Zack Walkter

The TV classic M*A*S*H was about the doctors and staff stationed at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea in the early 1950s. In order to cope with the stresses of war, the gang often resorted to hijinks, frivolity and petty rivalries when off-duty. The run of this edgy “dramedy” lasted three times as long as the real-life Korean War did, and became one of the highest rated television programs of all time. Think you know everything there is to know about the acclaimed sitcom? Here are some behind-the-scenes things that the producers of the show never wanted you to know. 1. The Show Is Based On A Book M*A*S*H is based on the 1968 book MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors by Richard Hooker. GeorgeInnes.com 2. The Cast Switched Parts McLean Stevenson, who ended up playing Henry Blake, initially wanted the role of Hawkeye. QuotesGram.com 3. There Was Serious Star Power Stars including Ron Howard, Leslie Nielsen, and Patrick Swayze appeared on the series before becoming famous. Mash4077TV.com 4. The Show Kept Secrets from Its Cast Only Alan Alda knew before filming that the Henry Blake character was being killed off. girltalkhq.com 5. The Pilot Was Written Fast Writer Larry Gelbart wrote the entire pilot script in three days. FameFocus.com 6. Wayne Rogers Never Signed Wayne Rogers, who played Trapper John McIntyre, was able to leave the series at his own discretion because he never actually signed his contract. CTVNews.ca 7. One Comedian Turned Down A Role Comedian Robert Klein was offered the part of Trapper John, but turned down the part. HBO.com 8. There Were Real Soldiers On Set Jamie Farr and Alan Alda both had real military experience prior to the series. HowStuffWorks.com 9. Klinger Wasn’t Gonna Be Straight The character of Klinger, who initially was only going to appear once, was originally going to be gay. CrimeFileNews.com 10. The Laughter Grew Quieter When the series began the producers wanted to go without a laugh track to emphasize the seriousness of the subject matter. CBS refused, though allowed them to go without one of the operating room scenes. As the series wore on, the canned laughter was mixed lower and lower. Mash.Wikia.com Let's find out a little more about the creation of that beautiful theme song... Click Next for more MASH Facts! 11. The Show Was Longer Than The Actual War The Korean War lasted just about three years, but the series lasted 12 years. Shamusyoung.com 12. Alda Did It All In addition to his starring role, Alan Alda directed 31 episodes and co-wrote 13. Talk about multitasking. SeniorCityLocal.com 13. Radar’s Bear Was Sold Radar’s trademark stuffed bear was thought lost for 30 years before being found and subsequently auctioned off. The winning bidder? Radar himself, actor Gary Burghoff. Pinterest.com 14. The Time Capsule Was Found During a final season episode, the characters buried a time capsule. Months after production wrapped, a construction crew found the capsule buried where the set stood. HitFix.com 15. Loretta Swit Appeared on All But 11 Episodes Actress Loretta Swit played the sassy blonde nurse, Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan and was just one of four cast members to stay for all 11 seasons. In that amazing run, she appeared in all but 11 episodes of the 256 total. Swit’s personal favorites were “Hot Lips & Empty Arms,” “Margaret’s Engagement,” and “The Nurses.” CBS Television 16. Alda’s Accomplishments Alda won Emmys for writing, directing and acting for his work on the series — the first person to win all three for one show. Variety.com 17. The Names Are Significant The names chosen for even the smallest of characters were often significant. For example, one 1977 installment features characters named for that year’s California Angels baseball team. Metro.us 18. The Ex-Girlfriend Furthering the name connection — one character was named after a writer’s ex-girlfriend. RecapGuide.com 19. The Cast Complained A Lot As the series wore on, the actors began to complain more vocally about their storylines. In retaliation, the creative team had them act out winter scenes in heavy clothing outdoors in 90-degree weather. WeSharePics.info 20. 'W*A*L*T*E*R' TV Spinoff There was a litany of M*A*S*H spinoffs, including this one that saw Walter “Radar” O’Reilly return home after the war, lose his family, and become a cop. It only aired once. AfterMash.blogspot.com Click Next for MORE!!! :) 21. Klinger Got Lucky Klinger was only supposed to appear once. However, he was so popular with viewers that he soon became a regular character. QuotesGram.com 22. Erin, Real Life Daughter Actor Mike Farrell had his character’s daughter’s name changed to Erin as a tribute to his real-life daughter of the same name. QuotesGram.com 23. Potter’s Real Wife’s Photo The photo of Potter’s wife Mildred seen on his desk through the series is a picture of Potter actor Harry Morgan’s real wife. SheBloggedByNight.com 24. The Finale Was Not Final The legendary final episode was not the last installment to be filmed. The proceeding episode, “As Time Goes By” was actually filmed last. Mash.Wikia.com 25. Staying Close...Even After the Show Ended Loretta Swit maintained a close relationship with many of her cast mates after the show ended, especially Harry Morgan (Col. Sherman T. Potter). The two reportedly became neighbors after the series ended until Morgan’s death in 2011. Swit is still close to Alan Alda and his family. CBS Television 26. The Hat In the series’ opening credits, Alan Alda wears the style of hat that Donald Sutherland sported in the movie version. The hat never appeared in any other capacity on the show. Alamy.com 27. Klinger’s Wedding Dress Klinger’s wedding dress was worn three times: By Klinger when he married Laverne Esposito, by Margret Houlihan, when she married Lt. Col. Donald Penobscott, and by Soon Lee, when she married Klinger. Wifeo.com 28. A Vote Cast The End The cast held a vote to decide if the series should end. When a majority voted yes, the show ended. Those who voted to continue starred in the spinoff AfterMASH. Mash4077tv.com 29. Hawkeye Hated Guns Hawkeye never carried a gun on the show, and the one time he was forced to use one, he simply fired it into the air. Pinterest.com 30. Captain Tuttle In the closing credits of the episode “Tuttle,” Captain Tuttle is credited as having been played by “himself.” This is a nod to the fact that within the episode there is no Captain Tuttle, and the character is just a figment of Hawkeye’s imagination. Pinterest.com 31. Powerlines A few exterior shots have visible powerlines in the background. Producers were aware they were there but didn’t have the money to reshoot the scenes. Pinterest.com 32. Purple Hearts Several characters in the series received multiple purple hearts. This is an error, as the military only gives purple hearts for a soldier's first injury in battle. Any subsequent injuries lead to oak leaf clusters. Mash.Wikia.com 33. The Real Baker Over the course of the series, there were numerous background nurses portrayed by a variety of actresses. However, each and every one was referred to as Nurse “Baker.” Mash.Wikia.com 34. Angels On The Battlefield A 1978 episode featured a group of patients who were named after the 1978 National League Champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Mash.Wikia.com 35. Korean Actors or Lack Thereof Since the talent pool of Korean actors in Hollywood was relatively small while the series was in production, producers would often cast performers of other Asian ethnicities in Korean roles. Diacritics.org 36. The Real Korean There was one real Korean performer on the series, Soon Tek Oh, who played a variety of roles over the show’s run. SitcomsOnline.com 37. 'AfterMASH' AfterMASH starred Col. Potter, Father Mulcahy, and Klinger working at a Veterans’ Hospital after the war. The spin-off lasted two seasons. DataBlueDVD.com Credits: definition.org Now, let's check in on the cast and see what they are up to today: