Burning questions & observations [[strictly for fun]] :)

[White Rabbit]

This is a slightly modified version of my 'Jump the Shark' entry.

Please be assured it's all in fun.

'LITB is one of my favorite shows of all time, yet it is rife with quandaries and questions:

Does Beaver have one independent bone in his body? What a follower – and ALWAYS with bad results. Why is Judy Hensler 6 feet tall? Why is Whitey such a shrimp? Why is Larry Mondello’s mom 58 years old, and why does she look even older? Will Wally ever grow into those 2 big teeth in front? Has Gilbert ever been diagnosed as sociopathic? June sure has some sturdy, square jaws for a woman – hhmm. Just what DOES Ward do for a living? Maybe he works for the CIA or FBI by day, and moonlights as a nude supermodel on the side. What kind of a name is Whitey? What kind of an ugly name is Tooey? I always see it spelt that way, but I think maybe it could be the last name Touhy. I dunno. Why doesn’t SOMEONE just sucker-punch and b*itch-slap Eddie into next week? Gus the fireman is so hideous he should wear a bag over his head – Uh oh, THERE’S a fire hazard… I’m a woman, and even I have a big crush on Miss Canfield – and Miss Landers ain’t far behind. Why do we never see, yet always hear about, Angela Valentine? Why do I find Fred Rutherford (amongst many other things about the show) totally hilarious? RAT RAT RAT!!!! Why do I still smile every time I hear: “He’s just giving you the business”/”on account of…”/”Beaver, ya goof!”/"You want a hunk of milk?"/”creep,” etc. Aunt Martha should be shot. Did Ward or June have ANY ‘hanging out’ clothes? (Didn’t think so.) What’s up with Wally’s nose scratching (although I think it’s adorable)? Mrs, Rayburn looks like she could be a prize fighter. Wally’s dreamgirl Jenny Townshend has a horse face. DON’T call him Lumpy! Is it me, or are the layouts for both of the Cleaver’s homes kinda confusing? Why does Eddie call Wally by other names, including Gertrude? Why does June prance around in heels and pearls when nobody’s gonna see her except for the kids and Ward? Whatever happened to June’s parents, that she was raised by clueless Aunt Martha? In his later years, did Larry become a hardened coffee smoker, or what? Why did Gwen Rutherford take a real shine to the pet rat? (Maybe it reminded her of Fred!) Where in the living hell is Larry’s father? Just what does Larry’s sister look like?

THESE THINGS ARE KEEPING ME AWAKE AT NIGHT!

Man, I could go on forever, but I’ll refrain for now.'

[UMfan77]

Also, why does Wally always wear the same white pants??

Beaver talked like a robot during the later seasons...totally monotone.

[OH Nuts!]

And why does June Cleaver always take out the garbage in pearls? Doesn't she have any rubies? Oh and next to Mrs. Mondello Mrs. Rayburn is a hottie. And why, oh why, oh why, doesn't Eddie Haskell and/or Judy Hensler get laryngitis--one or two days would be nice, longer even better. And Wally, the proper word for a piece of cake is a chunk of cake, not a hunk of cake, you goof.

Yes the many foibles of the show, IMO, were a function of the 50s and provincial sponsors who thought anything spicier than pablum was shocking. Only a few shows of the 50s were clever enough to get around this. LITB wasn't one of them, but it's still a fun show chock full of nostalgia--so I guess we just overlook the many minor warts and savor the funny and poignant parts. And by the way, Ward is a to die for dad, #1 in my book, going a long way to compensate for the show's pecadillos. And Wally ain't a bad brother either. June, please lose the pearls, they're getting tired.

[JudgeGarth]

I've never heard of a chuck of cake.

[White Rabbit]

And why does June Cleaver always take out the garbage in pearls? Doesn't she have any rubies? Oh and next to Mrs. Mondello Mrs. Rayburn is a hottie. And why, oh why, oh why, doesn't Eddie Haskell and/or Judy Hensler get laryngitis--one or two days would be nice, longer even better. And Wally, the proper word for a piece of cake is a chuck of cake, not a hunk of cake, you goof.

Yes the many foibles of the show, IMO, were a function of the 50s and provincial sponsors who thought anything spicier than pablum was shocking. Only a few shows of the 50s were clever enough to get around this. LITB wasn't one of them, but it's still a fun show chock full of nostalgia--so I guess we just overlook the many minor warts and savor the funny and poignant parts. And by the way, Ward is a to die for dad, #1 in my book, going a long way to compensate for the show's pecadillos. And Wally ain't a bad brother either. June, please lose the pearls, they're getting tired.


:yeahthat Oh my God, you are so funny. The "Mrs. Rayburn is a hottie" line is hilarious! And you are so, SO right about Ward. Ward rocks!
That is suspicious about Wally and those pants, though... Great post! :D

[OH Nuts!]

