John Ritter
MASH Guest Stars
September 21, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
The list of guest stars on M*A*S*H is an entertainment hall of fame list.
From 1972 to 1983, this powerhouse show on CBS boasted actors and actresses who later became fixtures on America’s favorite television shows on the Eye Network.
Joan Van Ark and Knots Landing.
Gregory Harrison and Trapper John, M.D.
Vic Tayback and Alice.
Sorrell Booke and The Dukes of Hazzard.
Linda Kelsey and Lou Grant.
Susan Saint James and Kate and Allie.
Some actors and actresses became fixtures on America’s favorite television shows on other networks.
Ed Flanders and St. Elsewhere.
Ed Begley, Jr. and St. Elsewhere.
Shelley Long and Cheers.
George Wendt and Cheers.
John Ritter and Three’s Company.
Robert Ito and Quincy.
Jack Soo and Barney Miller.
Larry Wilcox and CHiPs.
And some actors and actresses became movie stars.
Laurence Fishburne.
Patrick Swayze.
Teri Garr.
Some guest stars on M*A*S*H played roles that helped peel back the layers of the regular staff of the 4077th.
In the episode The More I See You, Blythe Danner plays Carlye, a nurse and long-lost flame of Hawkeye.
We learned that Hawkeye and Carlye actually lived together.
But timing is everything.
The relationship couldn’t go further because Hawkeye was in residency and work was his priority.
Now assigned to the 4077th, Carlye is married. Hawkeye tries to reignite the flame.
And he succeeds.
Until he gives a rambling monologue about commitment while walking around his tent, a.k.a. the Swamp. Carlye shows him that he cannot have a relationship because he’s literally talked himself into a corner while talking about long-term commitment.
Dennis Dugan appears in two M*A*S*H episodes -- Love and Marriage and Strange Bedfellows.
In Strange Bedfellows, he plays Potter’s son-in-law.
And Potter learns about the son-in-law’s betrayal to his wife, Potter’s daughter. Though angry, Potter reveals that he himself got a little friendlier than he should have with a nurse early in his career.
Ron Howard guest stars in the first episode that showed M*A*S*H could go beyond the antics of draftee doctors to places of deep emotion, pathos, and sobriety.
In the landmark episode Sometimes You Hear the Bullet, Hawkeye’s friend, Tommy Gillis, is researching a book about war.
James Callahan plays Gillis.
He theorizes that a soldier never hears the bullet that kills him. Gillis’ theory directly contrasts the depiction of combat in the movies. He wants to call his book You Never Hear the Bullet.
During his research on the front lines, Gillis gets shot and winds up on Hawkeye’s operating table. Gillis tells Hawkeye that he heard the bullet and dies before Hawkeye can operate.
Meanwhile, an underage soldier named Wendell Peterson is in post-op.
Played by Howard, the 15-year-old Wendell stole his brother Walter’s identity to become a soldier only to impress a girl.
Hawkeye initially tells him that the secret will not be revealed.
But after seeing his friend die, Hawkeye gets a speech from Colonel Henry Blake.
There are certain rules about a war. Rule Number One is ‘Young men die.’ Rule number two is ‘Doctors can’t change Rule Number One.’
Hawkeye’s response is to keep one young man from dying in one war.
He reports Peterson to Major Houlihan, thus saving Peterson from future harm, at least on the battle field.
david@davidkrell.com
The list of guest stars on M*A*S*H is an entertainment hall of fame list.
From 1972 to 1983, this powerhouse show on CBS boasted actors and actresses who later became fixtures on America’s favorite television shows on the Eye Network.
Joan Van Ark and Knots Landing.
Gregory Harrison and Trapper John, M.D.
Vic Tayback and Alice.
Sorrell Booke and The Dukes of Hazzard.
Linda Kelsey and Lou Grant.
Susan Saint James and Kate and Allie.
Some actors and actresses became fixtures on America’s favorite television shows on other networks.
Ed Flanders and St. Elsewhere.
Ed Begley, Jr. and St. Elsewhere.
Shelley Long and Cheers.
George Wendt and Cheers.
John Ritter and Three’s Company.
Robert Ito and Quincy.
Jack Soo and Barney Miller.
Larry Wilcox and CHiPs.
And some actors and actresses became movie stars.
Laurence Fishburne.
Patrick Swayze.
Teri Garr.
Some guest stars on M*A*S*H played roles that helped peel back the layers of the regular staff of the 4077th.
In the episode The More I See You, Blythe Danner plays Carlye, a nurse and long-lost flame of Hawkeye.
We learned that Hawkeye and Carlye actually lived together.
But timing is everything.
The relationship couldn’t go further because Hawkeye was in residency and work was his priority.
Now assigned to the 4077th, Carlye is married. Hawkeye tries to reignite the flame.
And he succeeds.
Until he gives a rambling monologue about commitment while walking around his tent, a.k.a. the Swamp. Carlye shows him that he cannot have a relationship because he’s literally talked himself into a corner while talking about long-term commitment.
Dennis Dugan appears in two M*A*S*H episodes -- Love and Marriage and Strange Bedfellows.
In Strange Bedfellows, he plays Potter’s son-in-law.
And Potter learns about the son-in-law’s betrayal to his wife, Potter’s daughter. Though angry, Potter reveals that he himself got a little friendlier than he should have with a nurse early in his career.
Ron Howard guest stars in the first episode that showed M*A*S*H could go beyond the antics of draftee doctors to places of deep emotion, pathos, and sobriety.
In the landmark episode Sometimes You Hear the Bullet, Hawkeye’s friend, Tommy Gillis, is researching a book about war.
James Callahan plays Gillis.
