Cheap Leave It to Beaver - The Complete First Season (DVD) (Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Billingsley, Jerry Mathers) (Hugh Beaumont, David Butler, Jeffrey Hayden, James Neilson, Charles F. Haas, Norman Abbott (II), Anton Leader) Price

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Customer Reviews of Leave It to Beaver - The Complete First Season

The First Season Of "The Beav" Is Due On November 22nd, 2005! .... Here's A Look At The 39 Episodes We'll See In This DVD Set!
On August 25, 2005, Universal Studios Home Video announced that "LEAVE IT TO BEAVER: THE COMPLETE FIRST SEASON" will arrive on DVD on November 22, 2005! <
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>Universal is even giving fans two different packaging versions to choose from -- a "standard" type box (with 3 "slimline" plastic cases inside an outer slipcase box) .... OR .... a "Premium Limited Edition" package that features a collectible Beaver Cleaver Lunch Box (plus other added-value content in the form of a "Cleaver Family Photo Album"). Sounds quite nice to me. I just hope that the "regular" type box is also inside the Lunch Box. That'd be the best of both possible "packaging" worlds, IMHO. But, in any event, at least Universal is offering the choice, and not forcing the consumer to buy this set in ONLY strange-shaped DVD packaging. Good job, Universal, for offering up TWO variants here! <
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>The ultra-charming and highly-rewatchable B&W sitcom "Leave It To Beaver" premiered on CBS-TV on October 4, 1957, and continued on network TV for a total of six seasons, finishing its 234-episode run in 1963. Each of the six seasons consisted of exactly 39 episodes, a very hefty total by today's seasonal standards. CBS carried the show for the first season only. For the last five years, "Beaver" aired on ABC. <
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>During the rookie season of the series, Jerry Mathers ("Beaver"/"Theodore") was 9 years old, although he was playing a 7-year-old. Tony Dow ("Wally") was 12. <
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>Some of my favorite episodes from the first season of "Leave It To Beaver" include: "The Black Eye", "Party Invitation", "The Bank Account", "Child Care", "The Perfect Father", "Beaver Runs Away", and my #1 fave from Season One -- "The Haircut" (which has Beaver getting scalped by barber Wally in one of the funniest episodes of the whole series). <
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>There's also the very funny ep. entitled "Captain Jack" (which was the 1st episode filmed; but the 2nd one aired). That show has Wally & Beaver sending away for a pet alligator, and includes the funny scene where "Minerva" (the maid who we never ever see again after this episode) comes running up the basement stairs screaming -- "Help! A monster! There's an alligator in the basement!" .... This is followed by Ward's skeptical -- "An alligator?!" (LOL.) <
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>"Captain Jack" also has the distinction of being the very first episode in television history to show a toilet on screen. (The "tank" portion of the Cleaver toilet is shown, not the -- *gasp* -- "bowl" itself.) :-) <
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>Universal Studios has also announced that the original "Pilot" episode for the LITB series will be included on the upcoming 3-Disc Season-One boxed set. Great news too! I was hoping the pilot (which was called "It's A Small World") would show up on any 1st-season DVD set. Nice work, Universal! I commend thee for this nostalgic inclusion. <
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>It will also be interesting to see if the upcoming Universal DVD set of LITB Season 1 includes the originally-aired "Previews" (or mini-"Trailers") that preceded the opening titles for each of the first-season programs. These "Previews" were about one minute or so in length and were narrated by Hugh Beaumont (aka: "Ward Cleaver"). I'm hoping these short "Here's What's Coming" trailers are part of the Universal DVD set. As far as I'm aware, only Season 1 contained these "Preview" snippets before each show. <
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>Want to dive into some fun "Beaver Trivia" for just a minute or two? OK. ......... <
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>Who here can recall all six of the "Show Openings" for "Leave It To Beaver"? (They filmed a new Main Title opening sequence for each of the six seasons.) <
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>Let's have a gander at the openings: <
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>Season 1 --- "Handprints In Cement" opening. <
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>Season 2 --- Ward and June meet the boys at the bottom of staircase. <
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>Season 3 --- Ward and June enter the boys' bedroom, awakening them for school. (First season in the "new" house at 211 Pine St.; Mayfield USA.) <
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>Season 4 --- "The Ward" & "The June" hand the boys their coats on the front porch. <
