It was announced two and a half months ago that Leave It To Beaver‘s Tony Dow had been stricken with liver cancer. (His second or third bout.) It was announced today that the 77 year-old sculptor and former actor-producer, a resident of Topanga Canyon, has passed.

Update: An early morning 7.26 post from The Hollywood Reporter‘s Mike Barnes states that while Dow is on his last legs in a hospice, he hasn’t actually died yet.

Dow apparently led a frustrating life in some respects, but who hasn’t grappled with ups and downs and crummy detours and shitty moods from time to time? In the ’90s Dow was coping with resentment and depression (which is often about anger turned inward), but if it hadn’t been for his Beaver fame certain doors might not have been opened and he might’ve had a more difficult time of it…who knows?

Wiki moment: “In December 2008 Dow was chosen as one of three bronze sculptors to show at the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts exhibition, in the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris. He represented the United States delegation, which was composed of artists from the Karen Lynne Gallery.”