic-affiliated Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles.^[2]

Hawkins and Donna Reed[link]

Hawkins starred in December 1946 as four-year-old Tommy Bailey, the son of George and Mary Bailey, in the nostalgic blockbuster It’s a Wonderful Life, starring James Stewart and Donna Reed, an actress for whom young Hawkins developed a lifelong admiration.^[3] In 1958, he worked again with Reed in her sitcom, having portrayed Scotty, a persistent and loyal boyfriend of Donna’s television daughter Mary Stone, played by Shelley Fabares. He became personally close to Fabares and Paul Petersen, who played Reed’s son, Jeff Stone, on the series.^[2]

Hawkins recalls having visited Reed for the last time at Christmas 1985, just days before her death of cancer: "I really loved that woman . . .[There is a scene in It’s A Wonderful Life] where she touched my cheek. Well, flashback to the eighties, Donna was really ill, it was around Christmas time, and I went to visit her at her home, I brought her an "It's A Wonderful Life" Christmas ornament for her tree. She asked me to put it on her tree, and we visited, but it was hard for her to expend any energy; so I wished her a Merry Christmas and told her I had to go, and then she reached her hand up to touch my cheek just like she did when I was in that scene with her when she drew me in, and in just two weeks, she died."^[4]

Hawkins is a mainstay of the Donna Reed Foundation. Each June, he, Shelley Fabares, and Paul Petersen travel to Denison, Iowa (Reed’s hometown), for an annual celebration. During the week, classes in theatre arts are taught by professionals from Hollywood and New York City.^[5]

Hawkins and Jimmy Stewart[link]

Hawkins was also close to It's a Wonderful Life star Jimmy Stewart, who signed for various charities six copies of a commemorative 50th anniversary book on the classic film. Hawkins picked up the books at Stewart's Beverly Hills home on July 2, 1997, the day after Stewart's death at the age of eighty-nine.^[6]

Hawkins also worked with Stewart again in the 1950 film Winchester '73, which was partially filmed at Old Tucson Studios in Tucson, Arizona. And Stewart wrote the foreword to Hawkins' previous It's a Wonderful Life Trivia Book. Hawkins said that Stewart's willingness to sign the books showed that the veteran star was "giving to the end."^[6]

Hawkins added that Stewart's public image as a friendly, caring man was indeed an accurate characterization: "He was just as people thought he was. He was a gentleman. He was a gentle man."^[6]

Other acting roles[link]

From 1949-1952, Hawkins was cast as young Donald Ruggles in the early ABC sitcom, The Ruggles.^[2] Hawkins’ other film roles included Caught (February 17, 1949), Love That Brute (May 26, 1950), The Blue Veil (October 26, 1951), and two films with Elvis Presley: Girl Happy (April 7, 1965) and Spinout (October 17, 1966).^[2]

On Annie Oakley, he portrayed Tagg Oakley, the younger brother of a fictionalized Annie Oakley in the ABC Western of the same name, a Gene Autry production. In one episode, however, the part of Tagg was played by Billy Gray, who then was cast as James "Bud" Anderson, Jr., in the sitcom Father Knows Best. Hawkins' costars were Gail Davis (1925–1997) as Annie and Brad Johnson (1924–1981) as Deputy Lofty Craig. Hawkins starred in all but one of the eighty-one episodes of the series, now available on DVD and a favorite of western television buffs. In the series, Hawkins rode a Pinto pony called Pixie and often used the childhood expression "Holy Toledo".^[2]

From 1963-1967, Hawkins was Orville Miggs in the first four seasons of Petticoat Junction, starring Bea Benaderet and Edgar Buchanan.

Jimmy starred in various TV pilots and won the role of Andy Hardy in the MGM/NBC pilot. He went on to star in the MGM/NBC pilot See Here, Private Hargrove, also based on an MGM motion picture.

Hawkins guest starred in many series, particularly comedies, including Margie with Cynthia Pepper, Leave It to Beaver with Jerry Mathers, My Three Sons with Fred MacMurray, Bachelor Father with John Forsythe and Noreen Corcoran, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and The Fugitive with David Janssen.^[7] His last role on television was on November 1, 1974, as Father James Jay Remy on NBC’s Kolchak: The Night Stalker starring Darren McGavin.^[8]

Producing films[link]

After his acting career, Hawkins produced films, a number for ABC Theatre Productions, including Evel Knievel, based on the late motorcycle daredevil, and Don’t Look Back: The Life of Satchel Paige (1981), starring Lou Gossett, Jr., as the legendary African American baseball pitcher Leroy “Satchel” Paige. He also produced Gary Coleman in Scout’s Honor, the idea he developed from a 1952 film Mister Scoutmaster in which Hawkins, as an eleven-year-old, had starred. He produced a Walt Disney film, Love Leads the Way, based on the first seeing-eye dog trained in Morristown, New Jersey. He produced an updated version of The Little Rascals for the fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York City.^[2]

In 1961, Hawkins was voted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In the fall of 1968, Hawkins entertained American troops in South Vietnam in a 22-day United Service Organization tour.^[9]

It’s still a wonderful life[link]

In 1994, Hawkins was honored by the Young Artist Foundation with its Former Child Star "Lifetime Achievement" Award for his role as little "Tommy Bailey" in the 1946 classic, It's a Wonderful Life,^[10][11] and during the Christmas season of 1997, he produced a holiday special for the Public Broadcasting Service. During the late 1990s, as It’s a Wonderful Life enjoyed a revival of interest nationally, Hawkins and Paul Peterson wrote the "It’s a Wonderful Life Trivia Book".^[11] Hawkins explains the durability of It’s a Wonderful Life:

“Well, the reason it caught on was that the film fell into public domain. Somebody at the studio let the copyright go, and television stations all over the country could pick it up and show it for free. They took full advantage of that. It kind of caught on with people . . . More and more stations picked up on it. It was shown hundreds and hundreds of times at stations all across the country. I remember back in the early 1990s it was played fourteen times in Los Angeles between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Fourteen times!” ^[12]

Recent activities[link]

Hawkins still finds time to promote his show business interests, particularly It's a Wonderful Life. He has written five popular-selling books on the classic film.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Jimmy Hawkins at the Internet Movie Database