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>Season 5 --- "Yard Work" (featuring June presenting a tray of ice-cold homemade lemonade for her hard-working crew of three men in the front yard). This is the worst opening, IMO, which also features the "Magical Closing Front Door" after June exits the house with her tray of beverage delights. Perhaps Eddie was inside to serve as "Doorman" or something. I only hope somebody gave this opening's creator "The Business" for producing such an opening-credits sequence, which comes complete with Beaver's delightfully-fake "lip licking" in anticipation of receiving a glass of June's ice-cold beverage. :) <
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>Season 6 --- The 1962-1963 "jazzed-up" beginning, with everybody running toward Ward's brand-new '62 four-door sedan. <
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>Here are some "LOL"-inducing quotes from the various seasons of LITB that we can look forward to seeing and hearing on DVD in the future: <
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>EDDIE HASKELL -- "Good morning, Mrs. Cleaver! Gee, Mrs. Cleaver, your kitchen always looks so clean. My mother says it looks like you never do any work in here." <
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>FRED RUTHERFORD -- "Oh, you don't have to worry about Clarence's driving, Ward. When it comes to brains, he's got a head on him like the Rock of Gibraltar." <
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>WALLY -- "Gee, dad, we didn't mean to get Mr. Rutherford {with the 'barrel hoops'}." <
>BEAVER -- "Yeah, we yelled 'meathead' and he came runnin' out." <
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>WARD -- "Oh, my comment {re. hairstyles} wasn't referring to you dear -- your hair looks like it never saw a curler." <
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>WALLY -- "Gee, mom, the way they fix ladies' hair nowadays, you can't tell whether they've been to the beauty parlor or just standing around in the wind." <
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>WALLY -- "You know, Lumpy, your whole tailpipe is wired up with a coat hanger." <
>LUMPY -- "Yeah, I did that to pass the safety inspection." <
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>Here now is a quick look at all 39 first-year shows that Universal Home Video will be providing Cleaver aficionados two days before Thanksgiving 2005 . (This list assumes that the episodes within the Season-One DVD set will be arranged in "broadcast order", rather than "production order"). I've also listed the original TV broadcast dates, as well as some selected show descriptions and funny quotes from some of my favorite episodes........ <
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>LEAVE IT TO BEAVER -- SEASON #1 (1957-1958): <
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>1. "Beaver Gets 'Spelled" (First Aired: October 4, 1957) <
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>2. "Captain Jack" (October 11, 1957) -- "The little fella didn't actually bite me; he kind of 'sawed' at me!" <
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>3. "The Black Eye" (October 18, 1957) -- "Wally, you mean to tell me that a GIRL gave Beaver that black eye? Oh my gosh! And I practically sent him over there to annihilate her!" <
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>4. "The Haircut" (October 25, 1957) -- "You mean you have to wear those awful stocking caps for a whole week?" .... "That oughta do it!" <
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>5. "New Neighbors" (November 1, 1957) -- "Dad, did you ever kiss any married women? I guess a guy could get in an awful lot of trouble doing that, huh?" .... "He sure could (smiling)." <
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>6. "Brotherly Love" (November 8, 1957) <
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>7. "Water, Anyone?" (November 15, 1957) -- "He's got a monopoly; he's practically operating a 'black water' market." <
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>8. "Beaver's Crush" (November 22, 1957) <
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>9. "The Clubhouse" (November 29, 1957) <
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>10. "Wally's Girl Trouble" (December 6, 1957) -- This episode features Penny Jamison's hysterical scream (double meaning there) after Beaver gives Penny a toad as a gift. Penny's ear-piercing cries send Beaver running for the hills. LOL! <
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>11. "Beaver's Short Pants" (December 13, 1957) -- Aunt Martha's visit means nothing but anguish for poor Beaver. .... "Theodore -- don't slump over your milk toast like that; you'll have curvature of the spine!" :-) <
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>12. "The Perfume Salesmen" (December 27, 1957) -- "It kind of smells like an old first baseman's mitt I once had." <
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>13. "Voodoo Magic" (January 3, 1958) <
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>14. "Part-Time Genius" (January 10, 1958) -- "I think I'd like to be a garbage collector when I grow up. You don't have to wash-up all the time, and nobody cares how ya smell!" :-) <
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>15. "Party Invitation" (January 17, 1958) -- Beaver is forced to attend an 'all-girl' party. (God help the lad!) :-) <
