I’ve updated M*A*S*H References on Television with a reference from Mork & Mindy. Joanne originally submitted the reference, although she was a little vague, but luckily I saw the episode a few weeks ago when SCI FI Channel had a marathon:

During the episode “I Heard It Through the Morkvine,” Mork calls up information on the telephone, looking for gossip:

“Hello, information? Yes. Hi, I’d like the truth about M*A*S*H. Yes, is it true Corporal Klinger is really Danny Thomas’s sister?”

I’ve also changed the format of the page in an attempt to make it a little bit easier to read. Let me know what you think. And be sure to keep your eyes and ears open for references to M*A*S*H on television.

Pat Hingle, an actor who had a memorable role in “April Fools,” the season finale of the eighth season of M*A*S*H has died at 84 according to CNN.com. Hingle played Colonel Daniel Webster Tucker in the episode, originally broadcast March 24th, 1980, that saw Colonel Potter desperately trying to keep Hawkeye, B.J., Charles and Margaret from pulling April Fools Day pranks while Colonel Tucker is visiting the 4077th. Potter gets the last laugh, however, with the help of Tucker.

Pat Hingle as Colonel Daniel Webster Tucker

Hingle’s career dates back to 1954 when he had an uncredited role in On the Waterfront. He had guest roles in dozens of television shows, including Dr. Kildare, The Fugitive, Gunsmoke, Hawaii Five-O, Trapper John, M.D. and Murder, She Wrote. He also played Commissioner Gordon in 1989’s Batman and its three sequels.

I’ve put together a new version of my frequently asked questions (FAQ) list that actually reflects questions I’ve been asked at least once. In the past, I answered questions that I simply assumed were widely asked.

For the past few months I’ve been slowly going through a large stack of New Yorker magazines from 2004/2005 that have been sitting on my bookshelf since they were first published. In the September 5th, 2005 issue I found a short article about Alan Alda. At the time, he was wrapping up his run in David Mamet’s play Glengarry Glen Ross and his autobiography, Never Have Your Dog Stuffed And Other Things I’ve Learned, was about to be published. The article, called “Alda Onstage,” was written by Lillian Ross (it appears on page 56) and discusses the play and why Alda decided to return to the stage.

Ross also mentions Alda’s famous father, Robert Alda, and there is a lengthy quote from Alda about working alongside his father in an episode of M*A*S*H:

Six years before he died, i had an idea for a part for him in ‘M*A*S**H.’ He had always wanted to be a doctor. He had wanted me to be a doctor, too, but I couldn’t stand the idea of touching sick people. I made him an older, controlling type of surgeon, who couldn’t get along with me. In the episode, both of us were wounded; he could use only his right hand, and I only my left hand, and that way we were able to operate together. My father was delighted.

Robert Alda first appeared on M*A*S*H in a 1973 episode called “The Consultant.” He would reprise the role of Dr. Anthony Borelli in 1980 during M*A*S*H’s eighth season in “Lend a Hand,” the episode Alan Alda discusses above. Robert Alda died in 1986.

The year 2008 was the 36th anniversary of M*A*S*H premiering on CBS as well as the 25th anniversary of the series coming to a close. Time sure flies. It was a relatively slow year, with the biggest story probably being the restoration of the M*A*S*H site at the Malibu Creek State Park in California. The site was unveiled on February 23rd, 2008 (the 25th anniversary of the series finale airing) with actors Mike Farrell (B.J.), Loretta Swit (Margaret), William Christopher (Father Mulcahy) and Jeff Maxwell (Igor) in attendance alongside producers Gene Reynolds and Burt Metcalfe and frequent director Charles Dubin. Some 300 fans were also on hand to help celebrate

Also in February, W.C. Heinz, a writer who helped author Richard Hooker write his novel MASH, passed away at 93. In July, Dr. Michael E. DeBakey, who developed the mobile army surgical hospital for the United States, passed away at 99 (I didn’t report it until September).

In August, newly repackaged DVD sets of the series began appearing in stores after first being an exclusive to Costco. And in September, repeats of M*A*S*H began airing on broadcast network ION Television (joining cable channels TV Land and Hallmark Channel).

In November, Alan Alda auctioned off some of his memorabilia from the series — including an autographed copy of “Inga,” an episode he wrote, and the boots he wore throughout the series — in November to raise money for the Bob Woodruff Foundation. The boots were unable to find a buyer. And in December, one of the creator’s of M*A*S*H*, Larry Gelbart, was honored by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and inducted into its Hall of Fame.

Edited January 3rd, 2009 at 9:10AM ET

I cannot believe I forgot to include the customary quote by Colonel Potter, from “A War For All Seasons:”

“Here’s to the new year. May she be a damn sight better than the old one, and may we may we all be home before she’s over.”

It took me a little longer than I had originally planned but I’ve finally finished integrating WordPress into M*A*S*H, Finest Kind. After successfully adding WordPress to Television Obscurities I decided to do the same with this site. It makes updating a heck of a lot easier and, hopefully, means I can do so more often in the future. There are a lot of odds and ends about M*A*S*H I’ve wanted to talk about but could never find the right way to present it. Now I have a new avenue and I’m going to make the best of it. Check back often to see what I come up with.

I decided to retroactively add all of the recent updates (starting in August of 2007) to WordPress. I won’t be going back more than that, however. And so far, I haven’t allowed commenting on any of the existing articles, features or other parts of the website. I may in the future if there is interest. Comments are enabled on individual posts, however, so go to town. Please let me know if you find any broken links or images or have any problems of any kind.

I have to thank all the people at WordPress who have asked and answered questions. When I was having problems, I found plenty of help there. Simple Thought Productions created software that lets me use Jeroen Wijering’s FLV Media Player without too much trouble. Semiologic’s Subscribe Me plug-in means I don’t have to learn anything about RSS (Real Simple Syndication). And IntroSites .html Wordpress permalink on PAGES plugin (with a little tinkering) meant I could keep all the existing URLs in WordPress.