TMC
11-08-2022, 02:29 AM
of the '50s
https://www.metv.com/stories/Jerry-Mathers-said-Leave-It-to-Beaver-is-situational-comedy-not-a-documentary-of-the-50s
"They were writing situational comedy. So, there were things that were stretched that would [never] happen."
November 4, 2022, 10:31AM By MeTV Staff
When watching Leave It to Beaver, it's normal to feel a wave of nostalgia. For some people, the show brings back memories of a simpler time. Many believe the show gave insight into how American families were during the earlier decades. They saw a tight-knit, middle-class family with parents that allowed their children to express themselves and learn valuable lessons.
Although these families were all over the nation, Leave It to Beaver wasn't trying to recreate this All-American family image. Jerry Mathers believes that the series is not a documentary of the '50s. During an interview with the Television Academy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxUZLiOLV1c), Mathers shared his views on the show's concept.
He began by focusing on what he thought was interesting. "The boys [were] always sent up to change for dinner and were always told to go up and wash," he said. "And people would say, 'that never happened,' but, Mr. Connelly, I would go over every once in a while to his house, his kids would go [upstairs] and wash and put on clean clothes [before dinner]."
Mathers is referring to one of the show's writers, Joe Connelly. He then went on to talk about how Connelly and the show's other writer, Bob Mosher, were aware that Leave It to Beaver was one of the first shows about an American family, especially from a child's point of view, to be seen worldwide.
"Some of the shows that were family shows [only] showed in the United States, but they didn't have worldwide recognition," the actor added. "So they were very cautious of presenting [the] United States in a very good light. Leave It to Beaver has played in 91 languages in 127 countries."
Mathers noticed that the landscape of sitcoms has changed since the show's debut and believes that many series similar to Leave It To Beaver are reality-based, even if they're situational comedies.
"If you watch most of the shows today, they're done by stand-up comedians, and they're 'Set up, set up, joke,'" he said while talking about sitcom formats. "Leave It to Beaver is not like that. There are no big laughs in the show. The comedy comes out of the situations [based] on the characters. It's not joke-orientated."
Although the series was family-centered and filmed during the '50s, Mathers said the show was not trying to portray life during that time.
"Leave It to Beaver is not a documentary of the '50s. Since we were filmed during that time, [viewers] thought that [we were trying to portray how the world was at that time]. It wasn't that. They were writing situational comedy. So, there were things that were stretched that would [never] happen. But, it's not a documentary."
https://www.metv.com/stories/Jerry-Mathers-said-Leave-It-to-Beaver-is-situational-comedy-not-a-documentary-of-the-50s
"They were writing situational comedy. So, there were things that were stretched that would [never] happen."
November 4, 2022, 10:31AM By MeTV Staff
When watching Leave It to Beaver, it's normal to feel a wave of nostalgia. For some people, the show brings back memories of a simpler time. Many believe the show gave insight into how American families were during the earlier decades. They saw a tight-knit, middle-class family with parents that allowed their children to express themselves and learn valuable lessons.
Although these families were all over the nation, Leave It to Beaver wasn't trying to recreate this All-American family image. Jerry Mathers believes that the series is not a documentary of the '50s. During an interview with the Television Academy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxUZLiOLV1c), Mathers shared his views on the show's concept.
He began by focusing on what he thought was interesting. "The boys [were] always sent up to change for dinner and were always told to go up and wash," he said. "And people would say, 'that never happened,' but, Mr. Connelly, I would go over every once in a while to his house, his kids would go [upstairs] and wash and put on clean clothes [before dinner]."
Mathers is referring to one of the show's writers, Joe Connelly. He then went on to talk about how Connelly and the show's other writer, Bob Mosher, were aware that Leave It to Beaver was one of the first shows about an American family, especially from a child's point of view, to be seen worldwide.
"Some of the shows that were family shows [only] showed in the United States, but they didn't have worldwide recognition," the actor added. "So they were very cautious of presenting [the] United States in a very good light. Leave It to Beaver has played in 91 languages in 127 countries."
Mathers noticed that the landscape of sitcoms has changed since the show's debut and believes that many series similar to Leave It To Beaver are reality-based, even if they're situational comedies.
"If you watch most of the shows today, they're done by stand-up comedians, and they're 'Set up, set up, joke,'" he said while talking about sitcom formats. "Leave It to Beaver is not like that. There are no big laughs in the show. The comedy comes out of the situations [based] on the characters. It's not joke-orientated."
Although the series was family-centered and filmed during the '50s, Mathers said the show was not trying to portray life during that time.
"Leave It to Beaver is not a documentary of the '50s. Since we were filmed during that time, [viewers] thought that [we were trying to portray how the world was at that time]. It wasn't that. They were writing situational comedy. So, there were things that were stretched that would [never] happen. But, it's not a documentary."