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>16. "Lumpy Rutherford" (January 24, 1958) -- This is the rib-tickling "Barrel Hoops" episode, with Wally & Beaver setting a "trap" for mean ol' "Lumpy" just outside his house. But Lumpy's father falls into the trap instead of "The Lump". .... June's excitedly-worried reaction to the boys' practical joke elicits another classic bit of dialogue from this great TV series --- "Ward, if my babies end up going to jail, it'll be all your fault!!" <
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>17. "The Paper Route" (January 31, 1958) <
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>18. "Child Care" (February 7, 1958) -- It's yet another funny predicament for Wally & The Beav, when the boys are called upon to baby-sit while Ward and June go to a party. The boys have to call the fire department to extract young "Puddin'" from the bathroom she's managed to lock herself into. .... "I want to see Mary Jane!!" <
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>19. "The Bank Account" (February 14, 1958) -- This one's a real heart-tugger, as Wally and Beaver surprise their father with a very special gift. <
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>20. "Lonesome Beaver" (February 28, 1958) <
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>21. "Cleaning Up Beaver" (March 7, 1958) <
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>22. "The Perfect Father" (March 14, 1958) -- "Oh, for Pete sake! I just put it up {the basketball backboard} for them to fool around with; I didn't think they were going to put a micrometer on it!" --- The early-season shows feature several "Ward tantrums", with this being one such funny example. Hugh Beaumont, as Ward Cleaver, was a "perfect father" choice for this TV series, if ya ask me. :) <
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>23. "Beaver And Poncho" (March 21, 1958) -- Another "lump-in-your-throat" type of episode, with Beaver adopting the cutest little Chihuahua dog for a few days. .... "Wally says he's a bald-headed Mexican." <
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>24. "The State Vs. Beaver" (March 26, 1958) <
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>25. "The Broken Window" (April 2, 1958) <
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>26. "Train Trip" (April 9, 1958) <
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>27. "My Brother's Girl" (April 16, 1958) -- "As a woman, I'm very proud of Mary Ellen! Why, if we women waited until you men were good and ready to settle down and raise families, this whole continent of America would be nothing but jack-rabbits and grizzly bears!!" --- June gets in some good wisecracks of her own upon occasion (as can be seen here). :-) <
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>28. "Next-Door Indians" (April 23, 1958) <
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>29. "Tenting Tonight" (April 30, 1958) <
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>30. "Music Lesson" (May 7, 1958) <
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>31. "New Doctor" (May 14, 1958) <
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>32. "Beaver's Old Friend" (May 21, 1958) <
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>33. "Wally's Job" (May 28, 1958) -- The non-complex story lines continue (with more funny results) in this episode about, quite simply, painting the family garbage cans. <
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>34. "Beaver's Bad Day" (June 4, 1958) -- Again, here we have another example of a super-simple premise (Beaver rips his pants; *egads*!), which rises to a very funny level in the hands of this adept cast. Ward's angry reaction when he thinks Beaver is feeding him a tall tale is a highlight here. <
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>35. "Boarding School" (June 11, 1958) <
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>36. "Beaver And Henry" (June 18, 1958) <
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>37. "Beaver Runs Away" (June 25, 1958) -- Another fine example of a LITB ep. that combines comedy with a healthy dose of sentimentality thrown into the script as well. Beaver drills two holes in the garage wall, which, naturally, displeases Ward quite a bit. Beaver decides to pack up and leave home after a run-in with his dad. The final scene here is quite touching and realistically portrayed. <
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>38. "Beaver's Guest" (July 2, 1958) -- Beaver's best pal, Larry Mondello, stays overnight at the Cleaver abode. His visit is marred by a fight with Beaver and Larry's middle-of-the-night stomach ache that keeps the whole house awake half the night. .... "Oh, the way that boy ate! It was like watching a mongoose! I don't think I've ever seen anyone eat ketchup on corn before." :-) <
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>39. "Cat Out Of The Bag" (July 16, 1958) -- Season 1 ends with the boys getting into still more hot water when they lose the neighbor's cat that they're supposed to be looking after. .... "Gee, dad, you're always saying I'm old enough to take care of 'The Beaver'. It shouldn't matter just because the cat is worth something."