Thu May 5, 2016, 12:01 PM
Jeebo (1,504 posts)
Why do Wally and the Beaver have to share a bedroom?
In the opening-credits sequence on "Leave It To Beaver" there is a shot of the Cleaver house from the front. That is a BIG house with only four people living in it. There must be at least four or five bedrooms in that house. So, I always wonder, WHY do Wally and the Beaver have to share a bedroom? I would've been really pissed about not having my own room. -- Ron
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27 replies, 5822 views
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Author | Time | Post |
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Jeebo | May 2016 | OP |
malthaussen | May 2016 | #1 | |
virtualobserver | May 2016 | #2 | |
The Second Stone | May 2016 | #3 | |
Dyedinthewoolliberal | May 2016 | #17 | |
Recursion | May 2016 | #4 | |
Iris | May 2016 | #19 | |
raccoon | May 2016 | #23 | |
Miles Archer | May 2016 | #27 | |
hamsterjill | May 2016 | #5 | |
Kaleva | May 2016 | #6 | |
lunatica | May 2016 | #7 | |
hibbing | May 2016 | #8 | |
lastlib | May 2016 | #16 | |
DawgHouse | May 2016 | #9 | |
Special Prosciuto | May 2016 | #12 | |
jmowreader | May 2016 | #10 | |
Gidney N Cloyd | May 2016 | #18 | |
murielm99 | May 2016 | #11 | |
Coventina | May 2016 | #13 | |
murielm99 | May 2016 | #14 | |
KamaAina | May 2016 | #15 | |
Iris | May 2016 | #20 | |
greendog | May 2016 | #21 | |
raccoon | May 2016 | #22 | |
kairos12 | May 2016 | #24 | |
Orrex | May 2016 | #25 | |
liberal N proud | May 2016 | #26 |
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 12:10 PM
malthaussen (15,001 posts)
1. Because the producers of the show didn't want to create another set?
Well, they reasonably could have re-dressed the same set for scenes if they wanted to, I suppose, but maybe having the two share a bedroom provided for more dramatic possibilities. After all, it was a TV show, not real life.
Re-dressing the set would have taken some production time, though, and that might have been a consideration. Perhaps it wasn't seen as cost-effective. -- Mal |
Response to malthaussen (Reply #1)
Thu May 5, 2016, 12:15 PM
virtualobserver (8,760 posts)
2. Sharing a room allows for a lot of dialogue,especially sarcastic Eddie Haskell remarks to "the Beav"
They would have to talk to themselves in the separate bedroom scenario.
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 12:15 PM
The Second Stone (2,900 posts)
3. Boys of that era shared a bedroom
My brother and I did in the 60s just a few years later.
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Response to The Second Stone (Reply #3)
Sat May 7, 2016, 09:34 PM
Dyedinthewoolliberal (13,800 posts)
17. Indeed
I shared with three brothers!
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 12:20 PM
Recursion (56,383 posts)
4. Because houses in the late 1950s and early 1960s were absurdly small by today's standards
Like, would probably be illegal to live in today.
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Response to Recursion (Reply #4)
Mon May 9, 2016, 09:55 PM
Iris (15,186 posts)
19. I live in one now. n/t
Response to Recursion (Reply #4)
Wed May 11, 2016, 04:09 PM
raccoon (30,127 posts)
23. I couldn't have said it better myself. nt
Response to Recursion (Reply #4)
Thu May 12, 2016, 10:38 AM
Miles Archer (18,521 posts)
27. I lived in one about 5 years ago.
Garage barely fit my car. Tiny bathroom. Three bedrooms. Tiny. The third one legally could not be called a bedroom because it had a sliding glass door but no closet (has to have a closet to be classified as a "bedroom"
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 12:38 PM
hamsterjill (13,872 posts)
5. Well, Ward had to have his "study"
Probably had a den, etc. Children were, in some ways, an after thought back then. As the youngest of four siblings from that era, heck, I was happy to have a bed!!! LOL
But we DID have dinner every evening with everyone around the table. There was, like just about anything, both good and bad. |
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 05:29 PM
Kaleva (30,286 posts)
6. It's most every teenage boy's dream
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 05:45 PM
lunatica (52,990 posts)
7. There were hundreds of scenes of Wally and Beaver talking in their room
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 07:17 PM
hibbing (9,104 posts)
8. Why does June Cleaver say this to Ward?
You were awfully hard on the beaver last night.
