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Post by topbilled on Mar 29, 2023 19:40:47 GMT
> I remember that those were very long production days. It is curious that these working conditions are accepted in television and film as just a fact of life. It doesn't seem like anyone can have much of a personal life with this kind of schedule. I was very interested in one of the TCM intro/outro items you posted a while back - can't remember exactly what it was - I think maybe Claudette Colbert in regards to a proposed project after It Happened One Night. At any rate the actress only made two requests for the new project - a shooting angle of her face and to be finished work by 5pm. Her requests were denied and she passed on the project. I think Clark Gable had it written into his contracts that his shooting day had to end at 5 p.m. Supposedly there was an incident on the set of RUN SILENT RUN DEEP where they were running late getting the day's last shot set up. Gable reminded Lancaster, whose production company was in charge, that he'd be leaving at 5 on the dot, whether or not the scene was done. True to his word, Gable left at 5. Lancaster fumed since the scene was not complete and they'd have to set it all up again and redo it the following morning, which would put them behind on the next day's shoot.
I also read that when Michael Landon was filming Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven he insisted production end at 5 p.m. each day. He wanted to be home for dinner at a certain time, and he knew fellow cast and crew wanted to be home by a reasonable hour, too. But that is the exception to the rule. The norm with most shows is that they film late into the evening and often into the early morning hours of the next day. They typically have 16 hour work days on these sets.
On Designing Women, they were not making a new episode every week. Usually only three episodes were made per month, meaning they'd have several grueling weeks of production, then they'd get a week off. Now sometimes during the week off, the stars might do a game show or an appearance on a talk show. The recurring cast would be taking jobs guest starring on other shows during this time, if they snagged extra work on the side.
I found it interesting that Alice Ghostley, who was older than the main cast, had a recurring role on Designing Women and another recurring role on Evening Shade at the same time. So she seemed to work a lot. Fortunately, both these programs were produced by Linda Bloodworth and her husband Harry Thomason, so it was easy to accommodate her going back and forth on the two series.
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Post by galacticgirrrl on Mar 30, 2023 6:05:32 GMT
Clark Gable - interesting and surprising. Michael Landon shows it is totally possible. Both shows were big hits. [Boy Alice Ghostley was fabulous] Alan Alda was living in New Jersey when cast for the series, but didn't want to move to California full time, so as not to displace his wife and young daughters. Throughout the making of the series, Alda flew home to New Jersey and back every weekend, and on other breaks to be with his family. Larry Gelbart on leaving "M.A.S.H" - EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTpzCaHKlUoHe mentions discovering having a wife and five kids after his four years on the show. 019 The Longjohn FlapFebruary 18, 1973 This was a really fun episode - a nice mix of silly, slapstick and serious. I was starting to fear that by enjoying this one so much that maybe I was, unbeknownst to myself, the target audience of those on staff at MASH hoping to keep the show a light comedy with non-stop nonsense set to a painfully bad laugh track. The opening scene however contains some really cutting commentary on the administration of war - as Henry and Radar burn old files to try to get warm, the army warehouse in Seoul is full of winter supplies and yet the 4077 just received a shipment of summer items including mosquito netting and summer underwear.
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Post by topbilled on Mar 30, 2023 14:52:05 GMT
Clark Gable - interesting and surprising. Michael Landon shows it is totally possible. Both shows were big hits. [Boy Alice Ghostley was fabulous] Alan Alda was living in New Jersey when cast for the series, but didn't want to move to California full time, so as not to displace his wife and young daughters. Throughout the making of the series, Alda flew home to New Jersey and back every weekend, and on other breaks to be with his family. Larry Gelbart on leaving "M.A.S.H" - EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTpzCaHKlUoHe mentions discovering having a wife and five kids after his four years on the show. 019 The Longjohn FlapFebruary 18, 1973 This was a really fun episode - a nice mix of silly, slapstick and serious. I was starting to fear that by enjoying this one so much that maybe I was, unbeknownst to myself, the target audience of those on staff at MASH hoping to keep the show a light comedy with non-stop nonsense set to a painfully bad laugh track. The opening scene however contains some really cutting commentary on the administration of war - as Henry and Radar burn old files to try to get warm, the army warehouse in Seoul is full of winter supplies and yet the 4077 just received a shipment of summer items including mosquito netting and summer underwear. What I found interesting about Alan Alda's first script-- he went out of his way to include Father Mulcahy and Klinger, who would of course become regular characters later. So I wonder if he had an affinity for those two and pushed for them to become more prominent. Other season 1 writers tend to use different recurring characters in their plots-- Ugly John (who is dropped at the end of the season), nurse Ginger, General Clayton and a cook, who is eventually replaced by Igor (Jeff Maxwell).
