John Eimen Dead: Child Actor Known for ‘Leave It to Beaver’ & ‘The Twilight Zone’ Was 76
What To Know
- John Eimen, a child actor known for Leave It to Beaver, The Twilight Zone, and numerous other TV shows, has died at age 76 after a battle with prostate cancer.
- Eimen began his television career at age 6, appearing as an extra and later in featured roles on popular series such as Ozzie and Harriet, Lassie, and McKeever and the Colonel.
- He is remembered for his positive experiences with fellow actors and is survived by his wife Midori, two sons, and two grandsons.
John Eimen — the child actor known for TV roles in Leave it to Beaver, The Twilight Zone, McKeever and the Colonel, and more — is dead at 76.
On Friday, November 21, Eimen died at his home in Mukilteo, Washington, his family revealed, per The Hollywood Reporter. The former child actor learned of his prostate cancer diagnosis in September.
In Leave it to Beaver, which aired for six seasons from 1957 to 1963, Eimen played a classmate of the titular character (Jerry Mathers). He initially appeared as an extra on the show, later appearing in an episode titled “Long Distance Call,” during which Beaver ran up a huge phone bill after calling Don Drysdale of the Dodgers.
“As I recall, my scene took place just outside the classroom, where me, the Beaver, and maybe somebody else from our class were talking about how he ‘was going to get it’ when his dad found out,'” Eimen wrote in an essay for TV Party.
He added, “Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers were also so unassuming, such genuinely nice guys— again, it was so refreshing to find that success and fame hadn’t spoiled them in the least.”
Eimen appeared in dozens of TV shows during the same era.
“I was involved in TV from the age of six,” he wrote for TV Party. “I started as an extra for the first year or so, in such shows as Ozzie and Harriet, Leave It To Beaver, The Millionaire, Bachelor Father, and Petticoat Junction.”
Of Ozzie and Harriet, he recalled, “The whole Nelson family was unassuming, kind, considerate… Their family values were no act at all.”
Additionally, Eimen appeared on Lassie, Fury, and multiple westerns. He even worked with Frank Sinatra in The Untouchables. Not to mention, Eimen was also known for appearing in a 1959 ad for Carnation’s Instant Milk, pointing out that he was “the earliest (that I know of) model with a milk mustache.”
The former child actor is survived by his wife, Midori, his sons, Daniel and Chris, and his grandsons, Lucas and Oliver.