He theorizes that a soldier never hears the bullet that kills him. Gillis’ theory directly contrasts the depiction of combat in the movies. He wants to call his book You Never Hear the Bullet.
During his research on the front lines, Gillis gets shot and winds up on Hawkeye’s operating table. Gillis tells Hawkeye that he heard the bullet and dies before Hawkeye can operate.
Meanwhile, an underage soldier named Wendell Peterson is in post-op.
Played by Howard, the 15-year-old Wendell stole his brother Walter’s identity to become a soldier only to impress a girl.
Hawkeye initially tells him that the secret will not be revealed.
But after seeing his friend die, Hawkeye gets a speech from Colonel Henry Blake.
There are certain rules about a war. Rule Number One is ‘Young men die.’ Rule number two is ‘Doctors can’t change Rule Number One.’
Hawkeye’s response is to keep one young man from dying in one war.
He reports Peterson to Major Houlihan, thus saving Peterson from future harm, at least on the battle field.
The Love Boat
June 22, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
From 1977 to 1986, America went on vacation once a week, beginning with short jaunts to Puerto Vallarta and graduating to longer trips to other ports of call, including Alaska, Australia, and the Panama Canal.
America went on The Love Boat every Saturday night on ABC.
Perhaps we enjoyed the terrific diversity of guest stars.
Old-school actors -- Dana Andrews, Robert Vaughn, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Current stars -- Kristy McNichol, John Ritter, Loretta Swit, Gene Rayburn.
Perhaps we enjoyed being whisked away via television to sun-soaked places during the frigid, winter months on the Pacific Princess, the setting for The Love Boat.
Perhaps we enjoyed the camaraderie of the crew members who supported, encouraged, and helped passengers through whatever problems arose on each cruise in addition to their own problems. At its base, The Love Boat was a workplace sitcom.
But we cannot overlook the hallmark of the show, perhaps its signature.
The theme song.
Jack Jones sang it for most of the show's run and Dionne Warwick sang it in the final season. Paul Williams and Charles Fox wrote the lyrics and music respectively.
The song set the tone beautifully for the show for three reasons.
First, the lyrics.
They're inviting the viewer to take a trip on The Love Boat with welcoming phrases like Come aboard, we're expecting you and Love won't hurt anymore, it's an open smile on a friendly shore.
The lyrics give the viewer a sense that he or she is taking a virtual vacation that will be safe, warm, and fun.
Second, the music.
It has the sound and feel of a song you might hear in one of the ship's lounge acts.
And third, Jack Jones.
He sings the song with feeling, belief, and enthusiasm. He makes you feel immediately welcome as if you were a real guest on the Pacific Princess.
Though Dionne Warwick sang the theme song in the final season of The Love Boat, the Jones version is the one uniquely associated with our television memory.
Other factors add to the appeal of The Love Boat theme song.
The guest stars that we saw in the animated life preserver at the beginning of the song.
The beautiful video of the Pacific Princess accompanying the song.
And the titles of the characters.
The show introduced the characters as they would on a real cruise -- Your Captain, The Ship's Doctor, Your Yeoman Purser, Your Bartender, Your Cruise Director.
The operative word is Your.
This technique reinforced the theme song's welcoming, safe, and relaxed aura that gave the viewer a sense that he or she is indeed a passenger on the Pacific Princess.
At least for an hour each week.
Anchors aweigh.
david@davidkrell.com
From 1977 to 1986, America went on vacation once a week, beginning with short jaunts to Puerto Vallarta and graduating to longer trips to other ports of call, including Alaska, Australia, and the Panama Canal.
America went on The Love Boat every Saturday night on ABC.
Perhaps we enjoyed the terrific diversity of guest stars.
Old-school actors -- Dana Andrews, Robert Vaughn, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Current stars -- Kristy McNichol, John Ritter, Loretta Swit, Gene Rayburn.
Perhaps we enjoyed being whisked away via television to sun-soaked places during the frigid, winter months on the Pacific Princess, the setting for The Love Boat.
Perhaps we enjoyed the camaraderie of the crew members who supported, encouraged, and helped passengers through whatever problems arose on each cruise in addition to their own problems. At its base, The Love Boat was a workplace sitcom.
But we cannot overlook the hallmark of the show, perhaps its signature.
The theme song.
Jack Jones sang it for most of the show's run and Dionne Warwick sang it in the final season. Paul Williams and Charles Fox wrote the lyrics and music respectively.
The song set the tone beautifully for the show for three reasons.
First, the lyrics.
They're inviting the viewer to take a trip on The Love Boat with welcoming phrases like Come aboard, we're expecting you and Love won't hurt anymore, it's an open smile on a friendly shore.
The lyrics give the viewer a sense that he or she is taking a virtual vacation that will be safe, warm, and fun.
Second, the music.
It has the sound and feel of a song you might hear in one of the ship's lounge acts.
And third, Jack Jones.
He sings the song with feeling, belief, and enthusiasm. He makes you feel immediately welcome as if you were a real guest on the Pacific Princess.
Though Dionne Warwick sang the theme song in the final season of The Love Boat, the Jones version is the one uniquely associated with our television memory.
Other factors add to the appeal of The Love Boat theme song.
The guest stars that we saw in the animated life preserver at the beginning of the song.
The beautiful video of the Pacific Princess accompanying the song.
And the titles of the characters.
The show introduced the characters as they would on a real cruise -- Your Captain, The Ship's Doctor, Your Yeoman Purser, Your Bartender, Your Cruise Director.
The operative word is Your.
This technique reinforced the theme song's welcoming, safe, and relaxed aura that gave the viewer a sense that he or she is indeed a passenger on the Pacific Princess.
At least for an hour each week.
Anchors aweigh.