HE PLAYED HOLLYWOOD’S ULTIMATE COWARD… BUT HIS REAL LIFE EMBODIED UNCOMPROMISING INTEGRITY
We live in a culture that struggles to separate the artist from the art, often projecting the sins of a character onto the soul of the person playing…
THE NIGHT JAMIE FARR ACCIDENTALLY TERRORIZED THE ENTIRE MASH PRODUCTION CREW
We were sitting in this small, dimly lit radio studio in Los Angeles for a podcast retrospective, and the host leaned forward with this look of pure curiosity….
THE DAY THE LAUGHTER STOPPED IN THE 4077TH MESS HALL.
The studio lights were blinding, but the air inside the soundstage felt completely freezing. It was well past midnight on a Tuesday, and the entire production had slowed…
HOW ALAN ALDA ACCIDENTALLY STARTED THE MOST EXPENSIVE MASH LAUGH RIOT
People always ask me if the set of MAS*H was as fast-paced and witty behind the scenes as it looked on television. We were dynamic, we were close,…
THE SCRIPT CALLED FOR TEARS… BUT GARY BURGHOFF ACTUALLY COLDLY FREEZE.
The Malibu Creek sun was beating down exactly the way it did fifty years ago, baking the dry brush and turning the dirt into a fine, choking powder….
HOW ALAN ALDA ACCIDENTALLY TURNED A DRAMATIC MAS*H SCENE INTO ABSOLUTE CHAOS
I remember sitting down for a podcast interview a few years back, and the host asked me a question I hadn’t heard in decades. He didn’t ask about…
THE PROP THAT BROKE A TELEVISION FAMILY APART.
It was supposed to be a joyous occasion. Years after the 4077th closed its doors, a few old friends found themselves sitting in a quiet corner of a…
THE FUNNIEST UNPLANNED MOMENT ON THE MASH SET
The host of the podcast leans over the studio microphone and asks a question that usually gets a standard, polite answer from Hollywood veterans. “Alan, you spent eleven…
THE SOUND THAT STILL MAKES THE CAST FREEZE YEARS LATER
It was a quiet afternoon, years after the tents were packed away and the cameras stopped rolling. A few of the old friends had gathered outdoors. Just a…
THE ANESTHESIA MISTAKE THAT BROKE THE OPERATING ROOM
I was a guest on a comedy podcast a few months ago, having a wonderful conversation about writing and directing for television. We were moving smoothly through the…