In Surgery with the Pilot and Finale Scripts for “MAS*H”

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MASH-tv-show-15 “M*A*S*H” ran on the CBS Network from September 17, 1972 until February 28, 1983. It was one of the highest rated shows of its time and its 2 ½ hour series finale was the highest rated episode in TV history (125 million viewers) up until that point. It was beat only in total viewership by Super Bowl XLIV in February of 2010.

The show was based on the 1968 novel (MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors) by Richard Hooker and also the 1970 film directed by Robert Altman. The story centered on a team of army doctors working at a MASH unit during the Korean War. And for those that don’t know what MASH stands for, it means Mobile Army Surgical Hospital. In other words, they could pack the hospital up and move it to wherever they needed, though I believe they only did this a few times in the show.

Some of the cast changed over the years and it took on a slight tonal shift from comedy to dramedy. But the show’s quality mostly stayed consistent. This was without a doubt one of my favorite shows growing up. The writing on the show was superb and I feel that its quality is what influenced me to eventually want to become a writer. Although “Star Wars” made me realize just how fun movies could be, “M*A*S*H” made me realize just how great television could be. And the show’s quality still holds up strong today.

I’m sure the show could have continued for many years beyond the 11 seasons it produced. It had always stayed in the top twenty throughout its run. But one of the major problems in its concept is that the Korean War only lasted three years while the show went way beyond that. And every episode (there were 256 of them) didn’t span just one day. The actors were aging, the time frame was stretching credibility, and I’m sure everyone involved with the show was probably running out of steam. So it eventually came to an end, but at least it was on the show’s terms.

So what I bring to you today is something a bit special. Below you will find the PILOT script for “M*A*S*H” along with its final episode script entitled “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.” But I present that episode in two parts. You see, this happens to be the Wardrobe Departments draft of the script. In Part 1 of the packet you will find the daily call sheets, along with the wardrobe sheets for many of the actors, and the shooting schedule. So if you love that kind of thing, you’re going to go nuts over this. And in Part 2 of the packet you will find the actual shooting script for the episode, which happens to include a ton of handwritten notes. So please feel free to enjoy some really great writing.