40 Years Of M*a*s*h

Last night, on September 17, 1972, the first episode of M*A*S*H (simply titled "Pilot") aired on CBS. The finale, "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen" (February 28, 1983), became the most-watched TV episode in U.S. television history at the time, with a record-breaking 125 million viewers (60.2 Rating and 77 Share). The series lasted several years longer than the Korean War in which it was set.

The 1975-1976 children's series Uncle Croc's Block included a recurring animated segment called "M-U-S-H", about a group of police dogs stationed at an Arctic Circle outpost. The segment's premise, title (an acronym for Mangy Unwanted Shabby Heroes), and characters (Bullseye, Trooper Yoe, Cold Lips, Major Hank Sideburns, Colonel Flake, Sonar) all parodied M*A*S*H.

There have been numerous references to M*A*S*H in other series, including The Simpsons episode "Half-Decent Proposal" (2002). Marge leaves in a helicopter while "Suicide is Painless" is playing, and there is also writing on the ground made from rocks.

In the 1992 Simpsons episode "Lisa's First Word," Marge asks others if they watched the last episode of M*A*S*H. The 1993 Simpsons episode "Brother from the Same Planet" features a M*A*S*H coloring book; the next year, in "Bart of Darkness," Skinner mentions the series. "Skinner's Sense of Snow" (2000): Bart's announcements over the intercom are similar to those seen in the movie and subsequent TV series.

Futurama: "War Is the H-Word" (2000): Dr. Zoidberg joins a MASH unit, where he is heckled by a robot surgeon that talks like Alan Alda's Hawkeye.

On Family Guy, in homage to the finale of M*A*S*H, Peter Griffin confesses that instead of eating a bucket of chicken on a bus, he ate a baby (in Season 10, Episode 16, "Killer Queen"). The 1999 FG episode "A Hero Sits Next Door" declares: "Ya know when Alan Alda took over behind the camera and the show got all dramatic and preachy." In the 2005 episode "Breaking Out Is Hard to Do," an Asian man in a helicopter gunship says, "Whenever I fire rockets, I imagine I'm shooting at Alan Alda and Jamie Farr." Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story (2005 video): Stewie sings the theme song to M*A*S*H. Family Guy Presents: It's a Trap (2010 video): Mentioned in the "A long time ago" joke at the beginning. "Fifteen Minutes of Shame" (2000): Stewie is dressed as Klinger.

In the 1994 The Critic episode "Marty's First Date," a poster for a M*A*S*H movie advertises that it is based on the television show rather than being the original film.

Animaniacs: "Miami Mama-Mia"/"Pigeon on the Roof" (1994): McLean Stevenson, dressed as Col. Henry Blake, is referenced in a "Good Idea/Bad Idea" segment.

Shrek 2 (2004): The bartender is a crossdresser with a shocking resemblance to Klinger.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars: "The Zillo Beast" (2010): Two of Mace Windu's troopers are called Trapper and Hawkeye.


"I've eaten a river of liver and an ocean of fish! I've eaten so much fish, I'm ready to grow gills! I've eaten so much liver, I can only make love if I'm smothered in bacon and onions." -- Captain Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce in the mess hall, M*A*S*H