Its final episode in 1983 was the most-watched in television history.[2]. does not consider himself a soldier in any way (in The Interview he calls himself a "temporary misassigned civilian"), but in Bombshells, B.J. Allegedly, he felt like he took Frank Burns as far as he could go, and there was not much more character to develop. ran for seven seasons, airing its series finale in 1986. Klinger was only meant to appear in one episode of the show, and the character wasn't even in the book. On the M*A*S*H 30th Anniversary Reunion Television Special aired by Fox-TV in 2002, Rogers spoke on the differences between the Hawkeye and Trapper characters, saying, "Alan [Alda] and I both used to discuss ways on how to distinguish the differences between the two characters as to where there would be a variance. My character [Trapper John McIntyre] was a little more impulsive [than Hawkeye]." During its 11-season run, the staff at the 4077th celebrated theholiday four times. Instead, Trapper was played by Pernell Roberts, who had portrayed Adam Cartwright in Bonanza prior to the role. Colonel Henry Blake, McLean Stevenson, colloquially referred to as "Mac," wanted to end his contract with M*A*S*H. But the thing that made his leave stand out amongst other characters who left the popular television sitcom was that Henry Blake's leave was permanent. Even though the latter half of the third season started to flesh Trapper out a bit, Rogers departed, and his character was written out of the series. He was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2004 for his role in The Aviator. M*A*S*H has remained one of the most popular sitcoms in television history. "B.J. His areas of expertise range from Major League Baseball to Taylor Swift's complete discography, and he's written about both subjects extensively. 's pain of being away from home during his anniversary; Hawkeye secretly recorded a conversation with B.J. [1] He graduated from Princeton University in 1954 with a history degree, and was a member of the Princeton Triangle Club and the eating club Tiger Inn. His interest in science has led to work as a visiting professor at Stony Brook, where he founded the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. Wayne went on to act in another medical show, House Calls, after leaving M*A*S*H. He passed away in 2015. got his doctorate from Stanford University medical school, becoming a fourth generation doctor in his family. The two exchange a long brotherly embrace, and Hawkeye boards a chopper while B.J., now wielding his San Francisco sign from the fingerpost, gets back on his motorcycle, but says one last thing to Hawkeye before he rides off: "I'll see you back in the States. 's note, spelled out in rocks on the chopper pad (for Hawkeye, and for the viewing audience): In essence, B.J. Contents. Major Charles Emerson Winchester III is a surgeon who was chosen by Colonel Potter to replace the departed Frank Burns as the fourth surgeon at the 4077th MASH unit in Season 6 of the M*A*S*H TV series. Member. THEN: The only star of the original M*A*S*H film to make the jump to the series, Gary Burghoff played the loveable camp mascot Radar OReilly for eight seasons before retiring the role. THEN: Alongside Alda, Loretta Swit was one of the longest-serving members of the 4077, playing head nurse and stickler for the rules Margaret Hot Lips Houlihan for all 11 seasons. In the final episode he gets yet another motorcycle from a group of Chinese POWs and, after painting it yellow, rides it off into the sunset toward home. itself; when Hawkeye rhetorically asks who would name their son "B.J. Captain B.J. After college, Rogers served as an officer in the United States Navy, as a navigator on the USS Denebola, and had planned on entering Harvard Law School before he became an actor.