M*A*S*H
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon
November 26, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is a game that can be played anytime and anywhere by anybody. Perfect light enjoyment for holiday conversation during travel, turkey, or dessert.
The purpose is to connect an actor or actress to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less by using movies as the connectors.
For example, William Holden can be connected in three steps. Holden was in Network with Faye Dunaway. Dunaway was in Chinatown with Jack Nicholson. Nicholson was in A Few Good Men with Kevin Bacon.
Television icons can also be used as starting points because their resumes include movies. Mary Tyler Moore was in Change of Habit with Elvis Presley and Ed Asner. Presley plays a doctor and Asner plays a cop. Asner also plays a cop in Fort Apache, The Bronx with Paul Newman. Newman was in The Road to Perdition with Tom Hanks. Hanks was in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon.
Dick Van Dyke was in Mary Poppins with Julie Andrews. Andrews was in 10 with Dudley Moore. Moore was in Arthur with Liza Minelli. Minelli was in New York, New York with Robert de Niro. de Niro was in Sleepers with Kevin Bacon.
Alan Alda was in Same Time, Next Year with Ellen Burstyn. Burstyn was in Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood with Sandra Bullock. Bullock was in Speed with Keanu Reeves. Reeves was in The Devil’s Advocate with Charlize Theron. Theron was in That Thing You Do! with Tom Hanks. Hanks was in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon.
Lucille Ball was in Yours, Mine, and Ours with Henry Fonda. Fonda was in Mr. Roberts with Jack Lemmon. Lemmon was in JFK with Kevin Bacon.
Sid Caesar was in Grease with John Travolta. Travolta was in Moment By Moment with Lily Tomlin. Tomlin was in Nine to Five with Dabney Coleman. Coleman was in North Dallas Forty with Nick Nolte. Nolte was in Cape Fear with Robert de Niro. de Niro was in Sleepers with Kevin Bacon.
Bob Hope was in Spies Like Us with Chevy Chase. Chase was in Caddyshack with Rodney Dangerfield. Dangerfield was in Back to School with Sally Kellerman. Kellerman was in M*A*S*H with Tom Skerritt. Skerritt was in Singles with Kyra Sedgwick. And Kyra Sedgwick is married to Kevin Bacon.
david@davidkrell.com
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is a game that can be played anytime and anywhere by anybody. Perfect light enjoyment for holiday conversation during travel, turkey, or dessert.
The purpose is to connect an actor or actress to Kevin Bacon in six steps or less by using movies as the connectors.
For example, William Holden can be connected in three steps. Holden was in Network with Faye Dunaway. Dunaway was in Chinatown with Jack Nicholson. Nicholson was in A Few Good Men with Kevin Bacon.
Television icons can also be used as starting points because their resumes include movies. Mary Tyler Moore was in Change of Habit with Elvis Presley and Ed Asner. Presley plays a doctor and Asner plays a cop. Asner also plays a cop in Fort Apache, The Bronx with Paul Newman. Newman was in The Road to Perdition with Tom Hanks. Hanks was in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon.
Dick Van Dyke was in Mary Poppins with Julie Andrews. Andrews was in 10 with Dudley Moore. Moore was in Arthur with Liza Minelli. Minelli was in New York, New York with Robert de Niro. de Niro was in Sleepers with Kevin Bacon.
Alan Alda was in Same Time, Next Year with Ellen Burstyn. Burstyn was in Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood with Sandra Bullock. Bullock was in Speed with Keanu Reeves. Reeves was in The Devil’s Advocate with Charlize Theron. Theron was in That Thing You Do! with Tom Hanks. Hanks was in Apollo 13 with Kevin Bacon.
Lucille Ball was in Yours, Mine, and Ours with Henry Fonda. Fonda was in Mr. Roberts with Jack Lemmon. Lemmon was in JFK with Kevin Bacon.
Sid Caesar was in Grease with John Travolta. Travolta was in Moment By Moment with Lily Tomlin. Tomlin was in Nine to Five with Dabney Coleman. Coleman was in North Dallas Forty with Nick Nolte. Nolte was in Cape Fear with Robert de Niro. de Niro was in Sleepers with Kevin Bacon.
Bob Hope was in Spies Like Us with Chevy Chase. Chase was in Caddyshack with Rodney Dangerfield. Dangerfield was in Back to School with Sally Kellerman. Kellerman was in M*A*S*H with Tom Skerritt. Skerritt was in Singles with Kyra Sedgwick. And Kyra Sedgwick is married to Kevin Bacon.
Harry Morgan
November 21, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Before he was Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H, Harry Morgan was one of Hollywood’s cornerstone character actors. He shared the silver screen with legends.
Inherit the Wind with Spencer Tracy and Fredric March.
High Noon with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly.
The Glenn Miller Story with Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson.
The Shootist with John Wayne.
Frankie and Johnny with Elvis Presley.
Support Your Local Sheriff with James Garner.
Dragnet with Tom Hanks and Dan Aykroyd. In Dragnet, Morgan reprises his role of Bill Gannon from the television series of the same name in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Gannon has climbed the ranks to become a police captain.
Morgan played Pete Porter in the television series December Bride and its spinoff -- Pete & Gladys. He also played Judge Bell in the trio of 1990’s Incident tv-movies starring Walter Matthau -- The Incident, Against Her Will: An Incident in Baltimore, Incident in a Small Town.
But Harry Morgan’s role of the authoritative, compassionate, and wise Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H is likely the role most identified with Morgan. Potter is Morgan’s signature character.
Morgan had big shoes to fill. When M*A*S*H producers killed off Colonel Henry Blake in the spring of 1975, the creative decision sparked shock, dismay, and even outrage. Who ever heard of a show killing a major, beloved, and valuable character? Blake’s death offered no chance for a spinoff, return appearance, or revival.
