Amazing Little-Known Facts About M*A*S*H

A Military History

M*A*S*H was Alan Alda’s largest and best-known roles, with him playing Captain Hawkeye Pierce. He has also played a variety of other characters through television and film and often plays military or political types. For Captain Hawkeye Pierce, Alda was perfect for the role, as he served in the Army Reserve in the Korean War.

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He had enlisted after graduating from Fordham University, similar to a lot of other men in that time. While in the military, Alda was a gunnery officer. Jamie Farr, or Corporal Klinger, also had previous military experience serving in the Korean War. Farr even had experience acting in Army training films. The background helped both men get into the mindsets of their characters, enabling them to feel the frustrations of a life abroad in war. It was also likely helpful that the men both served during the same war which M*A*S*H is about, truly doesn’t get any better than that from directorial standpoint.