[1][2]. After the third season, Rogers left the show and was replaced by Mike Farrell as B. J. Hunnicutt. Peg later incorporated his dialogue into a home movie of herself and Erin that she sent back to Hawkeye. Captain "Trapper John" McIntyre (born John Francis Xavier McIntyre), is a character in Richard Hooker's M*A*S*H novels, as well as in the 1970 film and two TV series. was originally intended as a continuation of the departed Trapper John, with many of the latter's habits and mannerisms initially being retained through B.J. Anyone who loved the show would have thought that it made a poignant moment and would be just as exciting once the time capsule was found, but the person who discovered it wasn't very impressed, according to actor Alan Alda. said, but motions for the pilot to take off nonetheless. Rogers then guest-starred five times in a recurring role on CBS's Murder, She Wrote. over a contract dispute. Similarly, Radar never put one up for Ottumwa, Iowa. It's unfortunate that the role was swapped for a heterosexual man who only cross-dressed to attempt to get out of the war, as the character was supposed to have been gay, which would have been some much-needed representation on television in the 1970s and '80s. The armistice is finally signed ending the war, but more wounded arrive and then the 4077th is ordered back to its original location. William Wayne McMillan Rogers III (April 7, 1933 December 31, 2015)[1] was an American actor, known for playing the role of Captain "Trapper" John McIntyre in the CBS television series M*A*S*H and as Dr. Charley Michaels on House Calls (19791982). is shown to have a passion for motorcycles; he gets to drive one in The Yalu Brick Road. in 1986. The movie was set during the Korean War and followed irreverent army surgeons "Hawkeye" Pierce and "Trapper" John, played by Donald Sutherland and Elliott Gould respectively. First appeared in: By the end of the third season, Rogers was fed up with the fact that Trapper was being treated as a sidekick instead of an equal. Trapper's TV portrayal was further compromised when the producers decided that Hawkeye, not Trapper, was to be the chest cutter and therefore Chief Surgeon. However, that changed radically when Alan Alda was cast as Hawkeye. B.J. Conductor opened the door, the girl looked out and yelled 'Oh, he trapped me! is in a helicopter and forced to cut a rope leading down to a wounded soldier he and the pilot were attempting to rescue from an enemy patrol, effectively abandoning him to capture or death. The rank of Major is attained for members of the AMEDD after serving as a Captain for 6 years. Honeycutt. At the beginning of Season 4 (after the dramatic season 3 finale in which Henry is discharged but killed on the way home), Hawkeye returns from R&R alone in Tokyo to find that Trapper has also been discharged. Also in 1985, he starred opposite Barbara Eden in the televised reunion movie I Dream of Jeannie Fifteen Years Later based on the 1960s situation comedy I Dream of Jeannie. But Frank then shows up and the drunken Trapper gets caught up in lampooning him and forgets all about deserting. Rank: [10], Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, Attack on Terror: The FBI vs. the Ku Klux Klan, I Dream of Jeannie Fifteen Years Later, United States House Committee on the Judiciary, "Wayne Rogers, Trapper John on 'M.A.S.H.,' dies at 82", "Wayne Rogers: Actor, Entrepreneur, Financial Pundit", "Wayne Rogers, Trapper John on 'M*A*S*H*,' dies at 82", Vishay Technology names Wayne Rogers to its Board, 8/10/2006, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wayne_Rogers&oldid=1137078902, This page was last edited on 2 February 2023, at 17:58. Although he shared most of Hawkeye's assessment of the Army, the war, and regulation in general, B.J. At the beginning of Season 4 he replaced Trapper John at the 4077th, shortly before Henry Blake's replacement, Colonel Potter, arrived as the new commander. This series is the most popular and best-known version of the franchise and was ranked #25 in TV Guide's "50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time". As in, he seemingly believed Frank's mean, sarcastic personality was a bit . A skill he developed despite the deformity. 