While McLean Stevenson’s popularity soared as the affable, bumbling, and concerned Colonel Blake who was also one of the guys, Harry Morgan won the respect of fans by playing Colonel Potter with dignity, understanding, and a voice of experience.
Potter led Hawkeye, B.J. and the rest of the M*A*S*H 4077th, but he never talked down to them. He was a Regular Army style solider but he ignored the rules and regulations if they interfered with treating wounded soldiers.
Potter was a combat veteran who became a doctor. But he never forgot the courage of soldiers in the field.
In a vicious ocean of injury, violence, and death, Morgan’s Colonel Potter was the calm oasis of experience, wisdom, and compassion.
Harry Morgan actually made a pre-Potter appearance on M*A*S*H. In the third season premiere -- The General Flipped At Dawn -- he plays General Steele, a half-crazed general. Morgan received an Emmy nomination for his guest appearance in this episode that kicked off the 1975-76 season.
For his role as Colonel Potter, Morgan received eight nominations for Best Supporting Actor. He won once. He also received an Emmy nomination for Best Director.
Harry Morgan continued playing Colonel Potter in the sequel After M*A*S*H. The show is set in a stateside Veterans Administration hospital in Missouri. Jamie Farr and William Christopher joined Morgan to continue their roles as Max Klinger and Father Mulcahy respectively.
After After M*A*S*H, Morgan mostly enjoyed guest appearances on television shows -- The Jeff Foxworthy Show, Grace Under Fire, Third Rock from the Sun, and The Simpsons.
On The Simpsons, Morgan once again reprised his role of Bill Gannon.
david@davidkrell.com
Before he was Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H, Harry Morgan was one of Hollywood’s cornerstone character actors. He shared the silver screen with legends.
Inherit the Wind with Spencer Tracy and Fredric March.
High Noon with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly.
The Glenn Miller Story with Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson.
The Shootist with John Wayne.
Frankie and Johnny with Elvis Presley.
Support Your Local Sheriff with James Garner.
Dragnet with Tom Hanks and Dan Aykroyd. In Dragnet, Morgan reprises his role of Bill Gannon from the television series of the same name in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Gannon has climbed the ranks to become a police captain.
Morgan played Pete Porter in the television series December Bride and its spinoff -- Pete & Gladys. He also played Judge Bell in the trio of 1990’s Incident tv-movies starring Walter Matthau -- The Incident, Against Her Will: An Incident in Baltimore, Incident in a Small Town.
But Harry Morgan’s role of the authoritative, compassionate, and wise Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H is likely the role most identified with Morgan. Potter is Morgan’s signature character.
Morgan had big shoes to fill. When M*A*S*H producers killed off Colonel Henry Blake in the spring of 1975, the creative decision sparked shock, dismay, and even outrage. Who ever heard of a show killing a major, beloved, and valuable character? Blake’s death offered no chance for a spinoff, return appearance, or revival.
While McLean Stevenson’s popularity soared as the affable, bumbling, and concerned Colonel Blake who was also one of the guys, Harry Morgan won the respect of fans by playing Colonel Potter with dignity, understanding, and a voice of experience.
Potter led Hawkeye, B.J. and the rest of the M*A*S*H 4077th, but he never talked down to them. He was a Regular Army style solider but he ignored the rules and regulations if they interfered with treating wounded soldiers.
Potter was a combat veteran who became a doctor. But he never forgot the courage of soldiers in the field.
In a vicious ocean of injury, violence, and death, Morgan’s Colonel Potter was the calm oasis of experience, wisdom, and compassion.
Harry Morgan actually made a pre-Potter appearance on M*A*S*H. In the third season premiere -- The General Flipped At Dawn -- he plays General Steele, a half-crazed general. Morgan received an Emmy nomination for his guest appearance in this episode that kicked off the 1975-76 season.
For his role as Colonel Potter, Morgan received eight nominations for Best Supporting Actor. He won once. He also received an Emmy nomination for Best Director.
Harry Morgan continued playing Colonel Potter in the sequel After M*A*S*H. The show is set in a stateside Veterans Administration hospital in Missouri. Jamie Farr and William Christopher joined Morgan to continue their roles as Max Klinger and Father Mulcahy respectively.
After After M*A*S*H, Morgan mostly enjoyed guest appearances on television shows -- The Jeff Foxworthy Show, Grace Under Fire, Third Rock from the Sun, and The Simpsons.
On The Simpsons, Morgan once again reprised his role of Bill Gannon.
TV Doctors
October 09, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
A medical situation forces you to seek the insight of a doctor.
In the televerse, you have many choices.
For a heart problem, you might go to St. Eligius Hospital in Boston and meet with Dr. Mark Craig. Egotist. Patrician. And an expert cardiac surgeon who even developed his own version of an artificial heart.
Perhaps you will go to San Francisco Memorial Hospital and seek the advice of Trapper John, M.D. John McIntrye has been battle tested in surgery, in a matter of speaking. He operated on Korean War soliders at the M*A*S*H 4077th.
If it’s a kind father figure with a good bedside manner you seek, then Marcus Welby is your man. I you think the exterior to his home and office looks a lot like the exterior of the home of Wally and Beaver Cleaver, you’d be right. They’re identical because the houses are one and the same.
You may want a doctor’s practice with a one-stop-shopping approach.
Look no further than the Oceanside Wellness Center in Santa Monica.
Formerly of Seattle Grace Hospital, Addison Montgomery is an OB/GYN and a neo-natal surgeon.
You’ll also find an alternative medicine specialist who used to work in the Doctors Without Borders program, a fertility specialist, an internal medicine specialist, a psychiatrist, and a pediatrician.
The aforementioned Seattle Grace Hospital is home base for one of the country’s leading neurosurgeons -- Dr. Derek Shepherd. By the way, his paramour is Dr. Meredith Grey. Dr. Grey’s mother was a groundbreaking doctor.
If you are in south Florida and you need a children’s doctor, you may want to visit Dr. Harry Weston, pediatrician and neighbor of Blanche, Rose, Sophia, and Dorothy, a.k.a. the Golden Girls.
In an emergency situation, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better team than the one at Rampart Hospital in Los Angeles.
Starting with paramedics Roy DeSoto and John Gage of Engine 51, the team consistently shows how to perform successfully in pressure situations. Engine 51’s Rampart Hospital counterparts consist of Dr. Joe Early, Dr. Kelly Brackett, and the incomparable, beautiful, and inspiring Dixie McCall, nurse extraordinaire.
Also in southern California are young Dr. Joe Gannon and his mentor, Dr. Paul Lochner. They work at a university hospital. We just say they work at Medical Center.
You will find the young doctor / senior doctor paradigm a constant in the televerse. Trapper John and Gonzo Gates at San Francisco Memorial Hospital. Dr. Ben Casey and Dr. David Zorba at County General. Dr. James Kildare and Dr. Leonard Gillespie at yet another large metropolitan hospital.
Dr. Perry Cox leads a team of dedicated, sometimes goofy doctors at Sacred Heart Hospital in an unnamed metropolis.
But don’t let Dr. Cox’s crass treatment of the younger doctors throw you off balance. He treats them with toughness because he wants them to be as good as he is, if that’s possible. So he rides them hard.
For the extremely intricate diagnosis, you will want to visit Dr. Gregory House at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital and his team of younger doctors.
Dr. House specializes in the seemingly impossible diagnosis, though his all-around blunt, sometimes caustic manner may throw off patients and doctors alike, even those who are his friends.
But his commitment to treating the patient and defeating the condition, illness, or disease is unparalleled.
In Chicago, you can visit a group of talented, unappreciated, and undervalued emergency room doctors at Cook County General Hospital -- Dr. Peter Benton, Dr. John Carter, Dr. Doug Ross, Dr. Mark Greene, Dr. Kerry Weaver.
Also in Chicago, you can visit the smaller ER staffed by Dr. Howard Sheinfeld and Dr. Eve Sheridan at Clark Street Hospital or the glossier Chicago Hope Hospital.
No matter what your ailment, you will find doctors throughout the televerse.
They are experts.
They are dedicated.
And they might even tell you that laughter is the best medicine.
david@davidkrell.com
A medical situation forces you to seek the insight of a doctor.
In the televerse, you have many choices.
For a heart problem, you might go to St. Eligius Hospital in Boston and meet with Dr. Mark Craig. Egotist. Patrician. And an expert cardiac surgeon who even developed his own version of an artificial heart.
Perhaps you will go to San Francisco Memorial Hospital and seek the advice of Trapper John, M.D. John McIntrye has been battle tested in surgery, in a matter of speaking. He operated on Korean War soliders at the M*A*S*H 4077th.
If it’s a kind father figure with a good bedside manner you seek, then Marcus Welby is your man. I you think the exterior to his home and office looks a lot like the exterior of the home of Wally and Beaver Cleaver, you’d be right. They’re identical because the houses are one and the same.
You may want a doctor’s practice with a one-stop-shopping approach.
Look no further than the Oceanside Wellness Center in Santa Monica.
Formerly of Seattle Grace Hospital, Addison Montgomery is an OB/GYN and a neo-natal surgeon.
You’ll also find an alternative medicine specialist who used to work in the Doctors Without Borders program, a fertility specialist, an internal medicine specialist, a psychiatrist, and a pediatrician.
The aforementioned Seattle Grace Hospital is home base for one of the country’s leading neurosurgeons -- Dr. Derek Shepherd. By the way, his paramour is Dr. Meredith Grey. Dr. Grey’s mother was a groundbreaking doctor.
If you are in south Florida and you need a children’s doctor, you may want to visit Dr. Harry Weston, pediatrician and neighbor of Blanche, Rose, Sophia, and Dorothy, a.k.a. the Golden Girls.
In an emergency situation, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better team than the one at Rampart Hospital in Los Angeles.
Starting with paramedics Roy DeSoto and John Gage of Engine 51, the team consistently shows how to perform successfully in pressure situations. Engine 51’s Rampart Hospital counterparts consist of Dr. Joe Early, Dr. Kelly Brackett, and the incomparable, beautiful, and inspiring Dixie McCall, nurse extraordinaire.
Also in southern California are young Dr. Joe Gannon and his mentor, Dr. Paul Lochner. They work at a university hospital. We just say they work at Medical Center.
You will find the young doctor / senior doctor paradigm a constant in the televerse. Trapper John and Gonzo Gates at San Francisco Memorial Hospital. Dr. Ben Casey and Dr. David Zorba at County General. Dr. James Kildare and Dr. Leonard Gillespie at yet another large metropolitan hospital.
Dr. Perry Cox leads a team of dedicated, sometimes goofy doctors at Sacred Heart Hospital in an unnamed metropolis.
But don’t let Dr. Cox’s crass treatment of the younger doctors throw you off balance. He treats them with toughness because he wants them to be as good as he is, if that’s possible. So he rides them hard.
For the extremely intricate diagnosis, you will want to visit Dr. Gregory House at Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital and his team of younger doctors.
Dr. House specializes in the seemingly impossible diagnosis, though his all-around blunt, sometimes caustic manner may throw off patients and doctors alike, even those who are his friends.
But his commitment to treating the patient and defeating the condition, illness, or disease is unparalleled.
In Chicago, you can visit a group of talented, unappreciated, and undervalued emergency room doctors at Cook County General Hospital -- Dr. Peter Benton, Dr. John Carter, Dr. Doug Ross, Dr. Mark Greene, Dr. Kerry Weaver.
