I've noticed that the boards in the Sinks tend to become very specialized. This board is intended for very general commentary that doesn't fit anywhere else, such as this thought that crossed my mind the other day:

Ever notice how many of the characters got sick or injured? Henry and Margaret got appendicitis. Radar had a tonsillectomy and was wounded in an enemy attack. B.J. had to have his hand operated on and was shot in the foot. Klinger got a broken nose, a gunshot graze ("Would you at least bleed?") and a gut full of hardware. (How DID he get rid of that, anyway--surgery or castor oil?) Frank had a five pound baby hernia, shot himself in the foot, and caught Korean Hemorraghic Fever. Father Mulcahy had dysentery and infectious hepatitis. Bigelow was injured in the big windstorm. Col. Potter got shot in the rump. Trapper John had to be treated for an ulcer. Most of the camp came down with the flu and salmonella.

Very unhealthy place, the 4077th!

'Nother point. It was always important to wear masks in the OR. In "Abyssinia, Henry" when Radar stumbles into the OR, Trapper calls out, "Radar, put a mask on." When Margaret was being prepared for her appendectomy, Frank stalked into the OR and Col. Potter immediately bellowed, "MASK!"
This being so, why is it that patients with minor injuries, who are given a local anesthetic and remain awake, do not wear masks?

Excellent point--they should!

The nurses' quarters seem to be in a very fluid state. Usually you see a tent with four nurses sharing it. However, in the episode with Hawkeye's former lover, she and the other new nurse seemed to have a tent to themselves. (The other new nurse later became part of the foursome tent, at least for a while.) In the episode where Radar falls for an intellectual new nurse, she appears to have a tent all to herself. The same goes for the episode "Springtime" where Radar gets "slaked". There appears to be only one cot in the nurse's tent, and she does not seem to be concerned with the possibility of another nurse walking in at an inopportune moment.

Most of the time, as I said, you see the foursome tent--but only that foursome tent. There are surely more than four nurses plus Margaret, you see them in the background all the time, but you only see the one tent.

Another point. In one episode Margaret was complaining to Potter that the men always got to use the showers first, and therefore by the time the nurses were allowed in, the hot water was all gone. She distinctly said that they were all using the same tent, yet in every other episode that mentions showers, the men and women have separate tents.

I've always wondered how Klinger was able to so quickly replace his wardrobe--he lost it several times. In the early episode "Cease Fire" he sold all his clothes to the nurses, thinking that he wouldn't need them anymore. In the episode where he, Hawkeye and Margaret went to an aid station, he got back to find that Radar had given all his clothes away. In the "Bug Out", his clothes were traded to the "concubines" in exchange for the building--a totally wasted gesture, since they weren't there long enough to use the building. He might have been able to scrounge back his dresses the first two times, but not the last. Then, after he became company clerk and stopped wearing dresses, what became of them? And here's something that just occurred to me--what became of that big hair dryer? In the episode where Hawkeye is trying to get new boots, one of the deals involves getting a hair dryer from Klinger. Klinger later takes it back, yet, in another episode, Klinger sneaks into Margaret's tent in order to make use of her shampoo and hair dryer--one that looked just like his own.

Does anyone know if Margaret ever got her portrait painted--other than the group picture? If not, she and B.J. were the only ones who didn't have an individual portrait done by Potter. (B.J. had a sketch done by Aggie O'Shay, and personally I think Potter would have done a better job. He said he didn't know how to go about painting B.J, but I notice he had no such problem with the group portrait.)

Regarding everyone in camp being sick or injured at some point.... It was a war, and not a very sanitary camp outside of the OR....

D.K.Henderson: I always wondered about that too. Expecially in the scene where Klinger does sell his clothes to get the building. I'm with you on that feeling, that it was a waste, since yup, they left it quickly.
Now, maybe his quick replacement of his ladies clothing came from a uncle Habib, or somebody, who I remember Klinger saying that is where he got his clothing. His Uncle, probably had a very big supply, that could replace Klinger's lost clothes.
As for when he became Company clerk, I always felt he ended giving his clothes away, since he felt he didn't need them anymore.

In the book, WATCHING M*A*S*H, WATCHING AMERICA, the author comments that only once during the eleven seasons was a joke repeated. In the episode "War Co-Respondant" when the doctors got into the bus and found Aggie O'Shea, someone commented about not knowing that they had stewardesses. In the episode about the U.S.O. show, when Hawkeye came up to the helicopter and found the girl with appendicitis, he said, "I didn't know this flight had stewardesses."

That having been said, I have found another duplicate joke. In the episode "Hepatitis" B.J. is preparing to perform a very tricky operation, since he is the only one who has read anything about it. While scrubbing, he is reading the journal that describes the operation, and suddenly says something like, "Let's go to the ending and see how this operation turns out." In another episode (can't remember which) Charles is performing a tricky operation while reading from a medical journal. B.J. calls out, "Why don't you peek at the end and see how it turns out?"

About the jokes being repeated, that comment was in The Complete Book of M*A*S*H, too. And, there were tons of jokes that were repeated. I'd post what they are but it's late now and I can't think straight.

RE: illnesses and injuries

Dont forget Hawkeye's loss of vision helping the nurses, closed head injury helping a Korean family, and broken arm or hand at battalion aid. Also, Klinger' temporary loss of hearing, Margaret's prickly heat rash, and charles' various ailments.

Oh, yes. Thank you.

JUst something to bring up. The United States Air Force Museum is currently setting up a display that should opewn within the next few weeks about the Korean war.
I was up there and saw as part of the display a signpost just like the one in the compound. I didn't see much else as it wasn't opened yet.
Worth a trip even if they don't have one of the Bells like they used in the show. (Thats the helicopters)

How about "You look like an ad for death"? That was repeated a lot.

Another one that was repeated was, Henry, "These are Captains Pierce..." Hawkeye "...And these are Captains McIntyre."

According to The Complete Book of M*A*S*H it wasn't that no jokes were ever during the series' run, just during Larry Gelbart's reign.

Hawkeye's finger also gets sprained in Goodbye, Radar when the lights go out and it Margaret catches it in the rib spreader.
Also, there was an episode where the entire camp is sick except for Margaret and Charles (and Hawkeye and BJ who are gallavanting around the Korean countryside picking up locals AKA Ralph and Fred).

I wonder just how many times during the series Margaret has made some statement, then promptly said or did something to contradict it? Two examples come to mind. "Oh, a little poker always relaxes me--hurry up with those cards!" Another was the episode where Hawkeye decided to go on the wagon. After complaining about the size of his bar tab, Margaret comments on how much he's been drinking lately, then immediately says, "I'll have a double Scotch."

Also, how many times during the series have you heard Potter say something along the lines of "This is nothing. Why, back in WW I (or II)...."