"Leave It to Beaver"'s Jerry Mathers Gives a Glimpse Into Life as a Grandfather (Exclusive)

Published 8 hours ago• 2 minute read

is one proud grandfather.

The Leave It to Beaver star, 77, spoke with PEOPLE alongside his wife Teresa Mathers, and the two were asked what they love most about their life right now. Jerry replied that he loves spending time with his extended family, including his grandchildren.

"I have a wonderful wife and we have a lot of friends and it's very, very nice to be able to do that because a lot of the years I was working all the time," Jerry tells PEOPLE. "I mean, I was going to work at 8 o'clock and coming home sometimes in the late, late, late. So it's a fun time. I'm very glad to do it. It's something I'm very proud of."

"And we have five grandchildren within the area where we are," Teresa adds. "So we get to play with them and do the garden and all of those fun things and have a semi-retired life at this point."

*Daniel Boczarski/Getty Jerry Mathers and wife Teresa Modnick*

Asked what he enjoys most about being a grandfather, Jerry responds, "Nothing bothers me about it. It's just something I know that I should be doing, so I do it."

"And they're fun. They're all under the age of 9," explains Teresa.

"There's a lot of people to watch. You're always chasing someone around the house and saying you can't do that or go to the back," adds Jerry.

"But they're fun and real sweet kids," adds Teresa.

Jerry is dad to three kids — Noah, Mercedes and Gretchen, whom he shares with ex-wife Rhonda Gehring.

Michael Tullberg/Getty Jerry Mathers — Michael Tullberg/Getty
Jerry Mathers

The star, who played the titular Theodore "Beaver" Cleaver on the hit 1950s sitcom Leave It to Beaver, recently delighted viewers with autographs and photos at a fan event, the Hollywood Show, on June 6 and 7 in Burbank, Calif.

Jerry reunited with Luke Tiger Fafara, 80, who played Tooey Brown, Stephen Talbot, 76, who played Gilbert, Veronica Cartwright, 76, who played Violet Rutherford and Jeri Weil, 77, who played Judy Hensler.

It's been more than 60 years since Leave It to Beaver left the small screen in 1963 following its 1957 debut, but the show still has a legion of dedicated fans thanks to syndication (season 1 is also streaming on Peacock).

Read the original article on People