Also in Chicago, you can visit the smaller ER staffed by Dr. Howard Sheinfeld and Dr. Eve Sheridan at Clark Street Hospital or the glossier Chicago Hope Hospital.
No matter what your ailment, you will find doctors throughout the televerse.
They are experts.
They are dedicated.
And they might even tell you that laughter is the best medicine.
Dr. Sidney Freedman
October 02, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
The doctors at the M*A*S*H 4077th bandaged limbs, tended to wounds, and operated on organs torn apart by grenades, bullets, and shrapnel. Beyond the physical wounds were mental injuries. To treat them, the M*A*S*H doctors called in their secret weapon -- Dr. Sidney Freedman.
With understanding, patience, and calm, Sidney went into the most mysterious part of the human body -- the mind.
In the M*A*S*H episode Pressure Points, Colonel Potter calls Sidney down to the 4077th for a special patient -- Colonel Potter himself.
Reluctant to discuss his concerns at first, Potter eventually opens up to Sidney thanks to the psychiatrist’s gentle strength in dealing with matters of the mind.
Potter’s afraid of growing old and losing his surgical skills.
Sidney tells him that his fears will eventually become real. He encourages Potter to accept his current challenge of leading war time doctors without worrying so much about the future.
In Bless You, Hawkeye, Sidney counsels Hawkeye. The star surgeon is suffering from an unknown illness.
Sweating profusely, constantly sneezing, and violently scratching itches, Hawkeye is a walking wreck with no diagnosis in sight.
When Potter calls in Sidney Freedman, he gets to the heart of the matter.
Typically, the problem is rooted in childhood. Hawkeye begins his conversation with Sidney by saying that he is swimming in cold sweat. He then talks about his hometown, Crabapple Cove, Maine as if it were a tidal wave of Americana. He goes on to talk about the big brother he never had -- his older cousin Billy.
Sidney quickly sees that Hawkeye’s problem stems from a childhood incident when Billy saved Hawkeye after the latter fell from the cousins’ fishing boat into the pond. But Hawkeye reversed the event in his mind. Sidney guides him to reveal the reality that Billy pushed Hawkeye into the pond. Hawkeye did not fall into the pond accidentally.
Hawkeye unconsciously provided clues to Sidney with water analyses -- swimming in cold sweat, tidal wave of Americana. The trigger for the current problem was an odor. After the incident, Hawkeye came home smelling like a wet burlap sack. It was the exact analogy he used to describe one of his patients on the operating table.
After Hawkeye’s highly emotional breakthrough and subsequent realization of the incident, the illness disappears.
Sidney wrote a letter to Sigmund Freud in the episode Dear Sigmund. He explained happenings at the 4077th. Letter writing was a popular theme for M*A*S*H. Characters voiced their letters for the audience over scenes. The verbalization served as a narrative for the audience.
For example, Hawkeye wrote letters to his dad. Klinger wrote a letter to his uncle. Potter wrote a letter to his wife.
In the episode War of Nerves, Father Mulcahy talks to Sidney about a friend. This friend his causing concern for the gentle priest. The friend is Sidney.
Sidney reveals his distress that when he has lost a patient, he has lost a mind. In contrast, when the surgeons lose a patient, they lose a body. Father Mulcahy points out that when he loses someone, he loses a soul.
Perhaps Sidney’s greatest case was Hawkeye’s breakdown in the final episode -- Goodbye, Farewell, Amen.
Through persistence, Sidney peels back the layers of the incident that sparked Hawkeye’s breakdown.
On a return bus trip from a July 4th holiday at the beach, a local Korean woman smothered her chicken to keep it quiet. As in Bless You, Hawkeye, Hawkeye alters the incident. The bus stops because of a mechanical glitch. The woman smothered her baby because the baby’s crying could reveal the position of the bus to enemy soldiers.
Again, Sidney guides Hawkeye through a torturous, volatile, and eventual cathartic trip.
Dr. Sidney Freedman. Counselor. Listener. Psychiatrist.
One of his best lines was his last line on the series.
Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice.
Pull down your pants and slide on the ice.
david@davidkrell.com
The doctors at the M*A*S*H 4077th bandaged limbs, tended to wounds, and operated on organs torn apart by grenades, bullets, and shrapnel. Beyond the physical wounds were mental injuries. To treat them, the M*A*S*H doctors called in their secret weapon -- Dr. Sidney Freedman.
With understanding, patience, and calm, Sidney went into the most mysterious part of the human body -- the mind.
In the M*A*S*H episode Pressure Points, Colonel Potter calls Sidney down to the 4077th for a special patient -- Colonel Potter himself.
Reluctant to discuss his concerns at first, Potter eventually opens up to Sidney thanks to the psychiatrist’s gentle strength in dealing with matters of the mind.
Potter’s afraid of growing old and losing his surgical skills.
Sidney tells him that his fears will eventually become real. He encourages Potter to accept his current challenge of leading war time doctors without worrying so much about the future.
In Bless You, Hawkeye, Sidney counsels Hawkeye. The star surgeon is suffering from an unknown illness.
Sweating profusely, constantly sneezing, and violently scratching itches, Hawkeye is a walking wreck with no diagnosis in sight.
When Potter calls in Sidney Freedman, he gets to the heart of the matter.
Typically, the problem is rooted in childhood. Hawkeye begins his conversation with Sidney by saying that he is swimming in cold sweat. He then talks about his hometown, Crabapple Cove, Maine as if it were a tidal wave of Americana. He goes on to talk about the big brother he never had -- his older cousin Billy.
Sidney quickly sees that Hawkeye’s problem stems from a childhood incident when Billy saved Hawkeye after the latter fell from the cousins’ fishing boat into the pond. But Hawkeye reversed the event in his mind. Sidney guides him to reveal the reality that Billy pushed Hawkeye into the pond. Hawkeye did not fall into the pond accidentally.
