As Wally Cleaver, the actor personified the role of big brother in the classic television sitcom.

Hollywood lost another soul on Tuesday. Actor Tony Dow, who played big brother Wally to Jerry Mather’s Theodore “Beaver” Cleaver in the 1950s sitcom Leave It To Beaver, has died. He was 77. Born Anthony Lee “Tony” Dow in Hollywood, Calif., Dow was a Junior Olympics diving champion with little acting experience when he landed the role of Wally. A Facebook statement posted by his management team reads:

“It is with an extremely heavy heart that we share with you the passing of our beloved Tony this morning. Tony was a beautiful soul – kind, compassionate, funny and humble. It was truly a joy to just be around him. His gentle voice and unpretentious manner was immediately comforting and you could not help but love him. The world has lost an amazing human being, but we are all richer for the memories that he has left us. From the warn reminiscences of Wally Cleaver to those of us fortunate enough to know him personally – thank you Tony. And thank you for the reflections of a simpler time, the laughter, the friendship and for the feeling that you were a big brother to us all. We will miss you.”

Related: Leave It To Beaver Actor Ken Osmond Dies

Actor Battled Health Issues, Including Cancer

Dow’s wife, Lauren Shulkind, announced on May 5th that her husband’s cancer had returned but that he was approaching the illness “bravely.” After a brief hospitalization for pneumonia last August, a worried Shulkind shared that Dow was forced to wait 24 hours for a hospital bed due to surges of the Delta variant COVID-19 cases in California. She added that despite a “violent cough” that was causing pain on the top of his head, her husband was in good spirits with no fever. On Thursday, Beaver co-star Jerry Mathers asked for prayers and healing for the actor.

The actor appeared in all 234 episodes of Leave It To Beaver and also starred in other television classics such as My Three Sons, Dr. Kildare and Lassie. A few years later, Dow showed up on The Mod Squad, Emergency!, Quincy M.E., Knight Rider, Charles in Charge and Murder, She Wrote and portrayed a cop on the daytime soap opera General Hospital. He also directed several episodes of 1993’s Babylon 5 and 1999 episodes of Crusade and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Tony Dow is survived by his wife Lauren, a son and grandchildren.