Yesterday, we reported that “Leave It To Beaver” star Ken Osmond, who played Eddie Haskell on the beloved sitcom, had passed away at the age of 76. Now, “The Beaver” himself Jerry Mathers has broken his silence about his former costar’s death.

“Ken Osmond has been my lifelong friend and someone who I knew I could always go to for advice and good counsel,” Mathers told Fox News. “I have always said that he was the best actor on our show because his real-life personality was so opposite of the character he so brilliantly portrayed. I will greatly miss him along with his countless fans all over the world.”

This came after Variety reported that Osmond had passed away at his home in Los Angeles, California on Monday, with his cause of death not yet being disclosed at this time. His former partner on the Los Angeles Police Department, which he joined after ending his acting career, said that he was suffering from respiratory issues before his death.

Osmond’s son Eric released a statement after his death describing him as “an incredibly kind and wonderful father.”

“He had his family gathered around him when he passed,” Eric said. “He was loved and will be very missed.”

Mathers had told Fox News back in 2017 that even though it had been decades since “Leave It To Beaver” went off the air in 1963, he was still close to his TV family.

“We’ve had reunions,” he said at the time. “It’s probably more like how you are with people you went to school with. If anything important happens in their lives or with their grandchildren, because we all have grandchildren now, we reach out. And when someone marries. And sadly, when someone passes. Whoever finds out first calls the rest of us.”

Osmond was originally supposed to just guest star in one episode of “Leave It To Beaver” as Eddie Haskell, but his character proved to be so popular that he stayed on with the series through it’s entire six year run. After the show ended, he continued to have a successful career as an actor on other shows, but he decided to leave the business and join the police force after he found himself being typecast.

Osmond is survived by his wife Sandra, as well as their two sons.