Hawkeye unconsciously provided clues to Sidney with water analyses -- swimming in cold sweat, tidal wave of Americana. The trigger for the current problem was an odor. After the incident, Hawkeye came home smelling like a wet burlap sack. It was the exact analogy he used to describe one of his patients on the operating table.
After Hawkeye’s highly emotional breakthrough and subsequent realization of the incident, the illness disappears.
Sidney wrote a letter to Sigmund Freud in the episode Dear Sigmund. He explained happenings at the 4077th. Letter writing was a popular theme for M*A*S*H. Characters voiced their letters for the audience over scenes. The verbalization served as a narrative for the audience.
For example, Hawkeye wrote letters to his dad. Klinger wrote a letter to his uncle. Potter wrote a letter to his wife.
In the episode War of Nerves, Father Mulcahy talks to Sidney about a friend. This friend his causing concern for the gentle priest. The friend is Sidney.
Sidney reveals his distress that when he has lost a patient, he has lost a mind. In contrast, when the surgeons lose a patient, they lose a body. Father Mulcahy points out that when he loses someone, he loses a soul.
Perhaps Sidney’s greatest case was Hawkeye’s breakdown in the final episode -- Goodbye, Farewell, Amen.
Through persistence, Sidney peels back the layers of the incident that sparked Hawkeye’s breakdown.
On a return bus trip from a July 4th holiday at the beach, a local Korean woman smothered her chicken to keep it quiet. As in Bless You, Hawkeye, Hawkeye alters the incident. The bus stops because of a mechanical glitch. The woman smothered her baby because the baby’s crying could reveal the position of the bus to enemy soldiers.
Again, Sidney guides Hawkeye through a torturous, volatile, and eventual cathartic trip.
Dr. Sidney Freedman. Counselor. Listener. Psychiatrist.
One of his best lines was his last line on the series.
Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice.
Pull down your pants and slide on the ice.
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 Ultimate TV Network
July 21, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
If I created the ultimate television network, the prime time program lineup would probably look like this:
On Sunday, I would start with the legends. I Love Lucy at 8:00pm followed by The Jack Benny Program at 8:30pm.
The pairing makes sense since Lucille Ball and Jack Benny were not only show business icons, but also neighbors in real life. They lived next door to each other on North Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills.
Then, we turn to the rural heavyweights. The Andy Griffith Show at 9:00pm and The Beverly Hillbillies at 9:30pm.
Sunday nights should be nice and easy, after all. And what's nicer and easier than our friends in Mayberry and the hillbilly transplants to the land of Rodeo Drive?
At 10:00pm, The Sopranos.
On Monday nights, I would pair The Dick Van Dyke Show and Mary Tyler Moore in the 8 o'clock hour, followed by M*A*S*H and Murphy Brown in the 9 o'clock hour.
At 10:00pm, St. Elsewhere.
Tuesday nights would start with family comedy. The Cosby Show and Family Ties 8:00pm and 8:30pm respectively.
Everybody Loves Raymond at 9:00pm and Two and a Half Men at 9:30pm.
At 10:00pm, Law & Order.
Wednesday nights would start with sophistication.
Frasier at 8:00pm and The Odd Couple at 8:30pm. I'm sure Felix Unger would have enjoyed talking wine, opera, and art with the Crane brothers.
The 9 o'clock hour would consist of You'll Never Get Rich starring Phil Silvers as Sergeant Bilko and The Twilight Zone.
At 10:00pm, Hill Street Blues.
Of course, Thursday nights would truly be Must See TV with Cheers, Taxi, Seinfeld, and Friends followed by ER at 10:00pm.
Friday night would be another family-friendly night, starting with The Brady Bunch at 8:00pm and The Wonder Years at 8:30pm.
At 9:00pm, Friday Night Lights, a depiction of a west Texas town obsessed with high school football.
At 10:00pm, The Wire.
Saturday night begins with cartoons.
The Simpsons at 8:00pm and King of the Hill at 8:30pm.
The Honeymooners at 9:00pm and Curb Your Enthusiasm at 9:30pm.
At 10:00pm, Homicide: Life on the Street, an undervalued, underrated, and underwatched program during its tenure on NBC in the 1990's.
Reasonable minds can differ.
Should Happy Days be in the lineup instead of The Brady Bunch?
What about L.A. Law, thirtysomething, Scrubs, or All in the Family?
What's the standard for making the linuep?
All good questions.
For now, it's merely instinctive.
Programs can be replaced.
Or I can start another network.
david@davidkrell.com
If I created the ultimate television network, the prime time program lineup would probably look like this:
On Sunday, I would start with the legends. I Love Lucy at 8:00pm followed by The Jack Benny Program at 8:30pm.
The pairing makes sense since Lucille Ball and Jack Benny were not only show business icons, but also neighbors in real life. They lived next door to each other on North Roxbury Drive in Beverly Hills.
Then, we turn to the rural heavyweights. The Andy Griffith Show at 9:00pm and The Beverly Hillbillies at 9:30pm.
Sunday nights should be nice and easy, after all. And what's nicer and easier than our friends in Mayberry and the hillbilly transplants to the land of Rodeo Drive?
At 10:00pm, The Sopranos.
On Monday nights, I would pair The Dick Van Dyke Show and Mary Tyler Moore in the 8 o'clock hour, followed by M*A*S*H and Murphy Brown in the 9 o'clock hour.
At 10:00pm, St. Elsewhere.
Tuesday nights would start with family comedy. The Cosby Show and Family Ties 8:00pm and 8:30pm respectively.
Everybody Loves Raymond at 9:00pm and Two and a Half Men at 9:30pm.
At 10:00pm, Law & Order.