Klinger has very few appearances in season 1, about half as many as Father Mulcahy...but you can see with this episode that they are both deemed important characters, as part of the show's ensemble.
Re: the laugh track...yes, it is intrusive and never should have been included.
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Post by galacticgirrrl on Mar 30, 2023 20:23:40 GMT
I wondered a great deal about Alda's first script. There were very few cringe-worthy moments. Can I attribute this to Alda or perhaps the whole show is trying to get things moving in a better direction. It isn't exactly clear to me who it is at network pushing for the lesser material.
This seems like an opportune moment to mention the smaller background characters that end up being a big part of the show. The main cast speaks very highly of the Mini-Mash. Just a few snippets from a great item on the show's 35th anniversary....
The show’s other cast: Meet “Mini-M*A*S*H” As well as fans know the show’s stars, they also remember the faces of the performers who filled the background and interacted with the stars in the spotlight. These people made core contributions to all the episodes and the overall atmosphere. This vital part of the M*A*S*H ensemble became lovingly tagged by cast and crew as the “Mini-M*A*S*H” outfit.
Swit: We can’t say enough about how wonderful these people were. We got to know each person and face. They weren’t background. They were soldiers, nurses and doctors.
Bailey: I was like a distant cousin who comes to visit because I wasn’t there all the time. I only did seven or eight shows a year for three years. People still remember the character though.
Kellye Nakahara (Nurse Kellye): I was the first Asian who didn’t play one. I was just an American soldier, a nurse on the same level as everyone else. My true ethnicity never even came up. Gene and Alan liked me. All of a sudden, I was being written in as Nurse 123 and then Nurse Able, Baker and Charlie. At some point, Alan said he couldn’t keep calling me ‘Nurse 1.’ “You’re Kellye. Nurse Kellye.”
Metcalfe: All the people who had been on the show for years would do lines here and there. We tried to be very democratic with spreading that around because they’d get a nice jump in their daily pay if they have a line or two.
Jeff Maxwell (Igor Stravinsky): An actor on the show, Roy Goldman, named me Igor after the Frankenstein character. I played an everyman character who was intimidated by people, things and places. He didn’t do anything heroic. He was just trying to get through a difficult situation. For a while I was Alan’s stand-in. The guy before me had narcolepsy and kept falling asleep, which drove the cameramen crazy. It was a terrific experience for me because I got to be close to Alan and watch him. It made me realize how good he was at what he did. He was very helpful to me. Kent: M*A*S*H was my first job in television. It was a pretty fantastic experience. I haven’t had one like that since. It was just very special. I appeared in the last episode and got the downer line. “I was a nurse at the tail end of World War II and now this. And you know something. I’ve had it.”
Jennifer Davis Whitmore (Nurse Jennifer): Everyone got a chance to do something and no one was left behind. My first TV kiss was with Trapper John. It was absolutely fun.
