THE GOODBYE NO ONE IN THE ROOM WAS READY FOR
Years after the helicopters stopped flying, two old friends sat quietly at a cast gathering. The crowded room was loud with laughter, the clinking of glasses, and shared…
THE TUNNEL WAS JUST A PROP UNTIL WE STEPPED BACK IN
The sun was hitting the old pavement of the studio lot in a way that felt like a trick of the mind. Robert Clary stood there, his hands…
THE DAY RICHARD DAWSON MADE SERGEANT SCHULTZ COMPLETELY LOSE HIS COOL
The interviewer leaned forward, the studio lights reflecting off his glasses as he looked at Richard Dawson. Richard sat there, looking every bit the elder statesman of Hollywood,…
THE SECRET UNDER THE SURGICAL MASKS
I was doing a podcast interview a few years ago, and the host threw me a complete curveball. Instead of asking about the heavy, emotional finale or the…
THE DAY THE SCHULTZ UNIFORM FINALLY GAVE UP THE GHOST
The interviewer, a young man in a sharp suit, leans forward and places an old, cracked leather belt on the coffee table between them. John Banner looks at…
WHEN A TAKEOUT MENU RUINED A SCENE ON MAS*H
I was recording my podcast recently, and my producer patched through a surprise caller. It was a radio host, and he threw me completely off balance with an…
THE DAY NEWKIRK LOST HIS COOL ON THE HOGAN’S HEROES SET
The studio lights were a bit softer than they used to be back in the sixties, and Richard Dawson sat back in the armchair with that familiar, mischievous…
HARRY MORGAN KNEW THE LAST GOODBYE WASN’T SCRIPTED.
The tea was cooling on the table, forgotten in the soft glow of the late afternoon. Harry sat across from Loretta, his eyes carrying that same sharp, fatherly…
THE DAY COLONEL POTTER FOUND A NEW FAMILY ON HIS DESK
You know, people always ask me about the transition from a show like Dragnet to a show like MAS*H. They are two completely different universes, really. In Dragnet,…
THE SOUND THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING FOR LORETTA SWIT AND HARRY MORGAN
The sun was beginning to dip behind the Santa Monica Mountains, casting long, amber shadows across the porch. It was a quiet afternoon, the kind where the air…