Fox announces new special: ‘M*A*S*H’: The Comedy That Changed Television’
Written by ABC Audio. All rights reserved. on December 6, 2023
On the evening of Monday, January 1, Fox is taking a look back at one of the most celebrated television series in history.
M*A*S*H: The Comedy That Changed Television will feature all new interviews with cast members including Alan Alda (Hawkeye), Gary Burghoff (Radar), Jamie Farr (Klinger), Wayne Rogers (Trapper), Mike Farrell (B.J.), William Christopher (Father Mulcahy) and Loretta Swit (“Hotlips” Houlihan), as well as the series’ executive producers, Gene Reynolds and Burt Metcalfe.
The producers of the special tease, “In these intimate, highly personal remembrances, the creation and evolution of the show’s iconic characters are revealed, alongside rare and never-before-seen behind-the-scenes footage, photos and stories.”
The series finale of M*A*S*H* in 1983 drew a record 106 million viewers.
Dan Harrison, Fox’s EVP, program planning & content strategy — who is also the classic show’s unofficial historian — said it is “among the most iconic sitcoms in the annals of television history,” calling the 14 Emmy-winning Korean War-set show “timeless.”
Incidentally, ABC Audio caught up with Harrison last year, ahead of the series’ 50th anniversary.
“[T]here are very few shows … whose popularity spanned decades,” he said at the time. “And it’s I Love Lucy, M*A*S*H, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Friends, you know, those are the shows on the Mount Rushmore of TV syndication.”
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