Brown-Ullstrup Performing Arts Foundation

We all remember Tony Dow – a.k.a, Wally Cleaver – of “Leave It to Beaver”.  Well, Tony has been up to just a few things since that classic show and, in fact, the BrownUllstrup Foundation brought Tony  to Delavan, Wisconsin at Lake Lawn Resort to star in the play “Love Letters” for performances on November 3-5, 2017

“Love Letters” follows the correspondence between Melissa and Andy starting with an invitation to her birthday party when they were just children.  Over the years, they keep up with each other through their school years, marriages, and careers.  Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, “Love Letters” shows us the complexity of relationships with the joy and heartbreak that accompany them.

Tony stars in Love Letters with his wife, Lauren.

Tony Dow grew up in an artistic atmosphere and a house filled with his parent’s eccentric friends so it was no surprise that as a young child Tony developed a love for creating art especially assemblage and scavenging for things of interest.

But, as fate would have it, in 1957 he fell into the role of “Wally” on the hit show, “Leave It to Beaver” which would change the course of his life.  When the show ended in 1963, he went on to do dozens of guest starring appearances on scores of television shows.  In the 1980s, Tony began his directing career accumulating over 70 hours of television shows which kept him busy for the next twenty years.

Throughout his life he has pursued many forms of creativity:  first as an actor and then as director, writer and producer, builder, woodworker, painter and, finally, sculptor.  Tony was chosen along with thirteen artists to represent America at the prestigious Société Nationale Des Beaux-Arts Salon 2008 in the Carrousel du Louvre in Paris with his bronze sculpture “Unarmed Warrior.”

Tyla’s adoring grandfather, Tony, his wife, Lauren, and their Bergamasco puppy, Poppy, live in a home handcrafted by them in the Santa Monica Mountains near Los Angeles.  The Dows work on their creative projects as a team, and “Love Letters” is a particularly enjoyable project.

Lauren Dow started her career as a print model for Muehlebach’s Bridal Shop in Kansas City.  She traveled the world with her Old English Sheepdog, Gladiola, starting out living in Taiwan during the Vietnam conflict.  She later owned Fetich Art Gallery of Native Peoples of the World in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.  Lauren went on to study Design at Kansas City Art Institute and became a television and radio producer at B/R/B Ad Agency in Kansas City.  It is there she met Tony Dow when she cast him in a McDonald’s TV spot.  Additionally, Lauren co-produced “Child Stars: Their Story” for A & E Network and was a co-creator of “Behind the Silver Screen,” a book that profiled seventy-four residents at the Motion Picture and Television Campus in Los Angeles.  Working as a team with Tony in handcrafting their home in Topanga, California near L.A., she has passionately created mosaic embeddings throughout their house and garden for nearly thirty years.  Lauren loves working side by side with Tony on countless hands-on projects and is thrilled to be performing together in “Love Letters”.

Steve and Mike consider themselves very lucky to count Tony and Lauren as friends and were very happy to welcome them to Wisconsin to perform in  “Love Letters”.

It is with deep sorrow that we say good-bye to one of our artists, John O’Leksy.  We have always enjoyed his myriad of voices and characters over the years.  Whenever we hear the words, “Hello…I’m Orson Welles”, we will always think of John.

Below is his obituary from the Kenosha News and beneath that is the biography we kept on file for him.

John O’Leksy, 52, of Kenosha, passed away on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017, at Kenosha Hospital.

Born on Oct. 26, 1964, he was the son of Anthony Joseph and Cecilia (Pientkewic) O’Leksy. He was a lifelong resident of Kenosha, educated in local schools. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin Parkside in 1990. He followed his dream of acting and was featured in many commercials, numerous plays with the Infamous Commonwealth Theatre in Chicago, and radio plays with the 91.1 Players at WGTD. He most recently lent his singing talent to the robed choir at St. Mark’s Catholic Church, and sometimes helped do readings. John had a number of jobs through the years, but his favorite (besides acting) was with the Chicago Trolley and Double Decker Company in Chicago. He was a driver and tour guide which combined his love of Chicago and performing.

Surviving are his mother, Cecilia O’Leksy, siblings, Gail O’Leksy, Gary O’Leksy and Gwynne (Jay) Carlson, nieces, Staci (Jason) Stowe and Amalia C. Villarruel, and a grand-niece, Emilia Anne Stowe.

He was preceded in death by his father and a brother, Anthony (A.J.) O’Leksy.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Mark’s Catholic Church on Saturday Sept. 23, 2017, at 10:30 a.m. Visitation will be held at the Church prior from 9:30 a.m. until the time of service. Interment to follow at St. James Cemetery.

From their own site:

“WGTD is owned and operated by Gateway Technical College. WGTD is part of Wisconsin Public Radio’s NPR News & Classical Music Network(link is external).

The radio station broadcasts digitally at 91.1 FM from studios located in the Inspire Center on Gateway’s campus in Kenosha. In addition, the station is heard via low-power translators in Elkhorn at 101.7 and in Lake Geneva at 103.3.

WGTD also operates the Gateway Radio Reading Service, providing programming on a sub-carrier frequency to visually impaired and physically challenged residents.

WGTD’s Facebook page includes news stories and features, program notes and is home to WGTD Sports, which features video coverage of various sports events. 

In addition, a 24/7 jazz, big band and blues service operates on WGTD’s HD2 and is also available over the internet. “

Learn more at their website.

From their own site:

“WHIW-LP 101.3 FM, Harvard Broadcasting Inc., is an independent, noncommercial, educational media organization. Our mission is to engage with the community to provide diverse music, entertainment and alternative news and public affairs programming, with emphasis on local people, issues, and cultures.”

Learn more at their website.

From their own site:

“Since 1951, the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association is the only trade association which supports, promotes and represents all radio and television broadcasters in Wisconsin.”

“Wisconsin Broadcasters are an integral part of their communities and offer un-equaled public service to local communities throughout Wisconsin. Wisconsin’s radio & television stations contribute approximately $270 million per year to their communities through fund-raising efforts and donations of air-time for public service announcements. No other industry serves their communities to this level.”

Learn more at their website.

From their own site:

“The National Audio Theatre Festivals, Inc. (NATF) is an organization for emerging and established creators and enthusiasts of audio theatre, audiobooks, radio drama, and radio theatre. NATF began in 1979 as the Midwest Radio Theatre Workshop (MRTW) and is a fully qualified 501(c)(3) non-for-profit corporation based in Missouri.

In 2013, NATF began producing the Hear Now Audio Fiction and Arts Festival, featuring live audio theatre performances, a juried competition for recorded works, panel discussions, and networking opportunities. The educational experiences offered by MRTW live on in HEAR Learn workshops at the festival and throughout the year.

Thousands of participants at MRTW and HEAR Now have been inspired by both the accessibility of the art form and its tremendous creative possibilities. Scores of new audio theatre groups have emerged all over the country as a result. NATF continues to grow and expand its scope by taking advantage of internet connectivity as well as the increasing interest in podcasting and voice acting.”

Learn more at their website.