THEY WALKED THE DUSTY HILLS AGAIN, BUT THE LAUGHTER WAS GONE.
The crunch of dry dirt under their boots sounded exactly the same as it had forty years ago. Malibu Creek State Park was quiet, save for the wind…
THE TEARS IN THAT FINAL SALUTE WERE NEVER IN THE SCRIPT.
The hotel suite was quiet, the kind of expensive silence that only comes after a long day of flashbulbs and questions. Loretta sat by the window, the city…
THE QUIETEST MAN ON SET CARRIED THE HEAVIEST BURDEN OF ALL
Mike Farrell was sitting in his living room on a quiet rainy afternoon, letting his mind drift back to the canvas tents of Stage 9. Whenever the surviving…
TV’S MOST ARROGANT ARISTOCRAT… BUT HIS REAL LIFE WAS A CAREFULLY GUARDED SECRET
For six seasons, he played the most pompous, self-assured, and unshakeable man on television. When he arrived at the 4077th, he brought an air of absolute, impenetrable superiority….
THE CRAZY GENERAL WHO COMPLETELY BROKE THE MAS*H SOUNDSTAGE
I was sitting down for a documentary interview a few years ago, and the director asked a question I had heard a hundred times before. He leaned back…
THE FAKE BLOOD DISASTER THAT SHUT DOWN THE MAS*H SOUNDSTAGE
I was sitting down for a late-career documentary interview a few years ago, and the young director asked me a very simple question. He wanted to know about…
THE DOCTOR EVERYONE TRUSTED… BUT HIS REAL PATIENTS WERE OFF CAMERA
Years after the iconic green helicopters had been permanently grounded, Mike Farrell sat quietly, remembering the ghosts of Stage 9. When fans approach the veteran actor today, they…
THE SURGICAL TENT PRANK THAT BROKE THE MAS*H CREW
I was doing a late-career interview a few years ago, and the journalist asked me a question that immediately took me back to Stage 9. He wanted to…
THE MAN WHO SAW NOTHING BUT FOUND EVERYTHING IN A DINER
The stage lights are bright, reflecting off John Banner’s polished forehead as he adjusts his position in the leather chair. He looks exactly like the man we see…
TV’S MOST FAMOUS DODGER… BUT HIS NECK CARRIED A REAL SOLDIER’S WEIGHT
For nearly a decade, he was universally known as the most desperate, scheming, and hilarious coward on television. Every week, millions of viewers tuned in to watch him…