- [weekend rain and a broken television leave the boys feeling there's nothing to do]
- Ward Cleaver: Hi, fellas.
- Wally Cleaver: [at his desk] Hi, Dad.
- The Beaver: [lying on his bed] Hi, Dad.
- Ward Cleaver: Well, Wally, doing your homework on Friday?
- Wally Cleaver: No, Dad. I'm writin' a letter to the president.
- Ward Cleaver: The president? What do you have to say to him?
- Wally Cleaver: Nothin'. But I figure, if he writes me back, I can sell the letter.
- Ward Cleaver: Oh. Well, uh, Beaver, what are you doing?
- The Beaver: Well, I got nothin' to do, so I'm doin' it lyin' down.
- Wally Cleaver: Hey, Dad, did Mom tell ya she can't get the TV fixed?
- The Beaver: Yeah. We're gonna have to spend the whole weekend with nothin' to do.
- Ward Cleaver: Oh, come on, now, fellas. I'm sure you can find something to do. For instance, uh, why don't you just sit in your room and read a book?
- The Beaver: Gee, Dad, why are you punishing us? We haven't done anything wrong.
- Wally Cleaver: Yeah, Dad, they make us read books in school.
- Ward Cleaver: Hey, I think I found a great book for you. Just the right one: 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'. I was practically brought up on this book.
- Wally Cleaver: Oh, yeah. That's about a kid. I once wrote a book report on it.
- Ward Cleaver: Oh, you read the book, Wally?
- Wally Cleaver: No. I just wrote a book report on it.
- The Beaver: Gee, I wish she hadn't taked the book. I wanted to see who won the fight.
- Wally Cleaver: Aw, I betcha Tom Sawyer wins it.
- The Beaver: Yeah? How come?
- Wally Cleaver: 'Cause he's got his name on the cover. That's the way it usually works.
- The Beaver: Yeah. I guess it's like 'Wyatt Earp' on television. If he was gonna lose, they'd call it somethin' else.
- [Ward comes to realize that 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' might have given Wally and The Beaver some wrong impressions]
- Ward Cleaver: Your mother, uh, well, she seems to think you might try to copy some of Tom's other exploits, like, uh, smoking, or ditching school.
- The Beaver: Gosh, this morning 'Tom Sawyer' was such a good book. Now, all of a sudden, it isn't so good.
- Ward Cleaver: Oh, no, Beaver. 'Tom Sawyer' will always be a great book. It's, uh, well it's just that you fellas can't take the things Tom did and try to do them today.
- Wally Cleaver: Heck no, Dad. You try to do any of that stuff, and they'd say you were some sort of a delinquent.
- Ward Cleaver: Well, actually, those things were just part of growing up in Tom's days. There was nothing, uh, malicious or deliberate in anything he did. But, well, times have changed. It's a more complicated world, and if a fella tried to do those things today, he'd - well, he'd be judged in a different light. You understand Wally?
- Wally Cleaver: Yeah, Dad, I guess I do.
- Ward Cleaver: How 'bout you, Beaver?
- The Beaver: Yeah, Dad. It was a lot easier being a kid in those days.
- Ward Cleaver: Well, Beaver, let's just say it's a lot harder to be a kid these days.