
Alan Alda appeared in 250 of the 251 episodes of
M*A*S*H as Captain Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce. After the series, he never slowed down, appearing in dozens of movies and TV shows. He was a regular on
ER in 1999 and
The West Wing 2004-2006. 72 years old as of
today, Alda has two movies scheduled to be released in 2008,
Diminished Capacity and
Nothing But the Truth.

Wayne Rogers portrayed principle character Trapper John McIntyre. He left the show in 1975, a move he later regretted. He turned down the title role in the 1979 series
Trapper John, MD. Rogers instead turned to
managing his investments, which included rental properties, a chain of Swifty Serve convenient stores, and a chain of bridal shops. He founded the investment management firm Wayne Roger & Co. He was named to the board of directors of
Vishay Intertechnology, Inc, a manufacturer of electronic components in 2006. Rogers is a regular panelist on Fox News’ financial show
Cashin’ In on Saturday nights. Check out his weekly
stock picks.

Loretta Swit played Major Margaret “Hotlips” Houlihan in 240 of the 251 episodes of
M*A*S*H. After the show, she had various movie and TV roles until 1998. Now 70, Swit is an animal rights activist who supports shelters by selling her paintings and jewelry designs. She has
a website, although not all of the links work. Her
MySpace page has more activity. See a larger recent picture of Swit
here.

Gary Burghoff was the only actor from the movie version of
M*A*S*H who became a regular on the TV show. He played the character of Walter “Radar” O’Reilly for seven seasons, plus a double episode in the eighth season that sent his character home to the States. He reprised the character in two episodes of
AfterMASH and in the pilot for the sitcom
W*A*L*T*E*R, which aired once and was never made into a series. Burghoff currently lives in Paradise, California and has a summer home in Connecticut. He
paints wildlife and plays drums with the jazz combo The We Three. You can become his friend at
MySpace.

Mike Farrell portrayed B.J. Hunnicutt, a doctor who replaced Trapper John as Hawkeye’s best friend and partner in crime beginning in the fourth season. Besides acting, he wrote five episodes and directed four. After the series ended, he continued to act and worked behind the scenes directing and producing TV shows and movies. Farrell is a lifelong activist, involved with
Human Rights Watch and other organizations. At almost 69 (his birthday is next week), he still loves a motorcycle ride. There’s more at
his website.

Harry Morgan embodied Colonel Sherman T. Potter, the commanding officer who replaced Henry Blake. He was cast in the spinoff
AfterMASH along with Jamie Farr and William Christopher. Morgan, who was famous before
M*A*S*H as Joe Friday’s sidekick Bill Gannon on
Dragnet, remained active in movies and TV until 1999. You can see an
interview from 2004 here. Morgan is 92 years old.

David Ogden Stiers played Major Charles Emerson Winchester III, a surgeon who replaced Frank Burns in 1977. Since then, he’s been amazingly
busy with TV and movie roles, most notably
The Dead Zone and
Stargate Atlantis. His voice starred in eight Disney animated films. Stiers is now an associate conductor with the Newport Symphony Orchestra in Newport, Oregon. He has also conducted other symphonies across the country as a guest. His movie
Together Again for the First Time is scheduled for release in 2008.

Jamie Farr played Max Klinger, who cross-dressed trying to get psychiatric discharge from the army. He gave up the dresses when he took over Radar’s job as company clerk, but was still homesick for Toledo. In the final episode, Klinger became the only character to stay in Korea by his own choice after he married a local girl, Soon-Lee Hahn. This irony was lost when he resurfaced in the
AfterMASH series in a stateside VA hospital. Jamie Farr made many appearances on a wide range of games shows, as well as dramatic and comedy series on TV and in movies. His published his autobiography
Just Farr Fun in 1994 and a childrens book
Hababy’s Christmas Eve. Farr has sponsored a golf tournament, now called the
Jamie Farr Owens-Corning Classic, which raises funds for childrens charities, for 24 years. He has
a website.