's explanation. is so pressed for time after hearing the news that he is unable to even to leave a note, echoing Trapper's failure to do so at his own departure. Then, in the movie The Gig (1985), alongside Cleavon Little, he was a jazz musician-hobbyist whose group has an opportunity to play a Catskills resort and must confront failure. M*A*S*H: A Novel About Three Army Doctors, Wayne Rogers (for M*A*S*H) and Pernell Roberts (for Trapper John, M.D.). Gary Burghoff and Edward Winter also appeared as guests. series. After the first incident (Hot Lips and Empty Arms) during which he and Hawkeye dragged her into the shower to sober her up, she said to Trapper, "You're built, you son of a gun". The character is named for the series DP, Bill Jurgensen, but Mike Farrell likes to never answer what B.J. M*A*S*H (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. Charles was played by David Ogden Stiers. NOW: Roger passed away Dec. 31, 2015, due to complications from pneumonia. The actor who played Lt. During production of M*A*S*H, Mike Farrell met Dr. Hunter "Patch" Adams, who served as a technical consultant on the show. tended to be more passive, preferring to be a quieter voice of reason. It starred Alan Alda as Hawkeye Pierce and Wayne Rogers as Trapper John McIntyre. Once the cease fire takes effect and all the wounded are tended to and shipped out, and after all of the others say their goodbyes and leave the 4077th for the final time, B.J. Burghoff returned for a pair of guest appearances in the spinoff AfterM*A*S*H, and attempted to revive the character in a pilot, W*A*L*T*E*R. NOW: Burghoff is retired in California where he collects stamps and invented a new type of fishing pole. While angry over missing Trapper, Hawkeye met his replacement in the person of Captain B.J. Early on, Trapper and Hawkeye were partners, both partaking in hedonistic pursuits and playing practical jokes on Majors Frank Burns and Margaret Houlihan. that Pernell Roberts' portrayal of the character was modeled after Elliot Gould's film characterization rather than Wayne Rogers' TV depiction. Christopher continued the role of Father Mulcahy through all 11 seasons of M*A*S*H and into the spinoff AfterMASH. Nurse Bayliss was one of the few Black actors to appear as a recurring character on the show, and she was prominently featured in the season two episode "Dear Dad Three" in which she is forced to treat an angry and racist patient. After the first three seasons of the show, it became clear to M*A*S*H producers that the audience favored Hawkeye's storyline, meaning Alan's character was given better development and screen time over Trapper. He replaced Trapper John, both in his position . Elliott Gould as "Trapper John" in the 1970 film. The comedy remained strong through season 6 and Winchester was definitely a breath of fresh air. He was a big part of the show's makeup during those early seasons. He acquired the nickname "Trapper John" during an incident in which he was having sex with a woman in a Boston & Maine Railway washroom. Frank's unnatural storyline is because Larry Linville's five-year contract was up. Trapper left no goodbye note but did "give" Radar a kiss on the cheek to pass on to Hawkeye, which he very reluctantly does. He trapped me! maintaining that they stood for nothing at all, Hawkeye went to great lengths to get at the truth, sending telegrams to many of B.J. Not really fair to compare the two, since Farrell had many more years to exploer his character than Wayne Rogers. Hunnicutt. (son) & Kimberly 'Kim' McIntyre (daughter) (on Trapper John, M.D. Radar had tried unsuccessfully to reach Hawkeye in Tokyo to alert him of Trapper's departure. In Oh, How We Danced, Hawkeye and the others tried to ease B.J. about what he would be doing if he were at home with his family. Shelley Long, Leslie Neilson, Laurence Fishburne, Blythe Danner, John Ritter, Ed Begley, Jr., and Rita Wilson all had parts on the show at one point, as did Teri Garr, Andrew Dice Clay, and George Wendt. Once the degree of MD is conferred on a member of the military, they are given the rank of Captain in both the Army and the Air Force. We wouldn't have realizedit at the time. later apologizes to Hawkeye for hitting "the best friend I ever had", and then breaks down sobbing over the excruciating reality that the first person that Erin called "Daddy" was somebody else, added to which he knows he will never regain the lost time he should have had with Erin. Hunnicutt, hearing of the pranks played by Trapper John, attempts to show that he in fact is "the world's heavyweight scamp". At the beginning of Season 4 he replaced Trapper John at the 4077th, shortly before Henry Blake's replacement, Colonel Potter, arrived as the new commander. Show was on another level when they replaced most of the earlier characters. It ran from 1979 to 1986, and thus overlapped with M*A*S*H, which