# The only M\*A\*S\*H fan.
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [May 26, 2003, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561 "2003-05-26T11:39:29Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@superstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/superstar)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/1 "2003-05-26T11:39:29Z")
Am I the only M_A_S\*H fan alive???
When people ask - as they often seem to- ‘What is your favourite TV show of all time?’ I always answer with M_A_S\*H!!!
It was the first “sit-com” (for use of a better word) NOT to contain canned laughter.
It was full of political no-no’s in reference to the war (although set during the Korean War, it was obviously sticking it to Vietnam), which constantly had the censors in a spin.
The final episode “Good-bye Farewell Amen” was for almost 20 years (and may still be?) the most watched single episode of all time.
It wasn’t afraid to break the mold in comparison to the other popular shows of the time
#Bewitched
#I Dream of Jeanie
#Gilligans Bloody Island etc.
Plus it was funny, thoughtful, and interesting. The script was brilliantly written, and the casting was spot-on. Even the original movie was ahead of it’s time. I could laugh AND cry in the same episode!
Yet I am still to find another soul who feels the same way.
Helloooo… am I crazy???
---
### Author:  [@aberge30](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aberge30)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/2 "2003-05-26T11:49:22Z")
Mash seems kind of dated now. It became a “We all love each other so much!” series. Once Trapper John left and Mr. Family Man “Mike Farrel” came onboard it lost a lot of its edge. It just went further down hill as more cast members left and they replaced them with boring “family values” type characters. The first season was a sophmoric fraternity romp, it jumped the shark right after Trapper left.
---
### Author:  [@RobuSensei](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobuSensei)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/3 "2003-05-26T12:30:12Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by superstar \*
> **It was the first “sit-com” (for use of a better word) NOT to contain canned laughter.**
Uhh…nope. When MASH was originally broadcast on CBS, it had the shortest (i.e. most repetitive), most annoying laugh track ever recorded. I can still hear it…_make it stop…_
IIRC, the BBC removed the laugh track for the benefit of British viewers, and it is for this reason that the DVD release allows you to switch it off. (thank goodness!)
---
### Author:  [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/4 "2003-05-26T12:51:13Z")
Pretty sure you’re not the only MASH fan…
Of the four shows you listed, none were really contemporaries of MASH, which ran from 1972 to 1983:
Bewitched (1964-1972)
I Dream of Jeannie (1965-1970)
Gilligan’s Island (1964-1967)
Only Bewitched was even on, and that was during MASH’s first year and Bewitched’s final year. Gilligan had been off the air for five years, and Jeannie had been gone for two.
You’re right, though, it was groundbreaking in many ways - war comedies previously had leaned heavily on slapstick, whereas MASH was a lot more intellectually driven and didn’t mind being dramatic from time to time. It was innovative and inspiring.
---
### Author:  [@nemesis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nemesis)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/5 "2003-05-26T14:07:44Z")
Another M_A_S_H fan here - although my fave comedy series of all time is Fawltey Towers, M_A_S_H comes pretty damn close.
---
### Author:  [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/6 "2003-05-26T14:30:08Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by superstar \*
> **The final episode “Good-bye Farewell Amen” was for almost 20 years (and may still be?) the most watched single episode of all time.**
Nope, the final episode of Seinfeld now holds that record.
> [@](#):
>
> \*\*
>
> It wasn’t afraid to break the mold in comparison to the other popular shows of the time
> #Bewitched
> #I Dream of Jeanie
> #Gilligans Bloody Island etc.\*\*
Um. Well, I guess so, kinda, but not really. Bewitched [1964-1972] only overlapped MASH [1972-1983] by one year. And I dream of Jeanie [1965-1970] and Gilligan [1964-1967] not at all. I would expect them to be much different. The times changed rapidly. It would be more accurate to compare them to shows of the same time period. All In the Family [1971-1979] broke “the mold in comparison to the other popular shows of the time” and it also “constantly had the censors in a spin.”
MASH was OK, but lost its fun when Alda took creative control and turned it into a soapbox for his political agenda.
---
### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/7 "2003-05-26T14:51:22Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by superstar \*
> **#Gilligans Bloody Island etc.**
If only cable channels were available back in the 60’s. 😃
---
### Author:  [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/8 "2003-05-26T15:39:13Z")
M_A_S\*H did have a laugh track, but they deliberately turned it off during the operating room scenes. And, of course, it wasn’t the first – some early TV comedies aired before the laugh track was invented.
---
### Author:  [@MonkeyMensch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MonkeyMensch)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/9 "2003-05-26T15:56:07Z")
Wow. You can turn off the laugh track on DVD’s of M_A_S\*H? I gotta see this.
---
### Author:  [@Rayne\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rayne_Man)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/10 "2003-05-26T15:56:35Z")
When the BBC transmitted this series back in the 70’s they did not play the laugh track at all and it was a much better series for that. The Paramount Comedy channel have just broadcast it with the laughter track and I did not enjoy it as much.
---
### Author:  [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/11 "2003-05-26T16:03:43Z")
Yes, it did have a laugh track. Do you think that they could have filmed M_A_S\*H in front of a live audience? Perish forbid!