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Post by topbilled on Mar 31, 2023 13:45:12 GMT
I wondered a great deal about Alda's first script. There were very few cringe-worthy moments. Can I attribute this to Alda or perhaps the whole show is trying to get things moving in a better direction. It isn't exactly clear to me who it is at network pushing for the lesser material. This seems like an opportune moment to mention the smaller background characters that end up being a big part of the show. The main cast speaks very highly of the Mini-Mash. Just a few snippets from a great item on the show's 35th anniversary.... The show’s other cast: Meet “Mini-M*A*S*H”As well as fans know the show’s stars, they also remember the faces of the performers who filled the background and interacted with the stars in the spotlight. These people made core contributions to all the episodes and the overall atmosphere. This vital part of the M*A*S*H ensemble became lovingly tagged by cast and crew as the “Mini-M*A*S*H” outfit. Swit: We can’t say enough about how wonderful these people were. We got to know each person and face. They weren’t background. They were soldiers, nurses and doctors. Bailey: I was like a distant cousin who comes to visit because I wasn’t there all the time. I only did seven or eight shows a year for three years. People still remember the character though. Kellye Nakahara (Nurse Kellye): I was the first Asian who didn’t play one. I was just an American soldier, a nurse on the same level as everyone else. My true ethnicity never even came up. Gene and Alan liked me. All of a sudden, I was being written in as Nurse 123 and then Nurse Able, Baker and Charlie. At some point, Alan said he couldn’t keep calling me ‘Nurse 1.’ “You’re Kellye. Nurse Kellye.” Metcalfe: All the people who had been on the show for years would do lines here and there. We tried to be very democratic with spreading that around because they’d get a nice jump in their daily pay if they have a line or two. Jeff Maxwell (Igor Stravinsky): An actor on the show, Roy Goldman, named me Igor after the Frankenstein character. I played an everyman character who was intimidated by people, things and places. He didn’t do anything heroic. He was just trying to get through a difficult situation. For a while I was Alan’s stand-in. The guy before me had narcolepsy and kept falling asleep, which drove the cameramen crazy. It was a terrific experience for me because I got to be close to Alan and watch him. It made me realize how good he was at what he did. He was very helpful to me. Kent: M*A*S*H was my first job in television. It was a pretty fantastic experience. I haven’t had one like that since. It was just very special. I appeared in the last episode and got the downer line. “I was a nurse at the tail end of World War II and now this. And you know something. I’ve had it.” Jennifer Davis Whitmore (Nurse Jennifer): Everyone got a chance to do something and no one was left behind. My first TV kiss was with Trapper John. It was absolutely fun. I didn't know how Jeff Maxwell started with the show, so that is interesting. Both he and Kellye Nakahara start appearing during the second season.
Kellye also voiced the P.A. announcements in AfterM*A*S*H though I am not sure if that was meant to be the same character she played on the original show. She is never seen on camera in the second series.
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Post by topbilled on Mar 31, 2023 13:45:31 GMT
020 The Army-Navy Game
The one where a big game occurs
Though the story is credited to series star McLean Stevenson, this is isn’t one of the best episodes from the first season. Far from it. The biggest issue I had with it is that everyone is getting into the spirit of the big Army versus Navy game, listening to it on the radio and commenting about it…and cheering their team on to victory. That in itself is not the problem. The problem is that they’d feel any sense of pride in the army winning, since this show is written by liberals who go out of their way to depict doctors like Hawkeye and Trapper NOT taking pride in the army.
For guys like Hawkeye and Trapper, they are in Korea because they have to be, not because they want to be. They are defending free western nations against the threat of communism because they have been drafted to do that, not because they want to do that. So to have them all getting excited about a big football game against the navy seems out of the character and far-fetched. We even have Radar running round wearing football sports gear, which seems equally unlikely since he’s never been portrayed as a sports aficionado.
While the game is taking place on radio, there is a more pressing concern. The camp is being attacked by enemy fire with a series of bombs exploding around them. Some of the special effects are decent enough, but the fact that none of them get harmed by enemy fire seems unrealistic.
There is an unexploded bomb that lands in the middle of the 4077th. After drawing straws, Frank is supposed to go out and see if it is ticking. But he faints from the sheer terror of such a task. So of course, Hawkeye must be the brave soul to go out and check the bomb. In the end, we are told that it’s not a North Korean bomb, but a CIA bomb sent here for propaganda purposes. Um, yeah, okay that makes sense. Not really!
Final analysis: this is a poorly conceived episode from the first season of M*A*S*H and not exactly worth the time spent watching it.
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Post by galacticgirrrl on Mar 31, 2023 15:32:47 GMT
Tales from the Mini M*A*S*H
Sheila Lauritsen (Nurse Sheila): I’m the blond girl running up the hill in the opening credits. Gene took us to the Malibu Ranch and said, “OK girls, run.” And we did and then we did it again and then again. We were tired and sweaty. Then he tells us, “I want you to think that’s your brother coming in on that helicopter and whether he lives or dies is up to you. You’ve got to get up to that helicopter.” It completely turned us around. We just sprinted up that hill and got it in one take.
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Post by topbilled on Mar 31, 2023 16:38:19 GMT
Tales from the Mini M*A*S*H
Sheila Lauritsen (Nurse Sheila): I’m the blond girl running up the hill in the opening credits. Gene took us to the Malibu Ranch and said, “OK girls, run.” And we did and then we did it again and then again. We were tired and sweaty. Then he tells us, “I want you to think that’s your brother coming in on that helicopter and whether he lives or dies is up to you. You’ve got to get up to that helicopter.” It completely turned us around. We just sprinted up that hill and got it in one take. I find it interesting that their one day's worth of work sprinting up the hill to the chopper is seen 256 times for the next eleven years.
