When she was a teenager, Angela Cartwright was a household name and a first crush for millions of American boys. As part of the galaxy-trotting Robinson family, Cartwright played youngest daughter “Penny” on the sci-fi series Lost in Space. 

Pop culture is a fascinating arena. Certain books, movies, TV shows rise beyond their production schedule and become one for the ages. That’s certainly the case with the late 1950s sitcom Leave It to Beaver. Initially running for six years (1957 to 1963), the gentle comedy focused on the funny foibles and the easily relatable daily activities of the Cleaver family. The parents, Ward and June, and their two sons, Wally and Theodore, the latter known as “Beaver,” personified the ideal nuclear family. There was a wise, caring father, complete with cardigan and slippers; an immaculately turned-out mom (she even wore pearls as she baked cookies); a mischievous but goodhearted little rascal of a young brother; and an athletic, earnest, best-pal older brother, too.