Although TV’s Most Memorable Moments were not revealed during the telecast of the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards last night, the winners were announced at ABC’s Emmy website. M*A*S*H made it to the Top Five but lost to Friends, a scene from “The One Where Ross Finds Out” (originally broadcast November 9th, 1995). Other finalists in the comedy category included I Love Lucy, South Park and Seinfeld.

ABC broadcast the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards earlier this evening and despite having been off the air for twenty-five years, M*A*S*H was represented. Singer Josh Groban performed a medley of television theme songs from the past sixty years and included was a short snippet from M*A*S*H, complete with the lyrics, written for the film MASH, that were never heard during the opening credits of the series. Groban sang in an upbeat style, with a four-women chorus line behind him.

Prior to the reading of the nominees in the Outstanding Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie category, Howie Mandel introduced a short scene from the series finale of M*A*S*H, “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” (originally broadcast February 28th, 1983). In the background was a recreation of the Swamp (a variety of iconic television sets were recreated throughout the broadcast).

M*A*S*H was among the contenders for Television’s Most Memorable Moments in the comedy category. The scene in question was the dramatic and shocking announcement of Colonel Henry Blake’s death in the episode “Abyssinia, Henry” (originally broadcast March 18th, 1975). Voting was open to the public and ran from August 15th through September 15th. M*A*S*H made it into the Top Ten and the winners in both the comedy and drama categories were supposed to be announced live during the prime time telecast, but presumably were cut for time.

On August 18th, ABC and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences opened the polls and allowed fans to vote for Television’s Most Memorable Moments in two categories, Drama and Comedy/Variety (see this ABC news article). Among the initial twenty television shows in the Comedy/Variety category was M*A*S*H, for the scene in “Abyssinia, Henry” when Radar informs Hawkeye, Trapper and the rest of the surgical staff of Colonel Blake’s death.

Some time later, those forty moments were whittled down to ten in each category, with “Abyssinia, Henry” still in contention (see this ABC news article). Over 100,000 votes were cast. The voting will continue through September 15th and then, on Sunday, September 21st, during the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards telecast, the top moment in each category will be revealed.

You can vote for your favorite moment in the comedy category here. Interestingly, several of the memorable moments in the Comedy category — including the one from M*A*S*H — are actually dramatic in content.

M*A*S*H will start airing on the ION television network next week, beginning Monday, September 8th. Two episodes will be shown back-to-back from 4-5PM ET, Monday through Friday, and from 6-7PM ET Saturday and Sunday. Check the ION website to see if you get ION in your area. I have updated M*A*S*H On TV to reflect this change.

Dr. Michael E. DeBakey, the man most responsible for the creation of what eventually became the MASH unit, passed away on Friday, July 11th at the age of 99. According to a list of his accomplishments found at the Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center website:

“DeBakey volunteered for military service during World War II, and was subsequently named director of the Surgical Consultants’ Division of the U.S. Surgeon General’s office. His work in that office led to the development of mobile army surgical hospital (MASH units). He later helped establish the specialized medical and surgical center system for treating military personnel returning from war, subsequently the Veterans’ Administration Medical Center System.”

Additionally, this timeline states that, in 1945, DeBakey was “awarded Legion of Merit for developing MASH units.” According to his obituary, Dr. DeBakey performed over 60,000 heart surgeries during his career, which lasted more than 70 years and he is called “the greatest surgeon of the 20th century.”

Thanks to Eric for notifying me of Dr. DeBakey’s passing and his role in the creation of the MASH unit.

Although the television series M*A*S*H was and is fictional, the novel it was based on was written by H. Richard Hornberger, who served at a MASH unit during the Korean Conflict. Dr. DeBakey’s role in the development of the MASH unit saved countless lives during the Korean Conflict and beyond, and his subsequent career helped save even more. In the words of Dr. Peter G. Traber, “As Baylor College of Medicine’s first President, he set a standard for preeminence and never let anyone here forget the importance of leadership in academic medicine. We have lost a man who was a great physician, educator, leader and above all, a great friend.”