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Post by topbilled on Mar 31, 2023 16:48:12 GMT
When we reach the end of Season 1 next week, I will take a slight pause and discuss which episodes from the first year of M*A*S*H are the ones I consider the best. Like I will do a top 5 list, before we head into Season 2.
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Post by galacticgirrrl on Mar 31, 2023 23:45:00 GMT
020 The Army-Navy Game February 25, 1973
I liked this episode. The black humour examining the machinations of war was particularly biting. The poignant Klinger/Father Mulcahy scene was important and the imagery of the ridiculous bomb blow up finale was one the most memorable of the season.
The Army-Navy game is analogous to the game of war. MASH 4077 is the ball. Nobody cares about their being trapped under constant enemy fire, loaded with wounded, their only way out is through their own minefield. The army doesn't know a medical unit would have stethoscopes. The Navy doesn't know the name of the Commanding Officer who just introduced himself. There are great gags depicting broken lines of communication strewn throughout: "Call me at halftime. If I don't hear from you I'll understand."
I appreciated the inclusion of the CIA into the story line. I wasn't aware of their deep involvement in the Korean War. Interesting to note the Watergate happenings back home in the US in real time at this point in 1972/73.
The importance of the Klinger/Mulcahy scene can't be underestimated: Klinger is wearing the suit he had on when he was drafted.
Not one of life's volunteers son? It's only that I was brought up to respect life Father and that's impossible with all this killing.
For the first time we see Klinger's humanity and his predicament. He is trying to correct the power imbalance foisted upon him.
One minor note of displeasure... The opening theme music has changed. It seems to be trying for a happier, jazzier tone. I haven't found any explanation. It is odd and unnecessary.
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Post by topbilled on Apr 1, 2023 0:12:13 GMT
020 The Army-Navy Game February 25, 1973
I liked this episode. The black humour examining the machinations of war was particularly biting. The poignant Klinger/Father Mulcahy scene was important and the imagery of the ridiculous bomb blow up finale was one the most memorable of the season. The Army-Navy game is analogous to the game of war. MASH 4077 is the ball. Nobody cares about their being trapped under constant enemy fire, loaded with wounded, their only way out is through their own minefield. The army doesn't know a medical unit would have stethoscopes. The Navy doesn't know the name of the Commanding Officer who just introduced himself. There are great gags depicting broken lines of communication strewn throughout: "Call me at halftime. If I don't hear from you I'll understand." I appreciated the inclusion of the CIA into the story line. I wasn't aware of their deep involvement in the Korean War. Interesting to note the Watergate happenings back home in the US in real time at this point in 1972/73. The importance of the Klinger/Mulcahy scene can't be underestimated: Klinger is wearing the suit he had on when he was drafted. Not one of life's volunteers son? It's only that I was brought up to respect life Father and that's impossible with all this killing.
For the first time we see Klinger's humanity and his predicament. He is trying to correct the power imbalance foisted upon him. One minor note of displeasure... The opening theme music has changed. It seems to be trying for a happier, jazzier tone. I haven't found any explanation. It is odd and unnecessary. I think I lose patience with all the biting political commentary about the war. It seems like the writers' commentaries are really about Vietnam, and they are grafting things on to Korea and the Korean conflict that are fiction. Every time we get these cutting remarks about the bureaucracy of the army and the insanity of war, it just seems forced, predictable and belabored.
I much prefer the show when it is about the hard work of the doctors and nurses in the operating room. Like the stuff where Hawkeye's pal died on the operating table in 'Sometimes You Hear the Bullet.' There is an upcoming episode where the subplot is about Trapper's determination to save the life of someone who was badly shot up, assisted by Margaret. These are the kinds of scenes I like on the show, not that too-clever-for-its-own-good satire and liberal take on the politics of the war, which becomes tedious.
In this particular episode, I found the scene with Klinger and Father Mulcahy out of place...because Klinger is not normally used for these types of moments, and it just seemed forced to me. The scene not only felt out of place but overly long, where it was like 'okay the writers are using these two recurring characters to preach to the audience about the wastefulness of the big bad war.' Just too didactic for me to enjoy, and as I said, I felt almost all the other characters were out of sync with how they normally act in the other episodes.
I am glad you found merit in the episode and enjoyed it. It just fell way short of the mark for me. I consider the Army-Navy Game episode one of the worst of the first season.
