- M*A*S*H
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This article is about the media franchise. For other uses, see Mash.
The signpost from the M*A*S*H set, as seen in the Smithsonian museum.[1]
M*A*S*H is a media franchise. Owned in its film and television incarnations by 20th Century Fox, the series concerns a group of fictional characters who served at the fictional "4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (M*A*S*H)" during the Korean War. The original incarnation of the series is loosely based on the real 8055th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH), and features Hawkeye Pierce as the main character. Later spin-offs involve characters who appeared in the series, but are set after the end of the war. Almost all versions of the series fit into the genre of black comedy or dramedy and involve medicine in a prominent role due to most of the main characters being doctors or nurses.
The franchise effectively ended with the conclusion of Trapper John, M.D. on September 4, 1986. As of 2011[update], there has been no further attempt to reprise the series. However, a large fanbase for the series still exists and 20th Century Fox has had notable success selling the film and seasons of the original TV series on DVD.
The M*A*S*H franchise began with the novel, MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors written by Richard Hooker based on his own experiences as a surgeon at the 8055th MASH. The novel was originally published in 1968 and was followed by several sequels.
MASH was a 1970 feature film adaptation of the original novel. The film was directed by Robert Altman and starred Donald Sutherland as Hawkeye Pierce and Elliott Gould as Trapper John McIntyre.
Contents
The TV series
Main article: M*A*S*H (TV series)M*A*S*H, a spin-off of the novel, ran from 1972 to 1983, almost three times as long as the war it chronicled. It starred Alan Alda as "Hawkeye" Pierce and Wayne Rogers as "Trapper" McIntyre. Rogers left the show after the third season and was replaced by Mike Farrell as B. J. Hunnicutt, along with veteran character actor and former Universal contract player Harry Morgan as Colonel Sherman T. Potter, who replaced McLean Stevenson the same year, who also guest-starred on an episode, the previous season.[2] This series is the most popular and well-known version of the franchise and was ranked #25 in TV Guide's "TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time."
Trapper John, M.D. featured the character of Trapper John McIntyre, played by Pernell Roberts, twenty-eight years after the events of the M*A*S*H film and television series. It was the first spin-off to feature a character from the series in civilian life after the war. Legally, Trapper John, M.D. is considered[by whom?] a spin-off of the MASH film rather than the television series. The pilot episode briefly shows a photograph of Rogers and Alda.
AfterMASH was a successor to the original M*A*S*H television series featuring Harry Morgan, Jamie Farr and William Christopher as the same characters they played in the original television series after the conclusion of the war. Gary Burghoff and Edward Winter also appeared in guest appearances. However, the show was canceled after only two seasons.
W*A*L*T*E*R was the pilot for a television series that was not picked up. It would have featured Gary Burghoff reprising the role of Walter O'Reilly, who is no longer referred to as "Radar." The pilot was shown as a "CBS Special Presentation" on July 17, 1984.
In 1973 a play by Tim Kelly based on the book, television show and movie was released, in both one-act and full versions.[3][4] The play incorporates many of the characters but omits more of the dark comedy aspects. It is occasionally produced by community theater and high school theater companies.
Cast of characters
See also
References
- ^ "M*A*S*H Signpost". National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. http://historywired.si.edu/object.cfm?ID=75. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
- ^ http://mash.wikia.com/wiki/M*A*S*H
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=59zSC4Gw7AMC
- ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=HzcyhCUk6y8C
External links
M*A*S*H Books Film TV series M*A*S*H (episodes: Season 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5 · 6 · 7 · 8 · 9 · 10 · 11; finale; guest stars) · Trapper John, M.D. · AfterMASH · W*A*L*T*E*RCharacters Hawkeye Pierce · Trapper John McIntyre · Duke Forrest · B. J. Hunnicutt · Henry Blake · Sherman T. Potter · Frank Burns · Margaret Houlihan · Charles Winchester · Radar O'Reilly · Father Mulcahy · Maxwell Klinger · Recurring charactersCategories:- Fictional hospitals
- M*A*S*H
- Media franchises
- Korean War fiction
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