In “Dear Dad, Again,” Hawkeye recounts to his father the $50 bet he made with Trapper that he could walk to the Mess Tent from the Swamp and order lunch stark naked and nobody would notice. Strategically placed objects are used to great comic effect to cover up Alda, including the Sign Post and a piece of wood being carried by two men.

Although the camera work does a good job of making it appear that Alan Alda is only wearing his army boots and hat, thanks to the magic of the freeze frame option on the DVDs, it is obvious that Alda is wearing a pair of shorts:

In fact, it appears that he has two different pairs of shorts on, the above olive drab ones and a white pair:

Near the end of “Chief Surgeon Who?,” Hawkeye, Trapper, Colonel Blake and General Barker walk out of the O.R. and find Corporal Klinger waiting for them, rifle in hand. General Barker exclaims, “That man’s naked!” Hawkeye and Trapper are nonplussed and suggest Klinger put some clothing on as they walk off. Colonel Blake mumbles incoherently. It’s a wonderful introduction to a wonderful character.

But Klinger — and by extension Jamie Farr — wasn’t naked. As the following image shows, he’s wearing something, presumably a pair of shorts.

One has to hand it to Jamie Farr for putting up with (and putting on) a lot during his time on M*A*S*H. But no one can fault him for not actually being naked. That’s a lot to ask for what was originally a bit part.

I only have anecdotal evidence to support this — and not all that much of it — but I’m of the opinion that during the past decade M*A*S*H has picked up a lot of younger fans. Of course, the success of the series on television (cable channels FX, TV Land and The Hallmark Channel and broadcast network ION) and DVD can just as easily be attributed to people who’ve been fans of the series since the 1970s or 1980s. But it seems to me — and again, this is based on nothing more than my observations — that M*A*S*H has a fan base that similar sitcoms simply don’t. And that, in my opinion, reflects a fan base that is expanding rather than dwindling as those who watched M*A*S*H when it originally aired have aged.

Of the 63 people who have submitted entries to My First M*A*S*H, a total of 40 were born after M*A*S*H went off the air in 1983. That’s 63%. And 22 of them, or 35%, were born in the 1990s. Several gave 1995 as the year they were born. That would make them thirteen or fourteen, depending on when they sent me the entry. How do thirteen-year-old’s get interested in M*A*S*H?

Judging from the entries themselves, some had family members who watched the show and introduced them to it while others stumbled upon it all by themselves while watching TV Land or The Hallmark Channel. It helps that M*A*S*H has been shown so often on cable. The more M*A*S*H is on the air the more opportunities there are for younger viewers to find it. The same can’t be said for a lot of sitcoms; for example, you don’t see The Mary Tyler Moore Show or Maude or Three’s Company on television nearly as often as M*A*S*H.

It would be very interesting to see the demographic breakdowns for airings of M*A*S*H on TV Land, The Hallmark Channel and ION. Are younger viewers well represented or are the bulk of those watching baby boomers?

I’ve enabled comments on all of my articles (AfterMASH, Making M*A*S*H, M-U-S-H, etc.) and we’ll see if doing this leads to interesting discussions or a lot more spam. So check out the articles and if you have anything to say, now you can.

Another ten of your memorable moments are available here. Included are scenes from “Inga,” “Bug Out,” “Adam’s Ribs,” “Check-Up” and more.

It’s something that has puzzled M*A*S*H fans for decades. Who is that brunette nurse running towards the chopper pad in the opening credits? I thought I had discovered the identity of this brunette actress last year when a fan of the series e-mailed me suggesting it was Michele Lee. But a pair of articles in The Los Angeles Times from 1978 point in another direction.

In the May 26th, 1978 edition of the “TV Talkback” section of The Los Angeles Times, the following question and answer appeared:

About a month later, in the April 16th, 1978 edition of “TV Talkback,” the following exchange was printed:

Here’s a head shot of Ms. Fradella from the April 16th, 1978 edition The Los Angeles Times:

Be sure to check out my feature Nurses of the 4077th: The “Running Nurses” from the Opening Credits for information on two of the other actresses in the opening credits.

References

• “TV Talkback.” Los Angeles Times. 26 Mar. 1978: N27.
• “TV Talkback.” Los Angeles Times. 16 Apr. 1978: P4.