buckeyebri;1832573; said:
Anyone a M*A*S*H fan? I loved the movie, as well as, the show. I still watch the reruns whenever I see them on.
My favorite cast of the TV show was the original cast with Hawkeye, Trapper, Colonel Blake, Frank, and Hot Lips. I was okay with BJ and even Potter was alright. I was never much of a fan of Charles.....
BTW...the reasons for the cast changes were interesting.
Wayne Rogers left because when the show started it was believed that Trapper, Hawkeye, and Colonel Blake would all be major roles without one main character (especially Hawkeye and Trapper, like in the movie). He became tired of being a sidekick, and did not like clauses in his contract. So he refused to sign it, and they wrote him out. Rogers later admitted it was a mistake.
McLean Stevenson also felt like Henry Blake was supposed to be a bigger character, and he started to get offers on the side (he ended up getting his own show, but it was a bust). He at least left on semi amicable terms, and of course led to an iconic episode. McLean also later admitted leaving MASH was a mistake, and wanted to come back. Yet his character was dead, which also upset him.
Larry Linville left on much better terms than the other two. He decided to leave not out of displeasure, but felt he did all he could do with Frank Burns as a character. On a side note, all of the actors on the show stated Larry was one of the nicest men they had ever met, in sharp contrast to the character of Frank Burns.
Gary Burghoff left the show for a multitude of reasons, but the main one was Radar was not in many episodes anymore. The writers just stopped writing him in, and Klinger began to play a much bigger role (Klinger was nothing more than a random dress wearing buffoon, and a total bit part in the early seasons).
It's really interesting how much the show changed over the years, and the back stories behind the changes.