Wednesday nights would start with sophistication.
Frasier at 8:00pm and The Odd Couple at 8:30pm. I'm sure Felix Unger would have enjoyed talking wine, opera, and art with the Crane brothers.
The 9 o'clock hour would consist of You'll Never Get Rich starring Phil Silvers as Sergeant Bilko and The Twilight Zone.
At 10:00pm, Hill Street Blues.
Of course, Thursday nights would truly be Must See TV with Cheers, Taxi, Seinfeld, and Friends followed by ER at 10:00pm.
Friday night would be another family-friendly night, starting with The Brady Bunch at 8:00pm and The Wonder Years at 8:30pm.
At 9:00pm, Friday Night Lights, a depiction of a west Texas town obsessed with high school football.
At 10:00pm, The Wire.
Saturday night begins with cartoons.
The Simpsons at 8:00pm and King of the Hill at 8:30pm.
The Honeymooners at 9:00pm and Curb Your Enthusiasm at 9:30pm.
At 10:00pm, Homicide: Life on the Street, an undervalued, underrated, and underwatched program during its tenure on NBC in the 1990's.
Reasonable minds can differ.
Should Happy Days be in the lineup instead of The Brady Bunch?
What about L.A. Law, thirtysomething, Scrubs, or All in the Family?
What's the standard for making the linuep?
All good questions.
For now, it's merely instinctive.
Programs can be replaced.
Or I can start another network.
The General Flipped At Dawn
July 14, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
M*A*S*H had a terrific roster of guest stars during its eleven-year run on CBS.
Ron Howard.
Laurence Fishburne.
And Harry Morgan, to name just three.
Harry Morgan?
Didn't he play Colonel Potter?
Yes, but he also appeared as a guest star in the third-season episode The General Flipped At Dawn in 1974.
In this episode, Morgan plays General Hamilton Steele, a no-nonsense, Regular Army, military disciplinarian who inspects the 4077th.
Steele quotes great generals to inspire Colonel Blake.
Of course, the quotes are fictional and sometimes ridiculous.
Indeed, General Steele is in his own world.
While reviewing the troops, he tells Father Mulcahy that he'd like to see a shine on the cross that the 4077th's chaplain wears.
And when Klinger comes to the lineup dressed like a woman to convince the general that he's a candidate for a Section 8 discharge, General Steele dismissed him by saying, Not now Marjorie, I'm inspecting the troops.
It leaves Klinger with a terribly confused look on his face. Where Klinger usually gets wisecracks upon being dismissed, the general actually thinks Klinger is someone named Marjorie, perhaps his wife.
The conflict in the episode stems from Steele's order to move the M*A*S*H 4077th unit to a location closer to the front.
You do your best business on Main Street, says Steele.
He also says, MASH means Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, and mobile you shall be.
Unfortunately, General Steele needs a helicopter to view the move at the same time that Dr. Hawkeye Pierce needs a helicopter to transport a patient to Tokyo for further medical treatment.
A shouting match leads to Hawkeye telling the general that he's nuts.
And a court martial of Hawkeye ensues with disastrous results for the general after he makes inappropriate comments to the black helicopter pilot during the hearing.
But that doesn't stop General Steele. He gets a promotion.
Teddy Wilson played the helicopter pilot. He reunited with Harry Morgan in 1987 for the short-lived television series You Can't Take It With You.
The General Flipped At Dawn is an interesting episode.
It shows the great range of Harry Morgan.
Where he plays Potter as wise, compassionate, and avuncular, he plays Steele as single-minded -- his way or the highway.
But instead of making him a caricature, Morgan makes him a realistic character unafraid to use his authority, befuddled and clueless though he may be.
For M*A*S*H fans, The General Flipped At Dawn has historical importance because of Morgan's pre-Potter appearance. And it has entertainment value that puts the episode among the most noteworthy M*A*S*H episodes.
david@davidkrell.com
M*A*S*H had a terrific roster of guest stars during its eleven-year run on CBS.
Ron Howard.
Laurence Fishburne.
And Harry Morgan, to name just three.
Harry Morgan?
Didn't he play Colonel Potter?
Yes, but he also appeared as a guest star in the third-season episode The General Flipped At Dawn in 1974.
In this episode, Morgan plays General Hamilton Steele, a no-nonsense, Regular Army, military disciplinarian who inspects the 4077th.
Steele quotes great generals to inspire Colonel Blake.
Of course, the quotes are fictional and sometimes ridiculous.
Indeed, General Steele is in his own world.
While reviewing the troops, he tells Father Mulcahy that he'd like to see a shine on the cross that the 4077th's chaplain wears.
And when Klinger comes to the lineup dressed like a woman to convince the general that he's a candidate for a Section 8 discharge, General Steele dismissed him by saying, Not now Marjorie, I'm inspecting the troops.
It leaves Klinger with a terribly confused look on his face. Where Klinger usually gets wisecracks upon being dismissed, the general actually thinks Klinger is someone named Marjorie, perhaps his wife.
The conflict in the episode stems from Steele's order to move the M*A*S*H 4077th unit to a location closer to the front.
You do your best business on Main Street, says Steele.
He also says, MASH means Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, and mobile you shall be.
Unfortunately, General Steele needs a helicopter to view the move at the same time that Dr. Hawkeye Pierce needs a helicopter to transport a patient to Tokyo for further medical treatment.
A shouting match leads to Hawkeye telling the general that he's nuts.
And a court martial of Hawkeye ensues with disastrous results for the general after he makes inappropriate comments to the black helicopter pilot during the hearing.
But that doesn't stop General Steele. He gets a promotion.
Teddy Wilson played the helicopter pilot. He reunited with Harry Morgan in 1987 for the short-lived television series You Can't Take It With You.
The General Flipped At Dawn is an interesting episode.
