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Jerry Mathers | Jerry Mathers and grandchild | Source: Getty Images | instagram.com/thejerrymathers
Jerry Mathers | Jerry Mathers and grandchild | Source: Getty Images | instagram.com/thejerrymathers

Beaver from 'Leave It to Beaver' Is Seen at 75 with His True Love Years after Mom of His Kids Cheated On Him

Dorcus Osongo
Jul 04, 2023
03:00 P.M.
  • Jerry Mathers was spotted in a rare appearance running errands with his wife, Teresa Modnick, in Los Angeles.
  • Mathers' second wife, Rhonda Gehring, had three kids with the actor. She cheated on him and left him when he was no longer a star.
  • The "Leave It to Beaver" star is now a happy husband again and has been married to his third wife for over a decade.
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"Leave It to Beaver" star Jerry Mathers became famous as a child actor when he was featured on the sitcom as Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver. The child actor played this role for six years, spanning 234 episodes, which were originally aired between 1957 and 1963.

Mathers was recently spotted in Los Angeles in a very rare appearance running errands with his wife, Teresa Modnick. Mathers and Modnick tied the knot in 2011.

Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers promotional portrait for “Leave It to Beaver” in 1955 | Source: Getty Images

Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers promotional portrait for “Leave It to Beaver” in 1955 | Source: Getty Images

During this outing, Mathers was wearing blue jeans with a brown belt, styled with a blue striped shirt and black sneakers. The 75-year-old looked healthy as he walked out of his car and onto the sidewalk.

Mathers trailed behind his wife, who was dressed in a printed blue T-shirt, black trousers, a black coat, and black sneakers. Modnick wore a mask with dark specs and carried a shopping bag.

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The "This Is My Love" star was the first child actor to negotiate a share of profit coming from merchandise linked to a show. Even today, the "Leave It to Beaver" sitcom still makes money due to its wide audience and the fact that it's been broadcasted in 80 countries and in 40 different languages.

Mathers is now a businessman with a fortune of $3 million. The actor has three kids and has been married three times.

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Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers in a promotional portrait for “Leave It to Beaver” in 1960. | Source: Getty Images

Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers in a promotional portrait for “Leave It to Beaver” in 1960. | Source: Getty Images

Why Did Mathers' Wife and Mom of His 3 Kids Leave Him?

After "Leave It to Beaver" ended, the actor transformed from a happy and engaging child to a middle-aged man who gained a lot of weight.

A doctor warned Mathers that if he didn't start exercising and eating right, he would only be alive for two or three years. The doctor worried about Mathers' Type I diabetes and high blood pressure.

Many wondered what happened to Mathers after the sitcom ended. He went on to high school, an era he described as happy, full of dating, parties, and innocent fun. When the Vietnam era arrived, the actor trained for the Air Force Reserve.

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Jerry Mathers and Rhonda Gehring in Los Angeles, California, in 1986 | Source: Getty Images

Jerry Mathers and Rhonda Gehring in Los Angeles, California, in 1986 | Source: Getty Images

However, he wasn't enrolled as a Marine or sent to Vietnam as he wanted. Five years after finishing his military service, Mathers enrolled at the University of California-Berkeley and graduated with a degree in philosophy.

He worked as a loan officer at a bank and got into real estate as it had more money. Eventually, he teamed up with his sitcom brother Tony Dow, got back into acting, and did a brief run of the play "Boeing Boeing."

Mathers then did an 18-month national tour of the play "So Long Stanley," and during this tour, he met his second wife, Rhonda Gehring. The actor married his first wife, Diana Piatt, in 1974, and they divorced in 1982.

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The "Better Luck Tomorrow" star was amazed by Gehring. "This girl may have had a mind for business but her body was designed for sin," Mathers wrote about his wife in his book "And Jerry Mathers As The Beaver."

Mathers and Gehring welcomed three kids, Noah, Mercedes, and Gretchen. At 33, the actor continued acting. He was signed on "The New Leave It to Beaver," which paid him a $45,000 salary a week.

Unfortunately, Mathers' found the show's schedule grueling and the weight requirements hard to achieve. He tried a liquid diet, running, aerobics, and a lemonade and maple syrup diet, and these helped him cut weight.

