Shark Bytes

I'll restate (and better) my position on Gelbart writing Charles's' character on Aftermash (which he didn't do)! Charles was a character who very, very strongly relied on top notch dialogue from scriptwrters (one of whom was Alan Alda). Since Alda had zilch to do with Aftermash right then and there one of Charles's very good creators was gone. If Gelbart had not gone to great pains to write supergreat for Charles (had Stiers appeared on the sequel tv show) the character would have suffered greatly and violently on Aftermash.

Now more about Klinger. Ned claimed that Gelbart knew on Aftermash how to write for a drag dress-free Klinger (unlike what Klinger was on Mash during Gelbart's time). But there was a first season Mash Christmas ep where Klinger was actually out of drag! So Gelbart was already familiar witha drag dress-free Klinger even before he began Aftermash!

Ned, you discussed a non-dress--wearing Klinger and I showed that as Klinger reverted back to dresses on Aftermash your point was invalid about Gelbart's experience writing for a non-dressing wearing Klinger!

Mash: A++
After Mash: No letter could even come close to saying how bad After Mash was.

I never saw a staggering decline in the original MASH until the last two seasons. Even then it still had some funny moments. I think everyone wanted to see the staff at the 4077 get back together for one more go round. Earlier, someone posted about an anthology series, wich really sounded interesting. I probably ended up thinking like most people did about a movie of some kind, where Trapper & BJ/Potter/Winchester would all get a chance to meet, and Winchester would get to meet Frank.

I can't believe that this many people even watched the show. AfterMASH jumped the shark at the exact moment when someone said "Hey, you know what would be a good idea?"

To Herb: I think Jamie Farr wasnt making enough $$$ on Match Game and The Gong Show.

To Michael Long: I dont remember this surgeon Dr Boyer, but from what I have heard for years about VA hospitals, a person like him employed by one is not far-fetched at all.

I cant defend this show at all.When Hawkeye flew out on that chopper in the last episode of MASH that should have been the last we seen or the 4077th.But you can see that Jamie Farr who was also doing those horrible Cannonball Run movies, would do anything if the price was right.Or maybe got him to start wearing a dress again when MASH was funny before ALan Alda made it so preachy.But besides that has to be worst spinoff off all time.

It only takes one person to agree to disagree casey, lol. Maybe the writers ran out of ideas for Charles in Korea, but a civilian Charles would open a whole new world of options. Besides, it didn't have to be Charles, the show just needed one of the main characters from MASH in it, BJ, Hot Lips, maybe even drag Wayne Rogers in as Trapper. I loved MASH, and I know I didn't care about seeing the further adventures of Father Mulcahy.

As for Klinger, I'm not sure what you disproved, but congratulations I guess.

This show in my opinion inflicted the most suffering on the American TV Viewing public. Most lousy shows few watch and they are gone fast. This pathetic embarrassment actually lasted a season and a half, as former M*A*S*H watchers tuned in out of habit I guess.

I have disproven what you said about Klinger, Ned. As for Charles, there as a late Mash ep when he was with a son of a rich man and there was all this talk about vinyards in europe, the writers knocked themselves out by this ep--it was the writers who half made CEW not just Stiers. Gelbart may have made CEW different and inferior had the character been on Aftermash! I challenge your view more--no agreement to disagree by me!

Nice try Casey, but I still find it a bizarre line of reasoning, for the reasons I stated. I suppose we'll just have to leave it at one of those agree to disagree things.

The Frank Burns character had run its course after the second season, no matter who was doing the writing.

The fact of the matter, at least for me, AfterMASH needed at least one of the better known lead characters, Winchester seems like the best choice for comic possibilities, but even BJ or Margaret would have worked.

For starters Ned. Klinger was less interesting on Aftermash without his drag. Eventually they wrote it (his drag bit) into Aftermash. The fifth season of Mash (the first without Gelbart) had the Burns character getting all messed up (the humour in season 5 became weaker and cheaper too). Some of the fifth season writers simply did not know what to do with Burns or write for the show's unique brand of humour and both declined declined in quality. New writers not knowing how to handle a character or a show's unique theme can ruin it. I read this happened with the third season of Star Trek TOS with some regular writers gone Spock declined a bit as a character and even on the anthology show Twilight Zone with some of the regular writers gone (like Dick Matheson) by the last 6 or 7 eps made the show was declining something fierce in quality. Nothing strange about wondering that had Gelbart written for Charles on Aftermash if the blueblood character would have been different (very maybe inferior).

PS Larry Gelbart, btw, stated on usenet he did not ever meet David Ogden Stiers on the set of the movie Oh God (which Gelbart wrote in the 70's).

Hey, I've got a great idea for a TV show! You know how M*A*S*H stayed on the air WAY too long and wore out its welcome? Well, since the finale did spectacularly in the ratings, that must mean something. No, it doesn't mean that people who'd watched the show years ago were curious to see how it ended! It obviously means that Mr. and Mrs. America out there are DYING to see what happens next to all of the LEAST popular characters! That's why AfterM*A*S*H (wasn't it clever of us to give it such a similar title??) will star Jamie Farr, Henry Morgan and William Christopher. You look a little dubious. No, really, trust me...they work cheap! And that trio will never try to take over the show, the way a certain party hijacked M*A*S*H.

If you're smart, you'll give this baby a great slot and hype the hell out of it. Mark my words, AfterM*A*S*H is destined to be the blockbuster hit sitcom of the '80s!

Like a turd that keeps popping back up no matter how many times you flush, the producers of M*A*S*H just kept coming at the American public.
Well let's see, the original M*A*S*H stayed at the party about 5 years too long, so hey - why not make a crappy sequel!
The only saving grace this mutt of a show had was the absence of the sanctimonious Alan Alda.

Larry Gelbert was an excellent television writer, I'm sure he could have written about Winchester. He didn't have much experience writing about a non dress wearing Klinger either, and for that matter, when M*A*S*H first started, he had no experience writing for any of the characters, so I find that line of reasoning to be bizarre.

I just think the show needed one of the main ensemble characters, aside from Potter. Winchester would have been great, or perhaps Margaret, maybe even both. If that meant losing father Mulcahy, so be it, he was never a very interesting character anyway.