It shows the great range of Harry Morgan.
Where he plays Potter as wise, compassionate, and avuncular, he plays Steele as single-minded -- his way or the highway.
But instead of making him a caricature, Morgan makes him a realistic character unafraid to use his authority, befuddled and clueless though he may be.
For M*A*S*H fans, The General Flipped At Dawn has historical importance because of Morgan's pre-Potter appearance. And it has entertainment value that puts the episode among the most noteworthy M*A*S*H episodes.
Boston TV
June 03, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
Boston is a terrific site for television programs.
Where do you go when you want to be where you can see the troubles are all the same and everybody knows your name?
Cheers in Boston -- Cheers.
Where do you go when you want to hire Spenser, the private investigator?
A revamped firehouse turned living quarters in Boston -- Spenser: For Hire.
Where do you go when you need Dr. Marc Craig, an egotistical, egocentric, and egomaniacal heart surgeon who is also a leader in the field of cardiac care?
St. Eligius Hospital in Boston -- St. Elsewhere.
Goodnight Beantown is also set in Boston. This mid-1980's sitcom revolved around a male-female television news anchor team played by Bill Bixby and Mariette Hartley.
Boston Common enjoyed a coveted role on NBC's Thursday night Must See TV lineup in the mid-1990's. The show features stand up comedian Anthony Clark, familiar to fans of Yes, Dear as good-natured, hard-working, and fun-lacking Greg Warner.
Crossing Jordan stars Jill Hennessy of Law & Order fame as a coroner who goes beyond the obvious to solve crimes. The show exists in the same televerse as Las Vegas.
David Kelley's legal trifecta of Ally McBeal, The Practice, and Boston Legal takes place in Kelley's old stomping grounds of Boston. One can trace Kelley's creative roots in the Boston law genre to his 1987 movie From the Hip starring Judd Nelson.
Kelley also created Boston Public, a show about a high school that enjoyed a crossover with The Practice as did Ally McBeal.
George Peppard plays the title role in Banacek, a 1970's show on NBC about an insurance investigator in Boston who receives a percentage of a property's value upon recovering it after a theft.
Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place, later simply named Two Guys and a Girl, centers around...well, the title says it all. Three platonic twentysomething friends share misadventures, advice, and problems, in college and thereafter.
For the younger set, the Disney Channel's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody takes place in the fictional Tipton Hotel in Boston. Twin boys, Zack and Cody, live in a hotel because their mom is the headline singer and the residence is part of the contract.
HBO made a first in 2006 when it aired its first sitcom, the adult-themed, Boston-set Lucky Louie featuring stand up comedian Louis C. K.
Beyond the racy language, adult themes, and spare apartment set lay a working-class basis that parallels All in the Family and The Honeymooners.
Lucky Louie only aired six episodes in the summer of '06.
Boston is the setting for later episodes of Dawson's Creek when the core characters attend college.
And even though we never saw Boston through his eyes, we certainly heard about it from his nostalgic recounts, the Boston revered by Major Charles Emerson Winchester III on M*A*S*H.
Boston is a great sports town.
Boston is a great history town.
And Boston is a great television town.
david@davidkrell.com
Boston is a terrific site for television programs.
Where do you go when you want to be where you can see the troubles are all the same and everybody knows your name?
Cheers in Boston -- Cheers.
Where do you go when you want to hire Spenser, the private investigator?
A revamped firehouse turned living quarters in Boston -- Spenser: For Hire.
Where do you go when you need Dr. Marc Craig, an egotistical, egocentric, and egomaniacal heart surgeon who is also a leader in the field of cardiac care?
St. Eligius Hospital in Boston -- St. Elsewhere.
Goodnight Beantown is also set in Boston. This mid-1980's sitcom revolved around a male-female television news anchor team played by Bill Bixby and Mariette Hartley.
Boston Common enjoyed a coveted role on NBC's Thursday night Must See TV lineup in the mid-1990's. The show features stand up comedian Anthony Clark, familiar to fans of Yes, Dear as good-natured, hard-working, and fun-lacking Greg Warner.
Crossing Jordan stars Jill Hennessy of Law & Order fame as a coroner who goes beyond the obvious to solve crimes. The show exists in the same televerse as Las Vegas.
David Kelley's legal trifecta of Ally McBeal, The Practice, and Boston Legal takes place in Kelley's old stomping grounds of Boston. One can trace Kelley's creative roots in the Boston law genre to his 1987 movie From the Hip starring Judd Nelson.
Kelley also created Boston Public, a show about a high school that enjoyed a crossover with The Practice as did Ally McBeal.
George Peppard plays the title role in Banacek, a 1970's show on NBC about an insurance investigator in Boston who receives a percentage of a property's value upon recovering it after a theft.
Two Guys, a Girl, and a Pizza Place, later simply named Two Guys and a Girl, centers around...well, the title says it all. Three platonic twentysomething friends share misadventures, advice, and problems, in college and thereafter.
For the younger set, the Disney Channel's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody takes place in the fictional Tipton Hotel in Boston. Twin boys, Zack and Cody, live in a hotel because their mom is the headline singer and the residence is part of the contract.
HBO made a first in 2006 when it aired its first sitcom, the adult-themed, Boston-set Lucky Louie featuring stand up comedian Louis C. K.
Beyond the racy language, adult themes, and spare apartment set lay a working-class basis that parallels All in the Family and The Honeymooners.
Lucky Louie only aired six episodes in the summer of '06.
Boston is the setting for later episodes of Dawson's Creek when the core characters attend college.
And even though we never saw Boston through his eyes, we certainly heard about it from his nostalgic recounts, the Boston revered by Major Charles Emerson Winchester III on M*A*S*H.
Boston is a great sports town.
Boston is a great history town.
And Boston is a great television town.
