| Hugh Beaumont | |
|---|---|
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| Birth name | Eugene Hugh Beaumont |
| Born | February 16 1909 Lawrence, Kansas, U.S.A. |
| Died | May 14 1982 (aged 73) Munich, Germany |
| Spouse(s) | Kathryn Adams (1942-1982) (his death) |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Beaumont, Hugh |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 16, 1909 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Lawrence, Kansas, U.S. |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 14 1982 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Munich, Germany |
Eugene Hugh Beaumont (February 16, 1909 — May 14, 1982) was an American actor and television director. He was also licensed to preach in the Methodist church. He is best known for his portrayal of Ward Cleaver, the husband of June Cleaver (Barbara Billingsley) and the father of Wally (Tony Dow) and Beaver (Jerry Mathers) on the television series, Leave It to Beaver (1957-1963).
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Biography
Early years
Beaumont was born in Lawrence, Kansas, to Ethel Adaline Whitney and Edward H. Beaumont, a little over three months after the couple married.[1] After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he played football. He later studied at the University of Southern California, and graduated with a Master of Theology degree in 1946. He married Kathryn Adams in 1942 and they had three children during their forty-year marriage.
Career
In 1931, Beaumont began his career in show business by performing in theaters, nightclubs and on the radio. He began acting in motion pictures in 1940, appearing in over three dozen films (many roles not credited) before taking his best-known role as the archetypal philosophy-dispensing suburban dad Ward Cleaver on the popular sitcom television series Leave It to Beaver.
A precursor to his role as the kindly father figure came in Adventures of Superman. In a 1953 episode called The Big Squeeze, he played an ex-convict with a wife and son whose trust he must win back after an apparent return to his criminal past. Not only did Beaumont act in Leave It to Beaver, but he also wrote and directed several episodes, including the final episode, the retrospective "Family Scrapbook". His portrayal as head of the Cleaver household ranked #28 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" in the June 20, 2004, issue. After Leave It to Beaver concluded original production and went into syndication in the fall of 1963, Beaumont appeared in many community theater productions and did a few guest roles on TV shows, such as Mannix, The Virginian, Wagon Train and Petticoat Junction.
Retirement and death
Beaumont retired from show business in the late 1960s, launching a second career as a Christmas-tree farmer in Minnesota, his wife's home state. He was forced to slow down after suffering a stroke in 1972. A decade later, on May 14, 1982, Beaumont died of a heart attack while visiting his son, a psychology professor, in Munich, Germany. He was 73.
Filmography
Motion pictures
| Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | The Human Duplicators | Austin Welles | |
| 1957 | Night Passage | Jeff Kurth | |
| 1956 | The Mole People | Dr. Jud Bellamin | |
| 1955 | Hell's Horizon | Al Trask | |
| Indian American | actor | ||
| 1953 | The Member of the Wedding | Minister | |
| The Mississippi Gambler | Kennerly | ||
| 1952 | Night Without Sleep | John Harkness | |
| Washington Story | Chaplain | ||
| Wild Stallion | Capt. Wilmurt | ||
| Bugles in the Afternoon | Lt. Cooke | ||
| Phone Call from a Stranger | Dr. Tim Brooks | ||
| 1951 | Overland Telegraph | Brad Roberts | |
| Callaway Went Thataway | Mr. Adkins, Attorney | ||
| Lost Continent | Robert Phillips | ||
| Mr. Belvedere Rings the Bell | Policeman | ||
| The Last Outpost | Lt. Fenton | ||
| Pier 23 | Dennis O'Brien | ||
| Roaring City | Denny O'Brien | ||
| Go for Broke! | Chaplain | ||
| Home Town Story | man at airport | ||
| Danger Zone | Dennis O'Brien | ||
| Target Unknown | Colonel | ||
| The Flying Missile | Major Wilson | ||
| 1950 | Second Chance | Dr. Emory | |
| 1949 | Tokyo Joe | Major | |
| 1948 | The Counterfeiters | Phillip Drake | |
| Money Madness | Steve Clark (previously known as Freddie Howard |
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| Reaching from Heaven | Bill Starling | ||
| 1947 | Bury Me Dead | Michael Dunn | |
| Railroaded! | Mickey Ferguson | ||
| Too Many Winners | Michael Shayne | ||
| Three on a Ticket | Michael Shayne | ||
| The Guilt of Janet Ames | Frank Merino | ||
| 1946 | Blonde for a Day | Michael Shayne | |
| Larceny in Her Heart | Michael Shayne | ||
| Johnny Comes Flying Home | engineer | ||
| The Blue Dahlia | George Copeland | ||
| Murder is My Business | Michael Shayne | ||
| 1945 | Apology for Murder | Kenny Blake | |
| You Came Along | Chaplain | ||
| Blonde from Brooklyn | discharging Lieutenant | not credited | |
| The Lady Confesses | Larry Craig | ||
| Counter-Attack | Russian Lieutenant | ||
| Blood on the Sun | Johnny Clarke | not credited | |
| Objective, Burma! | Capt. Hennessey | not credited | |
| I'm a Civilian Here Myself | Interviewer | ||
| 1944 | Strange Affair | Carey | |
| The Seventh Cross | truck driver | ||
| Mr. Winkle Goes to War | Ranger Officer | ||
| The Story of Dr. Wassell | aide to Admiral Hart in Surabaya | ||
| They Live in Fear | the instructor | ||
| The Racket Man | "Irish" Duffy | ||
| Practically Yours | Cutter | ||
| I Love a Soldier | John | ||
| 1943 | There's Something About a Soldier | Lt. Martin | |
| Salute to the Marines | Sergeant | ||
| The Seventh Victim | Gregory Ward | ||
| Mexican Spitfire's Blessed Event | George Sharpe | ||
| Good Luck, Mr. Yates | Adjutant | ||
| Bombardier | Soldier | ||
| He Hired the Boss | Jordan | ||
| Flight for Freedom | Flight Instructor | ||
| Du Barry Was a Lady | Footman | ||
| The Fallen Sparrow | Otto Skaas | ||
| Northwest Rangers | the Mountie who finds Fowler's body |
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| 1942 | Flight Lieutenant | John McGinnis | |
| Unseen Enemy | Narrator | ||
| The Wife Takes a Flyer | Officer | ||
| To the Shores of Tripoli | Orderly | ||
| Canal Zone | Radio Operator | ||
| Young America | G-Man | ||
| Right to the Heart | Willie Donovan | ||
| Wake Island | Captain, Junior Officer | ||
| 1941 | Week-End in Havana | Officer | |
| Unfinished Business | Groom | ||
| Private Nurse | McDonald | ||
| The Cowboy and the Blonde | Sound Man | ||
| South of Panama | Paul Martin | ||
| 1940 | The Secret Seven | Southern Racketeer | |
| Phantom Raiders | Seaman |
References
- Applebaum, Irwyn. The World According to Beaver. TV Books, 1984, 1998.
- Mathers, Jerry. ...And Jerry Mathers as "The Beaver". Berkley Boulevard Books, 1998.