Jerry Mathers, Rhonda Gehring, Noah, Mercedes, and Gretchen in Universal City, California on November 21, 1990 | Source: Getty Images

Jerry Mathers, Rhonda Gehring, Noah, Mercedes, and Gretchen in Universal City, California on November 21, 1990 | Source: Getty Images

The actor also woke up at 3 a.m. and wouldn't be back home sometimes, even after 9 p.m. "The New Leave It to Beaver" ended in 1989 after 105 episodes, and the actor decided he wouldn't take on any more projects as he wanted to rest and spend time with his kids.

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The actor also said life was good when he welcomed his first grandchild. He shared a gorgeous picture of his granddaughter resting on his chest.

However, in his book, Mathers admitted that as much as he had money, retiring at 43 was unhealthy for his mind and health.

Brian McInerney, business manager to former NBA basketball star Byron Scott, and Dan Hilton of the Hilton Hotels chain managed to convince the actor to come out of semi-retirement.

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Mathers joined the Jenny Craig weight loss program, which helped him lose weight from 250 pounds to 178, and finally, he lost over 30 pounds and hit 145 pounds.

Life went well for Mathers, who confessed the Jenny Craig program saved his life. He and his wife renewed their vows at a church ceremony, but then soon, the actor was hit with a bombshell when Gehring asked for a divorce.

He explained that his years away from a "social" and "professional" life destroyed his marriage. According to Mathers, Gehring had married him as a celebrity, and she could no longer stay with him as a common person. Gehring had no plans to live with a man with no social or professional life, so she left him.

Jerry Mathers with his daughter in Hollywood, California on March 6, 2003. | Source: Getty Images

Jerry Mathers with his daughter in Hollywood, California on March 6, 2003. | Source: Getty Images

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According to Mathers, his wife cheated as she found someone else. She was fed up with being married to a celebrity who was no longer popular or working.

It was reported that Gehring wanted Mathers to be like his fictional father, Ward Weaver, but he wasn't. Still, she said he was a great husband, father, and man.

Mathers was shocked by this revelation and thought it weird for his wife to compare him with a "fictional character." The actor said his wife wanted him to love her the way his television father and television mother loved each other.

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Even after his second wife left him, a resilient Mathers kept pushing in life and rebuilt himself. He remained single for a while and even said no one could pin him down until he met his third wife.

How Did Mathers Find Love with Modnick and Become a Doting Grandpa?

In 2010, the first post-engagement pictures of Mathers and his third wife, Modnick, hit the internet. The couple met via Mathers' sister and were together for five years before getting engaged.

Their wedding took place on January 30, 2011, at the beautiful Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort in Huntington Beach.

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More than 150 guests attended the lavish wedding. Among the people present were Mathers' mother, Marilyn Mathers, Ken Osmond, Frank Bank, Darlene Graeser, Kathy Cartright, and Melanie Hogan.

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The couple were photographed in a sweet embrace as they shared their first dance as husband and wife. Groomsmen dressed in black tuxedos and bridesmaids in purple gowns watched as the couple danced. Mathers' brother Shawn Mathers gave the toast at the wedding.

In January 2021, Mathers celebrated ten years of marriage with Modnick. He posted a pretty picture of the two on their wedding day and called Modnick "my beautiful and adoring wife, lifetime partner and my perfect soulmate!"

Mathers also became a grandfather. On August 2, 2015, he shared a cute picture of himself cuddling a baby and said he had welcomed his first grandchild, a girl, who was "absolutely gorgeous" and "a sweetheart." He shared an adorable picture of his new grandchild sleeping on his chest, as his granddaughter looked on.

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In 2018, the proud grandfather wore bunny ears to match his granddaughter's and shared a photo of them on Instagram. He captioned it, "Wishing you all a very happy and joyful #Passover and #Easter celebration from our family to yours!"

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Mathers is a happy man who has lived to take a picture with four generations in it. The actor posted a picture of his daughter, his granddaughter, himself, the grandchild's mother, as well as her great-grandmother.

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After a long struggle with health issues, today, Mathers is healthy, stays fit, and loves his wife, children, and grandchildren.

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