Peace |
Response to hibbing (Reply #8)
Sat May 7, 2016, 12:49 AM
lastlib (19,420 posts)
16. The first case of sex abuse ever shown on television!
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 5, 2016, 07:41 PM
DawgHouse (4,019 posts)
9. Same reason the six Brady kids had to share one bathroom.
Response to DawgHouse (Reply #9)
Fri May 6, 2016, 03:15 PM
Special Prosciuto (731 posts)
12. The Bradys had three kids per bedroom. Until Greg turned 'hippie' and moved to the attic.
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Fri May 6, 2016, 04:19 AM
jmowreader (47,217 posts)
10. Well, let's see now
Assume the house has four bedrooms.
Ward and June have one. One is being used as Ward's den. In the 1950s, EVERYONE had a guest bedroom. This leaves one bedroom. Unless the Beav is going to sleep on the couch in the living room, he has to live in the same room as Wally. |
Response to jmowreader (Reply #10)
Sun May 8, 2016, 10:56 PM
Gidney N Cloyd (18,370 posts)
18. I remember Ward's den being on the 1st floor, off the main entrance.
You come in and turn left, you're in his den, turn right and you're in the living room.
Cool house. I think Marcus Welby used the same exterior. |
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Fri May 6, 2016, 06:20 AM
murielm99 (28,756 posts)
11. They had their own bathroom upstairs.
There are a few scenes where they are cleaning up and talking together in the bathroom.
There was one episode where Beaver went through elaborate deceptions to avoid taking a bath. He put water in the tub, spread dirt around to create a ring, got towels wet, etc. |
Response to murielm99 (Reply #11)
Fri May 6, 2016, 04:59 PM
Coventina (23,829 posts)
13. "Leave It To Beaver" broke new ground by showing a toilet on screen.
First TV show to do so.
People make fun of it, but it was actually a really progressive show for its time. It tackled issues like divorce, animal rights, and child abuse. Not subjects of "polite society" of the time..... |
Response to Coventina (Reply #13)
Fri May 6, 2016, 05:26 PM
murielm99 (28,756 posts)
14. Now and then I watch reruns on Antenna TV.
Eddie Haskell will be forever iconic.
But on "All in the Family," we actually hear the "terlet" being flushed! |
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Fri May 6, 2016, 05:53 PM
KamaAina (78,249 posts)
15. Ward! Ward! Those noises are coming from the boys' room again!
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Mon May 9, 2016, 09:56 PM
Iris (15,186 posts)
20. Because June wanted a nice guest room. n/t
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Mon May 9, 2016, 10:10 PM
greendog (3,127 posts)
21. Ward and June had separate bedrooms. Also, June needed a room for her vast collection...
...of poisonous spiders.
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Wed May 11, 2016, 04:08 PM
raccoon (30,127 posts)
22. Back in those difficult times, MOST kids had a share a bedroom with one or more sibs.
A room of our own is something most of us--including me--didn't have. Nowadays people seem to take it for granted. |
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Wed May 11, 2016, 10:02 PM
kairos12 (11,008 posts)
24. Spare room was for when Eddie Haskel stayed over.
Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 12, 2016, 07:23 AM
Orrex (61,071 posts)
25. A similar question can be asked of the Brady house.
Six kids crammed into two rooms. Way to architect, Mike Brady.
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Response to Jeebo (Original post)
Thu May 12, 2016, 08:42 AM
liberal N proud (59,150 posts)