The show did evolve over the years, mostly in good directions, although after Radar left, it kinda stagnated. The last three seasons could probably be done away with and only lose a half-dozen good episodes.
Even so, still one of the best TV series ever.
---
### Author:  [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/12 "2003-05-26T16:08:58Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by superstar \*
> \*\*
> It was full of political no-no’s in reference to the war (although set during the Korean War, it was obviously sticking it to Vietnam), which constantly had the censors in a spin.
\*\*
I always thought this was particularly unfair to Korean veterans. Korea was a different war and they deserve to remain distinct from Viet-Nam. Every time I see Hawkeye complain about the US Army I just want to slap him silly. Would he rather the war ended and S. Korean lived under N. Korean rule?
> [@](#):
>
> \*\*
> Plus it was funny, thoughtful, and interesting. The script was brilliantly written, and the casting was spot-on. Even the original movie was ahead of it’s time. I could laugh AND cry in the same episode!
\*\*
The original movie was ok. I hated how the director had so much dialogue doing on at the same time that it was difficult to figure out who was saying what.
Marc
---
### Author:  [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/13 "2003-05-26T16:24:04Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Nope, the final episode of Seinfeld now holds that record.
Nope, you are wrong. Don’t post facts unless you can cite.
[http://www.onlineathens.com/1998/051698/0516.a3seinfeld.html](http://www.onlineathens.com/1998/051698/0516.a3seinfeld.html)
It says:
> [@](#):
>
> " Ratings for the comedy’s final episode were below the finales for “Cheers” and “M-A-S-H” and a shade below NBC’s predictions, but were still impressive at a time of dwindling audiences for broadcast networks.
> The 75-minute episode had a 41.3 rating and 58 share, Nielsen Media Research said Friday. A rating point represents 980,000 households. The share means that 58 percent of in-use televisions were tuned to “Seinfeld.”
> “We are thrilled that America paid such an enormous tribute to Jerry Seinfeld and everyone who has spent the past nine years putting their hearts into making ‘Seinfeld’ a series for the ages,” said NBC West Coast President Don Ohlmeyer.
> The final episode of “Cheers” in 1993 had a 45.9 rating and 72 share in the national ratings, with an estimated 80 million viewers.
> The all-time champ of final series episodes in M-A-S-H, which had a 60.2 rating and 77 share, with an estimated 105 million viewers, when it went off the air in 1983."
And I’m also a Mash fan. I started this thread a couple years ago that was very popular.
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=54344&highlight=trivia](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=54344&highlight=trivia)
---
### Author:  [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/14 "2003-05-26T16:27:32Z")
> [@](#):
>
> _Originally posted by MonkeyMensch \*
> \*\*Wow. You can turn off the laugh track on DVD’s of M_A_S_H? I gotta see this. \*\*
It’s under the “language setup” menu. Choose “English w/o laugh track”.
---
### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/15 "2003-05-26T16:53:20Z")
I liked M_A_S\*H a lot, even though its comedy wasn’t as black as the movie which wasn’t as black as the original novel. But the show went though so many phases that most people don’t like them all. There are partisans for the Trapper John/Frank Burns/Henry Blake era and there are those who think it improved when B.J./Col. Potter/Charles Emerson Winchester replaced them. Some people hate Alda’s preachiness, some hate Klinger, some hate the last few years.
It took more chances and broke the mold of standard sitcoms more than just about any earlier show. The characters did grow, once Burns left, and they became more and more human instead of joke machines.
Overall, there’s no doubt it’s among the best sitcoms ever. But it’s just not many peoples’ number one.
---
### Author:  [@Intaglio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intaglio)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/16 "2003-05-26T17:07:55Z")
Your not the only M_A_S\*H fan, I love that show too, every time it is on FX, I am there.
I liked Col Potter better than Henry Blake. I was in the Navy and Col. Potter was more believeable, as a CO too me.
---
### Author:  [@Julius\_Henry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Julius_Henry)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/17 "2003-05-26T18:13:07Z")
In 1969, **Room 222** debuted. Except for the pilot episode, it did not use a laugh track. It dealt with some topical ideas as women’s rights, the ecology, and teacher’s strikes. And it’s star was black. All this three years before **M_A_S\*H**.
---
### Author:  [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/18 "2003-05-26T18:41:30Z")
I absolutely love MASH. One of the main reasons I finally got cable (other than BUffy re-runs) was MASH reruns. FX was my favorite channel for a very long time.
---
### Author:  [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/19 "2003-05-26T19:23:24Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by pepperlandgirl \*
> \*\*I absolutely love MASH. One of the main reasons I finally got cable (other than BUffy re-runs) was MASH reruns. FX was my favorite channel for a very long time. \*\*
Pepperlandgirl, ou should be in heaven today - it seems to be a mash marathon. (Unless FX always run mash from 9:30 until now)
---
### Author:  [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)
#### Post date: [May 26, 2003, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561/20 "2003-05-26T19:37:20Z")
I like(d) MASH a lot. The books and movie are better than the show, though. I’m sure I’ve seen all the episodes a few times.
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-only-m-a-s-h-fan/177561.md?page=2)