I’m reviewing every episode of AfterMASH, in original broadcast order, and asking fans to add their memories and opinions.
“Thanksgiving of ’53” (#10, 1×10)
Originally Broadcast: Monday, November 21st, 1983 from 9-9:30PM ET
Written by Ken Levine & David Isaacs
Directed by Burt Metcalfe
TV Guide Summary
[TV Guide Close-up]
The Potters celebrate their first family Thanksgiving in a dozen years. It’s not just a family affair, though. Sure, daughter Evvy, her husband Bruce and their two children are on hand, but they’re joined by the Klingers. And Father Mulcahy and his guest. That alone adds up to 10, which presents Mildred with a problem: she only has service for eight. There are always paper plates, however, and those who get the paper plates also get the comfortable chairs. But after Sherman’s quick trip to the hospital there may not even be enough chairs to go around. He brings several patients back with him; and D’Angelo sort of invites himself. In the end, and despite the indigestion, Potter is satisfied as well as sated. It is, he concludes, “the best first Thanksgiving back we’ve ever had.”
The Hartford Courant Summary
The Potters invite a few friends to Thanksgiving dinner at their home, and soon find the house bulging with unexpected guests. The holiday has special significance for the Potters, who are spending the first Thanksgiving together in 12 years, and for Klinger’s bride, Soon-Lee, who is fresh from her less affluent life in Korea.
Review
With everyone joining the Potters for Thanksgiving, it’s no surprise there’s a lot going on in this episode. Is it too much? Maybe, but it’s a solid episode that brings all the main characters together, plus most of the supporting characters. One exception, thankfully, is Alma Cox, who is nowhere to be seen. Mike D’Angelo plays a minor role in the episode, one that sees him open up about his ex-wife.
How many people end up spending Thanksgiving with the Potters? Let’s see. Klinger and Soon-Lee are there. Evelyn (the Potters’ daughter) arrives with her husband and kids. Father Mulcahy shows up with a patient from General General who spends the rest of the episode on the phone. Bob Scannell drops by unexpectedly.
Also, Potter returns from a quick visit to the hospital with Dr. Pfeiffer and three more patients in tow. Dr. Pfeiffer is overwhelmed and overjoyed by all the free food and proceeds to stuff his face. Mike D’Angelo stops by to drop off a gift and decides to stay.
Potter spends most of the episode keeping Klinger busy to avoid ruining a holiday surprise. Klinger, meanwhile, misses his family back in Toledo. Father Mulcahy walks around taking pictures using his new camera.
The big surprise turns out to be Klinger’s parents and extended family driving from Toledo to have Thanksgiving with him. It’s a nice moment but there simply isn’t enough time in the episode to allow Klinger and Soon-Lee to interact much with his family. His parents do ask if Klinger and Soon-Lee will come live with them in Toledo, but Klinger says no. He and Soon-Lee have a future in River Bend.
Notes
Alma Cox does not appear in this episode.
This episode conflicts with details about Sherman Potter’s family revealed in various M*A*S*H episodes. In the Season 4 episode “Mail Call Again,” Potter becomes a grandfather when his daughter-in-law Janine gives birth to a baby girl: Sherry Pershing Potter. In “Mail Call Three” during Season 6, Potter receives pictures of a grandson named Corey.
In the Season 11 episode “Strange Bedfellows,” Potter’s son-in-law visits the 4077th. His name is Robert “Bob” Wilson and he’s married to Potter’s daughter, Evelyn. The two have a son named Stuart.
In “Thanksgiving of ’53,” the Potters clearly have just one child, a daughter named Evelyn (or Evvy) who’s married to a man named Bruce Ennis. They have two children, a son named Corey and an unnamed baby.
The closing credits feature pictures taken by Father Mulcahy.
References to the 4077th
After talking to Soon-Lee, Mildred asks her husband if he ever ate dog in Korea. “Oh, no,” he tells her. “The locals would have the occasional Rover ragu but we never saw any. Of course, if the U.S. Army served it, it would’ve been powdered dog.”
M*A*S*H Connections
This was the fourth of 13 episodes directed by Burt Metcalfe.
This is the fourth of 13 episodes written or co-written by Ken Levine & David Isaacs.
I assume no mention of the notion from “The Party” of Klinger’s Mother not knowing he was in Korea.