Leave It to Beaver (1957–1963): Season 2, Episode 16 - The Boat Builders - full transcript

Inspired by a movie featuring an Eskimo kayak, Wally and his friends build one of their own and, in spite of Ward's warning, secretly launch the craft on Miller's Pond. But when Beaver is the only one small enough to fit in the boat's small opening and he and the craft capsize, the boys try to keep their parents from finding out by cleverly sneaking a soaking wet Beaver up to his bedroom for a bath.

Leave It To Beaver.

Starring Barbara Billingsley,

Hugh Beaumont,

Tony Dow...

and Jerry Mathers...

as the Beaver.

Cut it out, will ya,
Beaver? Yeah. Beat it.

Ward?

Hi, dear. Hi.

What's goin' on out there? Oh,
Tooey and Chester came over.

It seems they're building
something with Wally and Beaver. Oh.



I wonder what they could be building
with barrel staves? I don't know.

They were very mysterious about it
when they came in for milk and cookies.

I think the project's off-limits
for adults. Well, I guess we'll

just have to respect their
privacy till something blows up.

They've been working out
there ever since they got

home from school. Aren't
you a little bit curious?

No, not particularly. I think
they're using your tools.

Um— Um, m-maybe
after I change clothes,

I will just, uh, wander out
and see what's going on.

Thought you would.

Hey, Chester, we can use this
one for the middle. Oh, okay.

How you doin', Tooey?

Beaver, will ya get your
head out of our kayak?

Okay.



Hey, Wally, are you sure this is
the kind of boat the Eskimos use?

Well, sure, Beaver. You saw
it in the movie last Saturday.

They hunt walruses and polar
bears and everything in boats like this.

But where do they get barrel
hoops at the North Pole?

Wally, does your brother have to
hang around and ask stupid questions?

Yeah, Beave.
Cut it out, will ya?

You know, we can
try it out at Miller's

Pond first, before we
take it in the ocean.

Hey, Chester, how come we couldn't
work on it at your place anymore?

Oh, my father said we
were messin' up his garage.

He said to bring it over
here. Hi, Mr. Cleaver.

Oh, hi, Dad. Hi, Dad.

Hello, fellas. Hey, Dad, do you think
you could leave the car out tonight?

Well, if we move this
thing, it's liable to fall apart.

Well, I think you could move it
over to the side, couldn't you?

Hey, Wally, hold
it steady, will you?

Um, what is it,
um, a racing car?

No, Dad. It's a
genuine Eskimo boat.

Yeah, Mr. Cleaver. We're gonna try it in
Miller's Pond, then take it in the ocean.

Uh-huh. Well, you've, uh, got quite a
lot of play in there, haven't you, fellas?

Oh, we're gonna cover the
whole thing with chicken wire.

Yeah, and then we're gonna
cover the outside with skin.

Uh-huh. Well, be sure
you have plenty of weight

down by the keel. You
need a low center of gravity.

Heck, we figured the guy that
gets in it will be the center of gravity.

Well, fine.

Well, um, don't be discouraged, fellas.
This is the way Robert Fulton started.

Be sure and put my tools away.

Hey, Wally, I think your dad's givin'
us the business about Robert Fulton.

Nah. That just means he thinks
we're goofy tryin' to build a boat, but,

well, he just doesn't wanna
come right out and say it.

Did you find out what the mysterious
project is? Yeah. They're building a boat.

They're going to try it out in Miller's
Pond before they take it out in the ocean.

Oh, Ward, that sounds dangerous. No.
First place, the ocean's 20 miles away.

In the second place, they'll abandon
the project before the weekend.

And finally, you just can't build a
boat with barrel hoops and wire.

I hope not. I wish you'd
keep an eye on them though.

Hey, Dad, where's those tacks we got a
couple of weeks ago? We're gonna need 'em.

Right here in the drawer.

Um, say, Wally, um,

I know you fellas are
having a lot of fun out there,

but I think before you waste a
lot of time, you ought to realize...

that you just can't slap together a
mess like that and expect it to float.

Well, gee, Dad, you're always
telling us to build somethin' worthwhile,

and now that we're buildin'
it, you're saying it's no good.

Um, all right, Wally. You
go ahead and build your boat.

I just want one
thing perfectly clear.

If you finish the boat,
I don't want you doing

anything reckless or foolish
with it, okay? Okay, Dad.

Okay? Okay.

I'd feel a lot better if they
weren't building a boat at all.