I've never heard of a chuck of cake.

OOPS. A typo. Thx for catching it. Went back and edited it!

[Torgo]

Where exactly do they live?

Over the years I've heard people say Mayfield was in the midwest, but on the episode where Wally and pals build the canoe, Ward mentions that the nearest ocean is 20 miles away.

I've heard some theories that Mayfield was on the west coast, but in the episode where Beaver thinks he isn't going to graduate, it's said that Uncle Billy is coming way out from California for the graduation, it was said in a way making it sound as if California is such a long way away(So it doesn't sound like it's located in Oregon or Washington)

And I'm pretty sure when Beaver was considering going to the private school, the school was referred to as being back east...so it doesn't sound like they are located on the east coast, at least not New England.

[tdr]

Were exactly do they live?
Over the years I've heard people say Mayfield was in the midwest, but on the episode where Wally and pals build the canoe, Ward mentions that the nearest ocean is 20 miles away.

As many times as I have posted on this on different boards, I don't really tire of it. Those who say Ohio is the location for Mayfield have good points-- there is a Mayfield and a Shaker Heights (where Ward once lived) fairly close to each other and near Cleveland, the city with some street names also referenced (Euclid Avenue, for one). When California is said to be a long way, as in "Long Distance Call," Ohio obviously fits. And Larry's father seems to always be away on business in Cincinnati. But even though they might live about 20 miles from Lake Erie, Lake Erie is not called an "ocean," and the principle lake seems to be 'Friend's Lake.' Finally, in "Summer in Alaska," there is no way a fishing boat would be leaving from a port within an hour's drive from anywhere in Ohio headed for Alaskan waters to fish. And Ohio does not have awesome mountains, as seen in location shots of the weekend in the woods, and "Camping Trip."

So Mayfield may be in Ohio, or in an adjacent state, with added fabrications. It's not in the states referred to as away-- California, Texas ["they got it all (oil) down in Texas"], South Carolina, New York, New Jersey (unless Richard was excusing himself from going home by looking for a license plate from his own state). There are no accents to identify the region (Aunt Martha talks 'New England,' but she is a visitor). We can see the lack of severe cold or snow as meaning not the midwest-- or we can assume the events just never happen on wintry days.

BUT... there is one episode in the final season which does rather limit the location of Mayfield-- "Lumpy's Scholarship." Lumpy is awarded a football scholarship to "State," Ward and June's alma mater, and definitely implied to be in the particular state of Mayfield (or otherwise they would call it by a different state). A school acquaintance asks Lumpy about tickets "if they go to the Rose Bowl next year." As those who know college football history are aware, there was a continuous contract between the Big Ten Conference and the Pacific Coast League (later the Pacific 8; later still and today the Pac 10), to send a representative from each conference to play in the annual Rose Bowl game. Supposing "State" means a school within those conferences that uses the name State in its name [as most land grant universities], that limits the choices to 4-- Ohio, Michigan, Oregon, or Washington. [Neither Penn State nor Arizona State were in their respective conferences at that time.] So, with Ohio's case already mentioned, and Michigan the same except for the direct references to towns and street names, there is also the Northwest, Oregon and Washington. One of these could be a state from which a fishing excursion leaves for Alaska over the summer, they do have awesome mountain ranges as shown in those location shots, and the weather is often cool and damp [jacket, not heavy coat, weather], as we do see it sometimes in outdoor shots with mist and breath vapor. And it would still have been an expensive phone call to Los Angeles from those states.

So IMO it's those 4-- Ohio, Michigan, Oregon, Washington-- that have the best case. None of them meet every description of Mayfield, but they are not supposed to, since it's fictitious.

[OH Nuts!]

IMO, Ohio and Michigan seem the most plausible; the show always struck me as having a midwestern/middle America feel to it.

[Torgo]

Washington and Oregon are good ideas, it's even mentioned in an episode where Beaver wants a surfboard, and later he owns a surfboard, so a state near an ocean would make sense.
But we are definitely dealing with TV weather if by chance they are located in one of those two NW states. Having lived in both WA and OR my whole life- it doesn't rain nearly enough on the show(there was only one episode I saw where it rained)
And both OR and WA definitely get heavy coat weather- November thru March can get pretty cold, we don't get extreme winters with lots of snow like back east, but we still get snow and freezing weather, and some parts of Oregon get down to single digit temperatures.

EDIT: Just to correct myself, there was more than one episode where they had rain, but it only seemed like it happened in the early seasons.

[tanquant]

Why does June ans so many idiotic quuestions. Ward do you think the other parents have this much trouble? Ward where do you think that Beaver is now?(when he went on the trip across America). Can't she figure it out by herself?!