Captain Tuttle
April 21, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
M*A*S*H had several memorable characters.
Klinger and his women’s clothes.
Hawkeye and his sarcastic wit.
Charles and his superiority complex.
But one of the most memorable characters in the environs of the 4077th is one who never really existed.
In the episode Tuttle, Trapper John and Hawkeye create a file for Jonathan Tuttle, a fictitious doctor whose name Hawkeye uses to authorize donation of supplies to Sister Teresa for her orphanage.
Word soon spreads around camp about this new Jonathan Tuttle.
Thanks to Radar, Colonel Blake is convinced that he has meals with Tuttle.
Frank Burns starts playing camp politics and says that Tuttle is a friend.
And Hot Lips and Frank demand to see the personnel file.
Hawkeye and Trapper John go to work and flesh out the details of one U.S. Army Captain, Dr. Jonathan Tuttle.
Born in 1924.
Hometown, Battle Creek Michigan.
Parents, Harry and Freeda.
And for medical school, Trapper John suggests Harvard, however, Hawkeye wisely suggests that they can’t use a school that can be checked.
Trapper’s response: Berlin Polytechnic.
Always the benevolent one, Hawkeye says, Now a little something for Hot Lips. Height, Six-Four. Weight, 195 pounds. Hair, auburn. Eyes, hazel.
Army red tape then provides Captain Tuttle with months of back pay. While under an operating mask, Hawkeye says that he’s Jonathan Tuttle and signs the appropriate documents brought to the M*A*S*H 4077th by the officer assigned to this particular duty.
Because he’s independently wealthy, that is to say, because Captain Tuttle is independently wealthy, Hawkeye then instructs the officer who brought the paperwork to give all future pay to Sister Teresa’s orphanage.
General Clayton learns that Tuttle gave 14 months back pay to the orphanage and decides to hold a ceremony so he can give Captain Tuttle a decoration.
Hawkeye then reveals there is no Tuttle. Well, at least not anymore. He says that Captain Tuttle went to the batlle field to perform emergency medical surgery. He had everything he needed, except his parachute.
Hawkeye isn’t out of the woods yet. Colonel Blake calls on Hawkeye, the man who knew Tuttle best, to deliver the eulogy.
Naturally, Frank complains to Margaret that he knew Tuttle best.
Hawkeye says, We can all be comforted by the fact that he’s not really gone. There’s a little Tuttle left in all of us. In fact, you might say that all of us together made up Tuttle.
And we learn of one last charitable act. Hawkeye tells his colleagues that Tuttle’s GI insurance names Sister Teresa’s orphanage as the sole beneficiary.
Henry Blake tears up and the episode ends with him saying, He was the best damn OD we ever had. OD is shorthand for Officer of the Day.
In the episode’s tag, Radar questions where they got the dog tags and parachute to complete the scenario of Tuttle dying. Trapper John explains that they came from Major Murdock. Tall, skinny guy. Tuttle’s replacement.
david@davidkrell.com
M*A*S*H had several memorable characters.
Klinger and his women’s clothes.
Hawkeye and his sarcastic wit.
Charles and his superiority complex.
But one of the most memorable characters in the environs of the 4077th is one who never really existed.
In the episode Tuttle, Trapper John and Hawkeye create a file for Jonathan Tuttle, a fictitious doctor whose name Hawkeye uses to authorize donation of supplies to Sister Teresa for her orphanage.
Word soon spreads around camp about this new Jonathan Tuttle.
Thanks to Radar, Colonel Blake is convinced that he has meals with Tuttle.
Frank Burns starts playing camp politics and says that Tuttle is a friend.
And Hot Lips and Frank demand to see the personnel file.
Hawkeye and Trapper John go to work and flesh out the details of one U.S. Army Captain, Dr. Jonathan Tuttle.
Born in 1924.
Hometown, Battle Creek Michigan.
Parents, Harry and Freeda.
And for medical school, Trapper John suggests Harvard, however, Hawkeye wisely suggests that they can’t use a school that can be checked.
Trapper’s response: Berlin Polytechnic.
Always the benevolent one, Hawkeye says, Now a little something for Hot Lips. Height, Six-Four. Weight, 195 pounds. Hair, auburn. Eyes, hazel.
Army red tape then provides Captain Tuttle with months of back pay. While under an operating mask, Hawkeye says that he’s Jonathan Tuttle and signs the appropriate documents brought to the M*A*S*H 4077th by the officer assigned to this particular duty.
Because he’s independently wealthy, that is to say, because Captain Tuttle is independently wealthy, Hawkeye then instructs the officer who brought the paperwork to give all future pay to Sister Teresa’s orphanage.
General Clayton learns that Tuttle gave 14 months back pay to the orphanage and decides to hold a ceremony so he can give Captain Tuttle a decoration.
Hawkeye then reveals there is no Tuttle. Well, at least not anymore. He says that Captain Tuttle went to the batlle field to perform emergency medical surgery. He had everything he needed, except his parachute.
Hawkeye isn’t out of the woods yet. Colonel Blake calls on Hawkeye, the man who knew Tuttle best, to deliver the eulogy.
Naturally, Frank complains to Margaret that he knew Tuttle best.
Hawkeye says, We can all be comforted by the fact that he’s not really gone. There’s a little Tuttle left in all of us. In fact, you might say that all of us together made up Tuttle.
And we learn of one last charitable act. Hawkeye tells his colleagues that Tuttle’s GI insurance names Sister Teresa’s orphanage as the sole beneficiary.
Henry Blake tears up and the episode ends with him saying, He was the best damn OD we ever had. OD is shorthand for Officer of the Day.
In the episode’s tag, Radar questions where they got the dog tags and parachute to complete the scenario of Tuttle dying. Trapper John explains that they came from Major Murdock. Tall, skinny guy. Tuttle’s replacement.