Hey, we got a lot more done
this week than I thought we would.

Yeah. It's almost beginnin'
to look like somethin' now.

Hey, we can't fasten anything to the
sides. What are we gonna use for a seat?

Well, uh, I'll look around
the house later and see what

we got. Maybe we could use
a breadboard or something.

What have you been
doing down in the cellar?

I was looking for that bucket I use to wash
the car with. I can't find it anywhere.

Well, I haven't seen it since
last summer when the boys made

lemonade in it. Ah, it'll
turn up. Here, I'll take those.

Thank you. Hmm.

Lemonade?

Man, that's neat. Yeah.
Hey, Wally, did your

pop holler too much
for takin' his bucket?

Nah. All he did was look
at me. You know. Well, now

all we gotta do is get
some skin to cover the boat.

There's no animals around
here got that much skin.

The Eskimos used sealskin.
What are we gonna use?

Hey. My father's got an old raccoon
coat. Maybe we could use that.

Aw, cut it out. Who
wants a fuzzy canoe?

Ward? Yeah?

Paper just came. Oh.

Well, I noticed the boat
builders were still hard at

work when I came home. I
couldn't get in the garage.

They even borrowed three of
those old oilcloth table covers

we had around. What would
they want with tablecloths?

Maybe they're getting
ready for a launching picnic.

Hey, Wally, these tablecloths
of your mom's work real neat.

Yeah. Keep slappin' the
varnish on. It'll keep it from leakin'.

Hey, guys, if the varnish is dry, we can
try it out over at Miller's Pond tomorrow.

Um, well, gee, I don't know. Uh, maybe
we should ask my dad to come along.

What would you wanna do
that for? He'd spoil all our fun.

Hmm, yeah. Well, I guess it
won't hurt just to see if it floats.

And, hey, Wally, will you tell this little
squirt not to come taggin' along tomorrow?

Well, I can go to
Miller's Pond if I wanna.

You better not wanna.

I can, too, if I wanna
wanna. Can I, Wally?

Well, I... guess you can come
along and watch us, if you wanna.

Ward. Yeah.

Ward. Yeah.

Oh, Ward? I just looked out
in the garage. The boat's gone.

I knew when those boys got up
early, they were up to something.

I've been after Wally
to get it out of there.

He probably took it back
over to Chester's. Oh.

Yeah, mess up the
Anderson's garage for a while.

Ward, you don't suppose when they get it
finished, they'll try to float it, do you?

Oh, now, June, relax. I
warned Wally not to be careless.

Anyway, if that boat
sails anyplace, it'll

be in a vacant lot
somewhere among the weeds.

Well, we lugged it this far. Now
let's get it in the water, okay, Wally?

Yeah, well, okay. We
should have brought our lunch.

We could take turns sailin' around
in it all day. Okay. Odd man tries first.

One, two— Two, three!

One, two, three.

Well, Chester, I guess
you're our first captain.

Yeah, Chester. You get
in, and we'll shove you off.

What's the matter?

Well, the bucket's too
high. I can't squeeze in.

- Let's pull the bucket out.
- We can't. It's nailed.

If we pull the bucket out,
we'll pull the bottom out.

Heck. I guess we're gonna have
to take it back and try and fix it.

Yeah. Gee, I sure hate to lug it all the
way back without even seein' how it works.

Maybe we could pile
some rocks in it and see

how it floats. Rocks
aren't the same as a guy.

Well, we don't have
a guy small enough.

Hey, Beave...

Wow, that water's cold. So
what? Give the shrimp the paddle.

You all set? All set.

Okay. One, two,
three— Ship ahoy!

Hey, Wally, you
better go get him!

You okay, Beave?

Yeah. I'm okay. I'm
just c-cold, that's all.

Why'd you do a crazy thing
like tippin' our boat over?

Well, I didn't do anything. I just s-sat
there. The boat did all the tippin' over.

You know, we never should
have brought that thing down here.

- You think we oughta try and fix it?
- Now how are we gonna
get it out of the water?

Beaver's already
wet. He could get it.

Aw, cut it out. We
gotta get him home.

Wally, my clothes are all wet.

And look at my new boots.

You know somethin'? I think Dad's
gonna be real sore when he sees me.

I'll say. He told me to watch it.
Wait till he sees what happened.

Maybe when you get home, your
pop won't even notice you got wet.

I fixed that heating vent in the dining
room. Any other little chores? Nope.

