In 1983, he moved to Los Angeles, California to continue research on his biography of George Reeves. He worked for a year as the film archivist for the Variety Arts Center. Following a reading of his play "Verdigris," he was asked to join the prestigious Theatre West company in Hollywood, where he continues as an actor and playwright to this day. "Verdigris" was produced to very good reviews in 1985 and Beaver was signed by the powerful Triad Artists agency. He immediately began to work writing episodes of various television series, including "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (he received a 1987 CableACE Award nomination for his very first TV script, for this show), "Tour of Duty" and "Vietnam War Story". He also worked occasionally in small roles in films and television.