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M*A*S*H
M*A*S*H | |
Premiere | September 17, 1972 |
Finale | February 28, 1983 |
Airs | Weeknights at 6 PM, 6:30 PM, 7 PM & 7:30 PM and Sundays at 7 PM & 7:30 PM on MeTV |
Developed by | developed for television by Larry Gelbart |
Network/Provider | CBS |
Style | 30-minute comedic military drama |
Company | 20th Century Fox Television |
Distributor | 20th Century Fox Television (until 1989)
20th Television (1989–2020) Disney-ABC Domestic Television (2020– ) |
Seasons | 11 |
Episodes | 256 |
Origin | USA |
M*A*S*H is a series spun off from the hugely popular movie of the same name. The series revolves around MASH (or Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) 4077th in Korea during the Korean War. The show employs a unique use of the dramatic sitcom in order to drive the series with an anti-war message that is lightened by comedic performances.
Although the series was set during the Korean War, critics of the show see its anti-war message as taking jabs at the Vietnam War (which was, at the time of its premiere, still in progress) due to the attitudes of the cast members and the real-life stories from M*A*S*H surgeons adapted into the episodes. However, producers of the show have said repeatedly that the series isn't about just one war, but is about all wars.
Because of the unique style of the series, the tone changed wildly over the years. The first several seasons placed heavy emphasis on zanier, more slapstick elements but later focused heavily on serious controversy and character development. Both of these sides are prevalent throughout the series, but it is clear that the scales began to tip towards one side or the other. It has been said that Alan Alda's rising prominence in every aspect of the series led to the change in focus seen in the last several seasons and that was what caused the series to jump the shark, but that point is debatable.
The series was ended when the cast voted to let the tenth season be the last. But, when CBS and 20th Century Fox offered the cast and crew a shortened eleventh season, they jumped at the chance to end the series with a grand finale. This last season led to the final episode, Goodbye, Farewell and Amen, a two and a half hour special which was the single most watched episode in television history with nearly 106 million Americans (77% of total viewership that night) watching.
Following the finale, the series spawned three spin-offs: AfterMASH, Trapper John, M.D. and W*A*L*T*E*R (a pilot which wasn't picked up).
Contents |
Cast
Actor | Character | Duration | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Billed Cast | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | |
Alan Alda | Capt. Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * |
Wayne Rogers | Capt. "Trapper John" McIntyre | * | * | * | ||||||||
McLean Stevenson | Lt. Col. Henry Blake | * | * | * | ||||||||
Loretta Swit | Maj. Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * |
Larry Linville | Maj. Frank Burns | * | * | * | * | * | ||||||
Gary Burghoff | Cpl. Walter "Radar" O'Reilly | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | |||
Mike Farrell | Capt. B.J. Hunnicut | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | |||
Harry Morgan | Col. Sherman T. Potter | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | |||
Jamie Farr | Cpl. Maxwell "Max" Q. Klinger | o | o | o | * | * | * | * | * | * | * | * |
William Christopher | Father Francis J. Mulcahy | o | o | o | o | * | * | * | * | * | * | * |
David Ogden Stiers | Maj. Charles Emerson Winchester III | * | * | * | * | * | * | |||||
Orange/Red/o indicates a recurring or guest role during that season. Dark Green indicates top billing during that season. |
Seasons
Season | Premiere | Finale | # | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
CBS | ||||||
Season One | September 17, 1972 | March 25, 1973 | 24 | |||
Season Two | September 15, 1973 | March 2, 1974 | 24 | |||
Season Three | September 10, 1974 | March 18, 1975 | 24 | |||
Season Four | September 12, 1975 | February 24, 1976 | 25 | |||
Season Five | September 21, 1976 | March 15, 1977 | 25 | |||
Season Six | September 20, 1977 | March 27, 1978 | 25 | |||
Season Seven | September 18, 1978 | March 12, 1979 | 26 | |||
Season Eight | September 17, 1979 | March 24, 1980 | 25 | |||
Season Nine | November 17, 1980 | May 4, 1981 | 20 | |||
Season Ten | October 26, 1981 | April 12, 1982 | 22 | |||
Season Eleven | October 25, 1982 | February 21, 1983 | 16 |
In-Depth
- At a Glance: Additional information about the series
DVD Releases
Title | Release | Discs | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Complete Series (Region 1) | ||||||
Martinis and Medicine Complete Collection | November 7, 2006 | purchase | 36 | |||
Season Sets (Region 1) | ||||||
Season One | January 8, 2002 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Two | July 23, 2002 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Three | February 18, 2003 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Four | July 15, 2003 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Five | December 9, 2003 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Six | June 8, 2004 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Seven | December 7, 2004 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Eight | May 24, 2005 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Nine | December 6, 2005 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Ten | May 23, 2006 | purchase | 3 | |||
Season Eleven | November 7, 2006 | purchase | 3 |
External Sites
- Program
- CBS
- Comedy
- Dramedy
- Medical
- Military
- Sitcom
- Korea
- Period
- Korean War
- 1950s Setting
- Based on Book
- Based on Motion Picture
- TIME Magazine's 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME
- TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time
- 20th Television
- Disney-ABC Television
- 1970s
- 1980s
- 1972
- 1973
- 1974
- 1975
- 1976
- 1977
- 1978
- 1979
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- 1983
- 1972 Premieres
- 1983 Finales
- M*A*S*H