Robert Pierpoint (1925-2011)

2 Comments

Many M*A*S*H fans may not recognize the name Robert Pierpoint but they should recognize his voice from “Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen” as the radio reporter announcing the end of the Korean War. Pierpoint, who passed away on Saturday (October 22nd) at the age of 86, spent more than four decades as a newscaster for CBS News. Obituaries at The New York Times, CBS News and The Los Angeles Times all discuss how Pierpoint focused on human interest stories while reporting from Korea.

Here’s audio of Pierpoint’s “cameo” from “Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen:”

My question: is this an excerpt from a vintage 1953 radio report by Pierpoint or did he record a recreation for M*A*S*H? In its obituary, The New York Times writes that “his voice reporting the Korean cease-fire for CBS Radio was used on the final episode of ‘M*A*S*H’ in 1983” while The Los Angeles Times states that his Korean war coverage was “a role he reprised when he provided his radio voice for the widely watched final episode of ‘MASH’ in 1983,” suggesting to me that it was a recreation.

(Thanks to Dan.)

2 Replies to “Robert Pierpoint (1925-2011)”

  1. I THINK… I THINK I read SOMEWHERE that the original recording of Pierpoint’s newscast wasn’t in good quality to use in GFA, so he re-recorded it specifically for the episode… but up until I read that, I assumed it was the voice of Todd Susman or Sal Viscuso, or whoever, mainly because he sounded like that Jamie Farr-sounding voice heard in very early episodes as the PA announcer (many of whom assumed WAS Jamie Farr, but Larry Gelbart has repeatedly denied it).

    1. I have read that as well, that the original was not in good shape, and so Robert Pierpoint re-recorded his actual words for clarity on the show

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