M*A*S*H

When I was in college, M*A*S*H was the most watched sitcom. I don’t think anyone was studying when they played the last episode.

M*A*S*H was based on the the 1970 movie of the same name which was based on the novel M*A*S*H: A Novel About Three Army Doctors by Richard Hooker (pen name for H. Richard Hornberger). The movie starred Donald Sutherland and Elliot Gould as the two main characters. Gary Burghoff, who played Radar, was the only character to be cast in the TV series as well.

The TV Series ran from September 17, 1972 until February 28, 1983. The finale is still one of the most watched episode in US television history. The series is still played on various channels in syndication. There were a total of 251 episodes and lasted eleven years. Many of the stories were based on real-life tales.

Four characters remained on the cast for the entire production - Hawkeye (Alan Alda), Mulchay (William Christopher), Klinger (Jamie Farr) and Houlihan (Loretta Swit).

M*A*S*H did a great job of mixing comedy and drama and still allowing the viewer to be horrified by the atrocities of war. I don’t think this type of sitcom could ever be repeated with another setting.