William Christopher appeared as Father Francis Mulcahy. He joined Harry Morgan and Jamie Farr in the series
AfterMASH, which ran from 1983 to 1985. He continued to work in TV and movies until his retirement in 1998. In 1989, Christopher wrote a book with his wife Barbara called
Mixed Blessings about their experiences raising their autistic son Ned. Christopher devotes his time the to
National Autistic Society.

Kellye Nakahara started as one of many nurses who rotated through the show without permanent characters or contracts, but she was asked to return for a total of 82 episodees over 11 seasons. Nakahara’s character was known as Nurse Kellye until the fifth season, when Alan Alda named her Kealani Kellye. She is now a
professional artist under her married name, Kellye Wallett. Read an undated
interview with Wallett.

Allan Arbus, who played psychiatrist Major Sidney Freedman, worked steadily in TV until 2000, with his last role as Uncle Nathan on
Curb Your Enthusiasm. He will turn 90 years old on February 15th. He is still signing
autographs for those who request one, so he must be doing just fine. He is pictured here with his wife Mariclare Costello.

Jeff Maxwell was the actor behind Igor Straminsky, the hapless company cook for the 4077th. He later published a cookbook called
Secrets of the M*A*S*H Mess: The Lost Recipes of Private Igor. Read an undated
interview with him.

Rosalind Chao appeared as Klinger’s girlfriend and then wife Soon-Lee Hahn in the last two episodes of
M*A*S*H. She reprised the role in the spinoff
AfterMASH in 1983-85. Her career blossomed afterwards. She played recurring characters on
Falcon Crest, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, 6 Feet Under, and
The O.C. and guest starred in a dozen other series. Her movies include
The Joy Luck Club, and
Freaky Friday. She’s in the cast of the play
Some Girl(s), opening February 6th in Los Angeles.

G.W. Bailey appeared in eleven episodes as Sergeant Luther Rizzo, who became famous for his distinctive pronunciation of “vee-HICK-le.” After
M*A*S*H, Bailey was a regular on
St. Elsewhere and starred in 6
Police Academy movies. He is currently playing Det. Lt. Provenza on the series
Closer.
Rest In Peace

Larry Linville, who played the buffoonish Major Frank Burns, left the series after five years because his character wasn’t likeable. He kept acting til shortly before he died on April 10, 2001 from pneumonia, a complication of his lung cancer surgery. He was 60.
McLean Stevenson portrayed Lt. Colonel Henry Blake, the commanding officer of the 4077th for three seasons, then asked to be released from his contract. His character was killed off in possibly the most emotional episode ever. Afterward, he starred in four sitcoms designed around him, but all failed in the ratings. Stevenson died of a heart attack following surgery on February 15, 1996. He was 68.
Edward Winter, who played the mysterious but inept Colonel Flagg, continued to act in a wide variety of TV shows until 1996. He also did voice work for several animated series after that, including The Angry Beavers. He died March 8, 2001 of Parkinson’s disease. He was 63.