ended in 1983, but did not overlap with Trapper's time on M*A*S*H. Pernell Roberts (right) as an older Dr. John McIntyre, with Gregory Harrison (left) as Dr. George "Gonzo" Gates from Trapper John, M.D.. In reality, the show's set on the Fox Ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains was devastated during filming of the final episode. It was the first spin-off to feature a character from the series in civilian life after the war. In 1968, surgeon H. Richard Hornbergerusing the nom de plume of Richard Hookercollaborated with writer W.C. Heinz to create the book MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors, based on his. But immediately after Hunnicutt departs, his orders are rescinded, and he only gets as far as Guam before being sent back to the 4077th, by which time Hawkeye has returned. Upon hearing the news, Hawkeye learns, an ecstatic Trapper ran through the mess tent naked. In 2001, Rogers made Destin, Florida, his home. All Rights Reserved. 'Trapper' John! "MASH", in posters for the movie and in the trailer, it was rendered as M*A*S*H. M*A*S*H, a TV adaptation of the film, ran from 1972 to 1983, more than three times as long as the war it chronicled. The episode, Goodbye, Farewell and Amen," was two and a half hours long and viewed by a whopping 77% of the people watching TV that night, or 121.6 million people. Who replaced Trapper John Mash? As a compromise, CBS not only muted the laughs during the operating scenes, but also lowered the volume of the laughter throughout the series, making it less raucous than the normal canned laughs of a comedic series. One personality trait that B.J. He also starred as Walter Duncan in the 1987 movie Race Against the Harvest. Plus, Rogers came into and left MASH when the show was still fresh. receives his discharge while Hawkeye is in Seoul undergoing psychiatric treatment. Updated March 6, 2020 by Richard Keller:As we near the 50th anniversary of this iconic show, more behind the scenes information comes out. George Morgan played the role of Father Mulcahy in the pilot episode of M*A*S*H, but when the character next appeared he was played by a new actor William Christopher. TV series . THEN: Serving as star, director, writer, and guiding creative force behind the long-running sitcom over his ten year tenure, Alan Alda became not only the face of M*A*S*H, but of a generation of thoughtful feminist men throughout the 1970s and into the 80s. Rogers appeared on television in both dramas and sitcoms such as The Invaders, The F.B.I., Combat!, Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Wanted Dead or Alive, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., and The Fugitive, and had a small supporting role in the 1967 movie Cool Hand Luke. Here are the actors from the series who are still alive today. [8][9] He died exactly one year before fellow M*A*S*H cast member William Christopher. It didn't take long for B.J. In 1990, Rogers co-starred with Connie Selleca in the CBS made-for-television movie Miracle Landing based on the true story of the 1988 Aloha Airlines Flight 243 crash landing after an explosive cabin depressurization. Simply the Worlds Most Interesting Travel Site. [7], Rogers died on December 31, 2015, from complications of pneumonia in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 82. Colonel Blake). I thought you were in the bathroom". Who took Trapper John's Place on MASH? Rogers also appeared in the 1980s miniseries Chiefs. Out of the characters onM*A*S*H*,the most famous is not Hawkeye Pierce or Maxwell Klinger. Which 'M*A*S*H' Cast Members Are Still Alive Today? They did all they could do with those characters, even Larry Linville (Major Burns) said that they did everything they could with his character. But while Hawkeye continued womanizing, B.J. Consequently, unbeknownst to viewers at the time, Abyssinia, Henry would be Trapper John's final M*A*S*H episode as well as Henry's. Mulcahy with Hawkeye Pierce, Trapper mentions that his parents wanted him to be a priest. Though he did show some stubble from time to time, he remained without a full face of hair during his first few seasons. B.J. ", Related: The Real Reason Shelley Long Left 'Cheers'. Fox developed a M*A*S*H video game that was released for the Atari 2600, Atari 8-bit family and the TI-99/4A.