In that case, I think I'll go in the living
room, try and get work done before lunch.

I wish I knew where those
boys went with that boat.

Well, dear, I told you they're
probably over at Chester's.

Now Wally wouldn't try any
nonsense without my permission.

Oh, I don't know. I just
picked up their room a little

while ago, and Beaver's
hiking boots aren't in the closet.

Now why would he wear
hiking boots to build a boat?

Well, if you're concerned, why
don't you call the Andersons?

Well, if I do that, and they're not
there, I'm gonna worry Mrs. Anderson.

And if they are there, the boys are
gonna think I'm fussing over them.

I'll wait till noontime,
when I have a good excuse.

Beaver, you kinda smell like
a swamp. I feel like one too.

Hey, Wally, is the coast
clear? Nah. My mom's

in the kitchen and
Dad's in the living room.

Boy, if they see Beaver
messed up like this, we're sunk.

If Mom wasn't in the
kitchen, at least we could

get in the house and
maybe sneak up to our room.

Hey, Wally, I got an
idea. I'll go across to

my house and call your
pop on the telephone.

Now what good would
that do? Well, I'll say

I'm somebody that
wants to talk to his mom.

- That'll get her out of the kitchen.
- Ah, that's goofy.

What else ya gonna do,
sit here till your pop comes

out and catches him sittin'
here like a drowned rat?

Well, let's try it, Wally,
even if it is goofy.

Well, okay. Come on, Chester.

No, no. You can't go that way.

Keep it down.

Um— Hey, Beave, I'm sorry
you got wet and everything.

That's okay, Wally. At least
I got to be the first captain.

Hey, uh, you look kinda funny.
You're not thinkin' of crying, are you?

No.

Not unless we get caught.

Then I think we're gonna be in
so much trouble, well, I better.

Hello? What's that?

Uh, am I speaking
to Mr. Cleaver?

Uh, yes.

Well, uh, I'd like to
speak to Mrs. Cleaver.

Would you mind calling
her out of the kitchen?

Well—Well, may I
ask who's calling?

He wants to know who's
calling. Just say it's a friend.

Hello— Uh, hello? It's a friend
of hers that you don't know.

Well, I-I— Um, all right.

Just a moment. I'll call her.

Hey, Chester, it worked.
He went to get her.

What should I do now? Well,
I think you better hang it up.

Phone, dear.

Who is it? It's a friend
of yours that I don't know.

Hello? Hello?

Hello? Hello?
There's no one there.

Well, I think I
recognized the voice.

Sounded like that
little Phillips girl down

the street who's always
playing with the phone.

I'd like to speak to her mother.

What's this? It's that
new survey we took down

at the office on women's
marketing habits.

Look it over.

Boy. Mom's right in there.
We'll never get upstairs.

Wait a minute. I'm
gonna try somethin'.

I don't think some of these
things are flattering at all.

Well, dear, I can't help
the way women shop.

Who took the survey? Some
of the fellas down at the office.

I thought so.

Well, now, June, that's
got nothing to do with...

What in the world is that? That
sounds like the garbage disposal.

Well, how could it go on by
itself? Maybe it's a short circuit.

How could that happen?

Well, I don't know. I
had a car once. Every

time you slammed the
door, the lights went on.

Hey, Wally, when did
you fellas come home?

Um—Oh, before. Say, you didn't
bring that boat back here, did you?

Oh, no, sir. Uh, we sure didn't. Uh,
well, I gotta put this junk in the cellar.

Oh. Hi, Mom. Wally. I
didn't know you were home.

Um, Dad knows it. Where
are you going with the box?

Um, I've gotta put some
junk down in the cellar.

Oh. You cleaning up your room?

Um, well, sorta.

Wally...

Wally, isn't that the bathtub in your
room? Um, yeah. Beaver's takin' a bath.

On Saturday morning
without anyone making him?

Um, yeah. Uh, he
kinda took one look at his

feet and then decided
maybe he oughta take one.

Oh. Well, you better tell him to hurry
up. We're gonna have lunch soon.

Okay, Mom.

Beaver, I can't get over
it. You look so—well, so

clean. Yeah, right in
the middle of the day too.

Gee, Dad, why are you pickin'
on me just 'cause I took a bath?

Well, Beaver, we're
not picking on you.

I just wanted— Um, could I
have some bread, Mom? Please?

Oh. Here you are,
dear. Thank you.

Does, um, anyone
smell anything peculiar?

