M*A*S*H fan Hans is hoping someone can help solve a mystery. Does anyone remember watching episodes of M*A*S*H in the Netherlands during the 1970s, sponsored by a Dutch political party?
Hans stumbled upon the following paragraph in a Washington Post article published last December and it piqued his interest:
Stengel’s best bet was Michael M. Lynton, then the chairman of Sony Pictures, who had grown up in the Netherlands and immediately understood what Stengel was trying to do. He recalled how in the 1970s one Dutch political party sponsored episodes of “M.A.S.H.” to portray America as sympathetic to the antiwar movement. A rival party bought the rights to “All in the Family” to send the message that U.S. cities were filled with bigots like Archie Bunker.
I’m curious as well. It seems strange to me that 20th Century Fox would allow a political party in another country to use M*A*S*H to promote its views. Is it possible the political party in question purchased commercial time during M*A*S*H episodes and aired political advertisements?
Does anyone have any information that can shed light on this mystery?
