“Leave It to Beaver” star Tony Dow is still alive, despite a death announcement posted on his official Facebook page Tuesday morning.
Dow’s management said his wife, Lauren Shulkind, believed her husband was dead and passed that message on to his team, according to a TMZ report. She is reportedly “distraught” over the error.
The Facebook post has since been deleted.
The outlet reported that Dow is still alive and breathing while in hospice care.
Dow’s son, Christopher, told Acesparks Digital that his father is indeed alive, but under hospice care in his “last hours.”
“It is with an extremely heavy heart that we share with you the passing of our beloved Tony this morning,” the premature Facebook post read.
“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 couldn’t 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.”
The post — written by Frank Bilotta and Renee James, who managed the star and called themselves “dear friends” — also thanked fans for their support.
“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 all of us. We will miss you.”
In May, Shulkind announced that Dow’s cancer came back a month after his 77th birthday.
“He is approaching this reality so bravely, but it is truly heartbreaking,” she wrote on Facebook at the time.
Dow starred as Wally, the older brother of Beaver (Mathers), during the “Leave It to Beaver” from 1957 to 1963 for six seasons.
He later reprized his role in the sitcom sequel, “The New Leave It to Beaver,” in 1983. The show aired for four seasons until 1989. The new series followed the Cleaver kids as adults dealing with their family issues.
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