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Post by topbilled on Apr 1, 2023 14:36:31 GMT
021 Sticky Wicket
The one where Hawkeye’s skill as a surgeon is questioned
This is an interesting episode that explore Hawkeye’s character a bit more in-depth. At the beginning of the story, he’s insufferable. Not only does he trade insults with Frank and Margaret at every turn, he also underestimates Henry, saying he thought the colonel was dumb. He even takes a jab at Radar, complaining about Radar’s height. And at one point, he refuses to play poker with Trapper, Radar and Ugly John and temporarily moves out of the swamp.
It isn’t that Hawkeye is going through an identity crisis so much as he is grappling with his ego. A patient has bullet fragments lodged in his spine, but Hawkeye thinks he has successfully removed all the fragments. But the patient spikes a temperature after the operation and doesn’t seem to be getting better. Eventually Hawkeye realizes an additional fragment may have splintered off into another area, so he has to take the guy back into the operating room to finish the job correctly.
What makes the episode work for me is that before Hawkeye’s skill as a surgeon is called into question, he has gone off on a tirade about Frank’s skill. Basically, he accuses Frank of being incompetent. His argument with Frank seems to be ongoing, and this draws fire from Margaret who considers filing an official complaint with General Clayton.
There’s a great scene where Hawkeye and Frank get into a physical altercation while eating lunch in the mess hall. It involves the whole cast, and there is an amusing moment where Radar is shoved into a plateful of mashed potatoes, twice.
Speaking of Radar, we have another great scene where he wins over $800 in the poker game and takes it to Henry for safekeeping. Episodes like this show how main characters like Radar, Hawkeye, Frank and Margaret start to evolve and grow as individuals.
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Post by topbilled on Apr 3, 2023 14:06:13 GMT
022 Major Fred C. Dobbs
The one where Frank gets gold fever
This is one of the episodes that I remembered from watching the show as a kid. Probably because it’s so far-fetched, yet a lot of fun thanks to Larry Linville’s inspired comedic performance. He’s having a field day. The title is inspired by Humphrey Bogart’s character in the Warner Brothers film THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE. Like Bogey, Major Frank Burns is fixated on the possibility of striking it rich when gold is supposedly found near the camp.
Of course this is all a ruse by Hawkeye and Trapper, who are planting gold nuggets in the area to keep Frank interested in sticking around, since he had planned on transferring to another unit. It seems they need Frank’s operating skills at the 4077th. In a way, this contrived story reveals the appreciation that Hawkeye and Trapper do have regarding Frank’s contributions as a medic, even though they are often quick to cut him down to size. Either that, or they just don’t want the increased workload if Frank left.
Margaret has also run into trouble with Hawkeye and Trapper, due to one of their latest pranks. She too considers a transfer. Of course, she is probably more competent than Frank in surgery, so her skills would be missed even more.
I do find it interesting that writer Sid Dorfman chose to reference a hit film from a rival studio. Usually episodes borrow music (like ‘My Blue Heaven) and plot points from motion pictures made by 20th Century Fox, since M*A*S*H the 1970 feature film was a Fox picture and M*A*S*H the weekly series is a product of 20th Century Fox Television.
In 1973, when this episode first aired, there was no such thing as cable or home video. So unless the Bogart film had recently been seen on network TV or was syndicated on a local channel, most viewers would have to try and remember bits and pieces from the old movie that this episode’s story is referencing.
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Post by sepiatone on Apr 3, 2023 16:23:28 GMT
Yeah, my guess would be that probably a scant handful of the viewers caught those references, but most didn't notice anything was being referenced at all.
I don't recall that episode, but I probably watched it as I tried catching as many M*A*S*H episodes as possible, and since I never saw "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre" until my very early 30's, those references clearly sailed high over my head(in '73 I was 22).
Sepiatone
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Post by topbilled on Apr 3, 2023 16:44:09 GMT
Yeah, my guess would be that probably a scant handful of the viewers caught those references, but most didn't notice anything was being referenced at all. I don't recall that episode, but I probably watched it as I tried catching as many M*A*S*H episodes as possible, and since I never saw "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre" until my very early 30's, those references clearly sailed high over my head(in '73 I was 22). Sepiatone I read somewhere online that this particular episode, with Frank hunting gold, was Alan Alda's least favorite of the entire series. Personally, I didn't find it awful, despite the various contrivances...mostly because Larry Linville is having a lot of fun with it, and that does make the episode fairly enjoyable to watch.
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