Inside ‘Leave it to Beaver’s Controversial First Episode

Though it got off to a rocky start and even changed networks after its first season, Leave it to Beaver became one classic television’s most beloved family series after it went to syndication. The pilot episode was virtually kiboshed, undergoing a name change, multiple cast changes and a storyline revamp before the first official episode, “Beaver Gets ‘Spelled,’” debuted on October 4, 1957.