The March 25th, 2010 episode of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy was titled “Suicide is Painless,” a clear reference to the memorable theme song from the film MASH and M*A*S*H the television series. The episode featured a flashback to a character’s experience as a medic in Iraq.

Also, during the series premiere of Miami Medical (a new drama from Jerry Bruckheimer) on CBS last night, the character played by Jeremy Northam (Dr. Matthew Proctor), referred to the Miami trauma center as “MASH in paradise.” According to the official CBS description for the episode, Northam’s character “is new to the trauma team after leaving a lucrative private practice following his return from a tour of duty in a MASH unit during the first Gulf War.” I watched the episode after hearing the line in promotional spots but don’t recall any mention of Northam’s character having worked in a MASH unit.

I’ve updated M*A*S*H References on Television accordingly.

Last night’s episode of NBC’s Community (“Investigative Journalism”) was filled with references to M*A*S*H. It was hilarious at times. I wasn’t the only one who saw the episode; Mrs. Frank Burns e-mailed me this morning saying “MASH References Galore!” I’ve embedded most of the references through Hulu, although the videos will only work in the United States and will disappear eventually. You can find a comprehensive analysis of the episode here, along with another reference from an earlier episode of Community (“Home Economics,” originally broadcast November 5th, 2009) that I watched but forgot to mention.

Mrs. Frank Burns submitted two new references, one from Roseanne, an ABC sitcom that has been off the air for more than a decade, and the other from Cashin’ In, a segment of The Cost of Freedom, a business program that airs on Fox News Channel and regularly features commentary from Wayne Rogers. Apparently, during the August 22nd episode one of the other panelists, Steve Leser, promised that should his prediction on unemployment turn out wrong (he predicts that next year it “will be below 7.5 percent”) he’ll show up dressed like Klinger. See this recap of the episode.

I’ve added both of these to M*A*S*H References on Television.

Here’s an older reference, sent to me by Emma, from an episode of 21 Jump Street, which was one of the earliest shows broadcast by FOX (it premiered in April of 1987). This particular reference took place during the March 19th, 1989 episode between two characters:

Hanson and Penhall are attempting to apprehend a young soldier hiding out in a high school. As they watch him fool about, Penhall remarks “They would have let him out of the army with a section 8… It’s that thing Klinger was always trying to get.”

I have updated M*A*S*H References on Television with this latest reference.

I watched the original V miniseries this afternoon. It was broadcast by NBC only a few months after M*A*S*H went off the air, on May 1st and May 2nd, 1983. During a scene in Part II, I noticed the following sign:

M*A*S*H Reference in V (1983)

Neat, huh? I’ve updated M*A*S*H References on Television accordingly.