Yes, Ward. I do.

- Um, I don't.
- Well, I just took a bath.

It's funny. Smells
like burning leather.

Um, I don't smell anything at all. Uh, do
you want me to close the cellar door, Dad?

Wally, if you don't smell anything,
why do you want to close the cellar door?

Um, gee, I don't know, Dad.

What are you trying to cover up?

Um, well, you see, Dad—
Uh, gee, I don't know, Dad.

Never mind. I'll go
take a look for myself.

Would you boys mind
telling me what's going on?

Um, well, I think we better
wait till Dad gets back, Mom.

Yeah. If we're gonna
have to tell all the bad stuff

that happened, sure don't
wanna have to tell it twice.

Well, boys?

I fell outta the boat.

Oh, Beaver.

At Miller's Pond? Uh, yeah, Dad.

Want us to wait up in our room?

I think that would
be an excellent idea.

Ward,

you think this has anything to do with
that garbage disposal and the phone call?

Mm-hmm.

To put it bluntly, I
think we've been had.

Hey, Wally, we've been
sittin' up here almost

a half hour. How come
Dad hasn't come up yet?

Well, gee, Beave, we
did somethin' real bad,

and, well, when you
do somethin' real bad,

it takes longer for Dad to figure
out what he's gonna do to us.

Well, whatever he's
gonna do to us, I wish he'd

hurry up and do it so
we could get out and play.

Play? Beaver, what
are you talkin' about?

Boy, when he gets
through with us, we'll be

lucky if we get out to
play for a whole year.

Boys, will you come down here?

Well, come on. Let's go. Wally,

you think I oughta wait
a while or cry right away?

Well, we'd better
see how mad he is.

Dear, I know they should be punished,
but please don't lose your temper.

I don't intend to. This
time they're going to tell me.

I'll make very sure
they realize just exactly

what they've done.

- Well?
- Well, you called us, Dad.

Yes.

Well, you boys have had a chance to
think this over. What do you have to say?

Well, I'm sorry we put Beaver in the boat
and it tipped over. Well, I'm sorry too.

Well, is that all?

Well, I'm awful sorry.

Well, that's fine. What
about the other things?

Gee, Dad, fallin' outta the boat
was the worst thing we did today.

Your father means
sneaking in the house, hiding

the wet clothes and
covering up what you did.

Look. Putting Beaver in the boat was
bad enough. He could have been drowned.

But afterwards, why couldn't you at least
have come to me and—and just simply said,

"Dad, I did a very foolish thing,
and Beaver fell out of the boat"?

Well, you'd have been in a lot less
trouble than you're in now if you had.

I wish we'd have
known that then.

Well, it's really
my fault, Dad, but...

I guess I felt so goofy about
letting those guys talk me

into somethin', I just didn't
want you to know about it.

Well, fooling around with that boat
was a very dangerous thing to do, Wally.

And both of you trying to cover up what
you'd done afterwards was inexcusable.

So you're going to
have to be punished.

You'll both stay around at the
house here for the rest of the weekend,

and there'll be no movies or
television for the next two weeks.

Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

Wally— Wally, there's
only one thing I have to say.

We're very thankful that nothing
really serious happened to your brother.

Yes. For that we're both
very grateful and very happy.

Well, gee, Dad, I wouldn't let
anything happen to the Beaver.

Yeah. And even if he
did, he wouldn't mean it.

Well, next time, just
think ahead a little bit.

Look ahead and see the
consequences a little bit.

Then you won't
do this kind of thing.

Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

You know, Ward, with two boys, we should be
prepared for a certain amount of trouble,

but it's really discouraging when they
come home with something like this.

It sure is. Yet, when you realize
all the things that could happen,

it's a pretty nice feeling sometimes
just to have 'em come home.

Hey, Wally, if I'd have drowned, do
you think they would've let the school out?

Nah. Just your class.

Well, that would've
been somethin'.

Wally, Mom and Dad
said they were happy, but...

still they were yellin' at us.

Yeah, well, um— Well,
it's like Larry Mondello...

The time he got himself
lost on the camping trip?

Well, when the scoutmaster
told his mom and dad

they found him, they were
real happy, remember?

- Well, sure.
- But then when they got Larry home,

his mother started yellin' at him,
and his father started hittin' him.

Yeah, but how can you be happy at
somebody and yell at 'em at the same time?

I don't know. I guess you
gotta be a parent to do that.

Yeah.

Wanna trade? Okay.