MASH4077TV.com » MAS*H

Harry Morgan’s Third to Last Appearance as Potter

RJ — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 15:30:05 +0000

When M*A*S*H came to an end after eleven seasons, Harry Morgan was one of three cast members to make the transition to AfterMASH (the others were William Christopher and Jamie Farr). The spin-off, which followed Potter, Mulcahy and Klinger as they returned to civilian life after the end of the Korean War, was cancelled less than halfway through its second season. The final episode (which was not a true series finale but simply the final episode produced) was never aired. The second-to-last episode was broadcast in May of 1984 after a five-month hiatus but unfortunately I do not have access to a copy. So, here is the final scene from the third-to-last episode of AfterMASH (“Ward is Hell,” originally aired December 4th, 1984):

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I apologize for the poor quality. For the record, in the episode, Doctor Boyer (played by David Ackroyd) develops a staph infection in his leg and is admitted to the hospital. He winds up in his own ward, under the supervision of a young intern, Doctor Caldwell (played by Tom Isbell), who is overeager to say the least. In the final scene, Potter gives Doctor Caldwell the good news that Boyer’s infection has cleared up, only to discover that Boyer has disappeared. If you’re not familiar with AfterMASH, you can read all about it here.

39 Years of MAS*H (1972-2011)

RJ — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 11:59:19 +0000

I’m three days late with this post, which is a little embarrassing, but nevertheless here we are at the 39th anniversary of M*A*S*H premiering on CBS — September 17th, 1972 to September 17th, 2011. Part of me still has a hard to believing that the 30th anniversary was almost a decade ago and that next year we will be celebrating 40 years of M*A*S*H.

Here’s the original CBS fall preview for M*A*S*H (read more about the fall preview here):

View The M*A*S*H Fall Preview

39 Years of M*A*S*H (1972-2011)

Here‘s my feature on promoting the premiere of M*A*S*H, with some rare early promotional images. And here are links to my posts about reviews of M*A*S*H from around the time it premiered:

The Chicago Tribune (advanced press preview screening, June 15th, 1972)
The Chicago Tribune (September 18th, 1972)
The Los Angeles Times (September 18th, 1972)
Montreal Gazette (September 28th, 1972)
TIME (October 16th, 1972)

Press Release for 1973 Move to Saturdays

RJ — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 01:56:02 +0000

Ever wonder why Divided We Stand, the Season Two premiere, feels like a premiere episode for a new show rather than the season premiere for a returning series? Because in many ways it was an attempt at a new premiere episode. And here’s the proof: a two page press release announcing M*A*S*H‘s upcoming move to Saturdays at 8:30PM for the 1973-1974 season, currently listed on eBay for $14.95 with free shipping. I often browse eBay looking for interesting M*A*S*H items and I came across this press release the other night (I have no connection to the seller).

1973 Press Release Heralding Move to Saturdays

Only the first page was scanned for the eBay listing and it is a little small so I’ve transcribed it:

(TIME VALUE: Sept. 15)

August 27, 1973

“M*A*S*H” Move Is Almost Like Starting New

The madcap “M*A*SH*” show is on the move this fall and it promises to provide more of its inimitable brand of absurd humor in its new time period Saturdays (8:30-9:00 PM, EDT) on the CBS Television Network.

Co-producer Gene Reynolds, enthusiastically embracing the switch to Saturdays, following “All in the Family,” another pioneer of comedy form on the Network, reports a new excitement among the cast and crew.

“It’s almost like going on the air for the first time,” he says. “Alan Alda, the other actors, the entire staff and myself are very excited about the change. We feel we will be reaching a larger and somewhat different audience. It’s very stimulating.”

In line with this feeling of reaching many unfamiliar viewers, co-producer Larry Gelbart has written a premiere episode, to be seen Saturday, Sept. 15, which will serve to reintroduce the bizarre inhabitants of the 4077th M*A*S*H unit.

The story’s premise has the commanding general worried about a possible psychological breakdown of the unit. Consequently, he assigns a psychiatrist to examine the personnel, to determine individual fitness. Thus, something is revealed about each of the zany “M*A*S*H” principals, from the rebellious Hawkeye (Alda) to the mentally suspect Klinger (Jamie Farr), whose penchant for feminine attire unnerves the psychiatrist.

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Thoughts?

1984 Sears MAS*H Pajamas

RJ — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 11:45:35 +0000

Believe it or not, I’ve had a 1984 Spring/Summer Sears catalog kicking around my basement for years. Not quite since 1984 but the better part of a decade. I looked through it a few months ago — the amount of carpeting Sears saw fit to put in bathrooms was ludicrous — and came across a set of M*A*S*H boys’ pajamas on page 322, next to similar Knight Rider and Star Wars: Return of the Jedi pajamas. Here’s a scan:

Are there any M*A*S*H fans out there who happily wore these faux scrubs pajamas to bed back in 1984?

Comments Disabled

RJ — Sat, 14 May 2011 19:49:55 +0000

I have (hopefully) disabled all comments in order to ensure that all existing comments are retained when the move to the new domain name is completed on Tuesday, May 17th. Rest assured, even though you can no longer see the comments, they still exist. I had planned to announce the new domain name but recent computer problems mean I will be working on and testing the new site basically until the very last minute. Check back on May 17th.

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