Johnny Haymer was Sgt. Zelmo Zale in 20 episodes. He was active in TV and movies until he died of cancer on November 18, 1989 in Los Angeles. He was 69.
John Orchard portrayed two characters on the series, anesthesiologist Ugly John Black in eleven episodes, and an Australian officer named Muldoon once. Orchard died of a heart attack on November 3rd, 1995 in London England. He was 66.
Pat Morita appeared in several episodes as Captain Sam Pak, but was better known in his roles as Arnold in Happy Days and Miyagi in four Karate Kid movies. Morita died on Thanksgiving Day, 2005 at his home in Las Vegas. He was 73. However, he will appear in two movies to be released in 2008, Act Your Age and Royal Kill.
You can get all kinds of nostalgia going on about M*A*S*H at the 4077th Homepage.
Great post, C. I especially liked reading about the minor characters. And I once again promise to stop smoking.
I live in a rural county in Tennessee, and Wayne Rogers attended The Webb School, a private prep school here in our county (in the colorfully-named town of Bell Buckle). He's an active alumnus and comes back frequently for big events.
Crap this makes me feel old. Thanks for the update.
u can do it Jellio!!! I'm also quitting cigs right now. Down to 1 cig/day adn will be done on super bowl sunday!.
I live in Chico which is literally 4 miles form Paradise California. For years after M*A*S*H Gary did not want to be known for anything related to Radar. He has been doing the art thing in Paradise for a number of years. He is nice quiet guy that keeps to himself.
I used to live and teach in Ottumwa, Iowa, which was Radar O'Reilly's hometown in the series. They used to have an annual M*A*S*H reunion there. At least some of the cast would usually show up.
(Ottumwa is also comedian Tom Arnold's hometown, and Richard Nixon was stationed there at a naval training base during WWII. Interesting town.)
Heres one thats missing
Captain Spalding
The singing surgeon
Loudon Wainwright
Great post.
I've heard nothing but good things about all of these actors ... except for Gary Burghoff. He's said to be a right c*nt.
I bought a 66 fire engine red chevy station wagon that belonged to the fire chief in Ottumwa, Iowa. I tell people that is where Cprl. Radar O'Reilly was from. I still watch M.A.S.H. reruns every day.
Gary Burghoff was my favorite.
I just want to encourage Jellioe to stop smoking. I am on the internet right now as it's one of the few things I can do. I smoked many years on and off and it caught up with me. I got pneumonia with bronchitis and emphysema and my right lung collapsed. I had to have surgery to get my right lung inflated and am now on oxygen and home alone. When I grew up everybody smoked. My prep school even had a designated smoking area. I knew I was rolling the dice every time I lit up but I was sure nothing would happen to me. I still can't believe it. You'll never regret quitting but you may regret not quitting.
I really enjoyed you where are they now : The cast of MAsh I have a question In the opening scenes of the Tv series you see a group of nurses running to the chopper pad the lead extra a dark haired beauty with out a hat was absolutely stunninig who is shwe and where is she now??????????????
My wife, Jeanne, was Frank's Bride in the episode "Nothing Like A Nurse". Was a black and white shaky home camera film of the Burn's outdoor wedding. Every other film and tv series cast and crew on the 2th Century lot came out to view the filming! We had Apes = Planet Of = Neuman, Astaire, you name them! This was the 3rd season, 1974. She was also Nurse Able in the operating room and worked with Hawkeye. Those were great days, and funny people!
Fascinating site, I always wondered what happened to them, also thought more were dead than actually are (I thought Harry Morgan died a long time ago). Rotten Dead Pool lists Larry Linville's year of death as 2000. Too bad about Ed Winter, I always liked "Flagg".
I have been watching mash all my life.When I was a child and C' Blake died I was so upset and confused.ha ha.I remember crying and crying and my parents laughed at me!Now I watch mash reruns everyday with my partner, we love it.
What happend to the guy who always played either a north korean or south korean.He is in a lot of the shows as many different people.I dont know his name but he was in the one where they want to send a north korean back to the usa but he doesnt want to go and there is another korean who hawkeye and bj trick the u.s guy into taking, i think he was a south korean soldier who didn't want to fight again.He is also in the one where winchester has a sore back and he has 3 koreans he is teaching.
What ever happened to 'Spear Chucker' Jones?
To the person who posted that you live in Bell Buckle in a rural county, give me the hook up on the info on where that is. I am a huge M*A*S*H fan and heard that Wayne Rogers went to school here in our great state (I live in Gibson County). I'm really interested. Give me a hit at my e-mail address.
Captain Spearchucker Jones was played in the 1970 by Fred Williamson, the former AFL player who later was chosen as the Monday Night Football announcing replacemeng for Don Meredith. The character in the TV show was played by former Philadelphia Eagle Tim Brown (a 3 time pro bowl player from 62-64, one of the best kick return players in league history).
Note: His character was dropped when it was discovered there were no African American surgeons in the Korean War assigned by an armed services unit.
Must be a typo about Alan Alda.......he was in all the episodes.....
I concur with nsdalfan, as does Wikipedia.
Do you have a citation for which episode your source believes Alda did not appear in? If you can cite it, we'll update the article.. but my understanding was that it was correct: Alda was the *only* actor in the TV series to appear in every episode.
Buffy didn't even manage that. (Ok, well, there was one episode where she was in one shot at each end, shot earlier, because Sarah was working on a movie... Wikipedia thinks that counts, but I don't. :-)