McLean Stevenson was a popular American actor, best known for his performance in the hit TV series ‘M*A*S*H’. Stevenson also appeared on a number of television series, notably The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and The Doris Day Show. For at least 15 years, M*A*S*H fans have wondered about the existence of a bit of TV footage in which McLean Stevenson sat on a raft and shouted “I’m okay! "[4] Stevenson admitted that his problem was finding something of the caliber of M*A*S*H, saying "I've never been able to work with a group that's as talented or scripts that are as good. Although M*A*S*H has been classified as a \"situation comedy\", it proved to be something quite different. She's also active in promoting animal welfare. [13][14] He is interred in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. ", 20th century fox tv/David Livingston/Getty Images. MCLEAN STEVENSON After starring as Lt. Coincidentally, Roger Bowen, who portrayed Henry Blake in the 1970 movie MASH, died from a heart attack the day after Stevenson's death. Happily he packed, and off he went. [4], In an interview, M*A*S*H actress Loretta Swit commented that Stevenson wanted to be the star and felt oppressed as one of an ensemble of eight. Younger generations would recognize his voice work from movies such as 1995's "Pocahontas" and 2002's "Lilo & Stitch. 20th century fox tv/Neilson Barnard/Getty Images. He filled in for Johnny Carson as guest host of The Tonight Show 58 times, and as a guest on the program in 1982, he brought his daughter Lindsey onto the set when she was just 16 weeks old. Stevenson (1927-1996) played the good-natured and just a little dim Lt. Col. Henry Blake, who put up with Hawkeye and Trapper’s zany hijinks with aplomb. Morgan portrayed Colonel Sherman Potter for the show's remaining eight seasons and starred in its short-lived spin-off AfterMASH.[8]. Stiers had a busy post-"M*A*S*H" career with TV programs like the "North & South" miniseries and "Perry Mason" TV movies. first he played a psycho looney major general called Bartford Hamilton Steele! Just excellent. 3. All four sitcoms were dismissed by audiences and lambasted by critics, and all aired while M*A*S*H was still in production. -- PoliticallyCorrect Q: Tv / Movies: What character did mclean stevenson play on tvs m.a.s.h. But nobody made me do it. ", 20th century fox tv/Robert Mora/Getty Images, After Wayne Rogers' Trapper John was discharged, Mike Farrell's B.J. McLean Stevenson is a distant cousin to Senator Adlai Stevenson, who was the Democratic nominee for president in 1952 and 1956. It was developed by Larry Gelbart as the first original spin-off series adapted from the 1970 feature film M*A*S*H, which, in turn, was based on Richard Hooker's 1968 novel MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors. Naturally, CBS did not want us to “kill” the Henry Blake character, played by McLean Stevenson. He was also the brother of actress Ann Whitney. He would make occasional appearances on the subsequent Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour in 1983 and 1984. McLean Stevenson, who played the amiable, slipshod Lieut. McLean Stevenson's Henry Blake played in all 72 episodes of the first 3 seasons of M*A*S*H before he met his tragic end at the end of the final episode of the third season. He was 66. [7], Stevenson was replaced in the series by Harry Morgan, a friend of Stevenson who had guest-starred opposite him in the Season Three premiere episode "The General Flipped at Dawn." "I did … that was kind of like the odd man out but was still someone that The … McLean "Lt. Col. Henry Blake" Stevenson - M*A*S*H Left MASH after 3 seasons (as did Wayne Rogers). McLean Stevenson, who played Colonel Blake in the show’s first three seasons, was also in the Navy. CNN Sans ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network. According to McLean Stevenson’s obituary in the LA Daily News , he “grew up in Bloomington, Illinois, next door to his cousin Adlai, who twice ran for U.S. president and introduced him to his first Broadway play”… He always had to walk a fine tightrope with his job, once saying to the doctors, As a commanding officerwell, its a bit like being on a sinking liner, running on the bridge and finding out the captain is Daffy Duck. Steve Daley wrote in 1985 that he had "worn out his television welcome",[10] while David Bianculli drafted "The Annual McLean Stevenson Memorial 'I'm Gonna Quit This Show and Become a Big Star' Award" early in his career as a critic. So what ever happened to Radar? After leaving the series, Stevenson had some unsuccessful shows, including "The McLean Stevenson Show" and "Hello, Larry." Hello Larry). She said that before Stevenson left the series he told her, "I know I will not be in anything as good as this show, but I have to leave and be number one. i Then it was announced that Blake was being returned stateside. He also worked as a press secretary for his cousin in the presidential elections of 1952 and 1956. 6113, citing Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA ; Maintained by Find A Grave . The McLean Stevenson character Henry Blake seemed to be the type of person you saw in your neighborhood and would talk to while waiting for your car to be serviced or wave at when you drove past. Walter Eugene "Radar" O'Reilly in the 1970 movie "MASH" before reprising the role in the TV adaptation. Edgar McLean Stevenson Jr. (November 14, 1927 – February 15, 1996) was an American actor and comedian. This year, Farrell appears in the new Sundance TV drama, 20th century fox tv/Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images, David Ogden Stiers' Maj. Charles Winchester showed up in the sixth season as a snotty curmudgeon, but by series end he was as much a part of the team as Hawkeye. McLean Stevenson - Stevenson was soon chafing at his second-banana role on "M*A*S*H" and asked to be released from his contract. Stevenson found his greatest success in M*A*S*H. The series quickly became one of the most popular situation comedies of its time, and was eventually recognized as one of the top sitcoms in television history. Before becoming a star, Stevenson appeared as a contestant on the Password television game show in New York City, winning five pieces of luggage. He is best known for his role as Lt. The beloved "M*A*S*H" character was shot down while heading home from Korea, leaving the … Besides that, he is known Prior to his death at 96 in 2011, Morgan also appeared in comedies "Grace Under Fire" and "3rd Rock from the Sun. "Trapper" John McIntyre, the best bud of Alda's Hawkeye. The actor died in 1996 at age 68. He then starred in a series of sitcoms: The McLean Stevenson Show (1976–77), In the Beginning (1978), Hello, Larry (1979–80) and Condo (1983). During the 1960s, he worked in night clubs and comedy cabarets, did summer stock theater and some television before moving to Hollywood, where he worked as a comedy writer for Tom Smothers. that Blake had been lost in plane crash. Stevenson was recovering from bladder cancer surgery at the Encino-Tarzana Regional Medical Center on February 15, 1996, when he suffered a sudden fatal heart attack. MASH Ultimate Collection 4.7 out of 5 stars 367 DVD $135.00 $ 135. This role shot him to stardom. He died on December 31, 2015. [11] Stevenson commented in 1990 that some of the criticism was justified, conceding that leaving M*A*S*H was the biggest mistake of his career. ", Gary Burghoff first played bespectacled animal lover Cpl. In honor of the series' 42nd anniversary, we catch up with where the cast is now, starting with star, 20th century fox tv/Janette Pellegrini/Getty Images. I’m okay!” Supposedly, it aired at the start of an episode of The Carol Burnett Show the day after “Abyssinia, Henry” was originally broadcast back in May March 1975. The show's writers reluctantly penned him an exit in the final episode of the 1974–1975 season (entitled "Abyssinia, Henry",) in which Lt. Only Hello Larry lasted two seasons; all others were cancelled in their first. The McLean Stevenson Show Genre Sitcom Created by Norman Barasch Carroll Moore Directed by Alan Myerson Starring McLean Stevenson Barbara Stuart Theme music composer The McLean Stevenson Show is an American sitcom that aired on NBC on Wednesday nights from December 1, 1976 to March 3, 1977. His father, Edgar, was a cardiologist. Maxwell Klinger try to earn his Section Eight medical discharge was one of our favorite parts of "M*A*S*H." When the series concluded, Klinger reprised the role in "AfterMASH" and starred in '80s projects "Scrooged" and "Cannonball Run II." After watching the farewell episode again, I wonder how McLean Stevenson and Wayne Rogers felt about leaving the show 3 years in. He was also the brother of actress Ann Whitney. Loretta Swit, aka Maj. Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan, won two Emmys for her work as the tough-but-loving head of the Army Nurse Corps. After leaving the series, Rogers moved on to shows like "City of Angels," "House Calls" and "Murder, She Wrote." I did some terrible shows. Henry Blake gets slightly tearful and has a sad, wistful smile when viewing one of the final scenes but that’s it. McLean Stevenson, who played the womanizing, goof-off Lt. Col. Henry Blake on TV's "M-A-S-H," has died at age 68. For non-"M*A*S*H" fans, Farrell's also known as Dr. James Hansen from the aughts drama "Providence." He also was a regular on the 1970 The Tim Conway Comedy Hour variety show on CBS. On February 28, 1983, the celebrated sitcom M*A*S*H bows out after 11 seasons, airing a special two-and-a-half hour episode watched by 77 percent of the Edgar McLean Stevenson Jr. (November 14, 1927 – February 15, 1996) was an American actor and comedian. Despite the show's success, Stevenson began to resent (as did Wayne Rogers) playing a supporting role to the wisecracking Hawkeye (played by Alan Alda), and asked to be released from his contract during the show's third season. He also performed on Broadway, and began to establish himself as a comedy writer, writing for the seminal That Was The Week That Was—in which Alan Alda appeared—and The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, performing occasionally on both shows. [4] "I made the mistake of believing that people were enamored of McLean Stevenson when the person they were enamored of was Henry Blake", said Stevenson. is a fan of Mash Series! Yet no one else could manage MASH 4077th better than Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake. The show was 41st in the ratings that week, and the show was scuttled. They were most upset about that, and so was sentimental, dear old Twentieth Century-Fox. The two men who developed M*A*S*H for television were both veterans, as well. McLean Stevenson, best remembered for his role as the laconic, reluctant commanding officer and chief surgeon of CBS television’s “MASH” in its early years, has died. Unfortunately, they used After leaving 'M*A*S*H,' McLean Stevenson never became “No. Colonel Blake was discharged, only to board a plane that was shot down over the Sea of Japan, killing everyone on board—a development added after scripts were distributed so the show's actors would display genuine emotion. McLean Stevenson's Lt. Col. Henry Blake had one of TV's most heartbreaking deaths. He believed the audience loved him, but they loved Henry Blake. Also, I don't know if it is true, but I've read that that final hug Col Blake gives to Radar in his last episode was not in the script, that it was just McLean who decided to do … Stevenson appeared as a guest panelist for several weeks on Match Game in 1973, and again in 1978 on the daytime and nighttime weekly syndicated version. If not, not to worry. But that ensemble nature didn’t sit well with McLean Stevenson, who played Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake. Mclean Stevenson is left because Harry Morgan! From the beginning, its producers had intended that it was not to be \"Abbott and Costello goes to war\". [1] Afterward he worked at a radio station, played a clown on a live TV show in Dallas, became an assistant athletic director at Northwestern, and sold medical supplies and insurance. McLean Stevenson's Lt. Col. Henry Blake had one of TV's most heartbreaking deaths. He also made appearances on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" and the "Match Game/Hollywood Squares" hour. McLean Stevenson, Actor: M*A*S*H. McLean Stevenson began in show business at age 31. You know, that little squirrely guy from M.A.S.H. He was the great-grandson of William Stevenson (brother of US Vice President Adlai E. Stevenson), making him a second cousin once removed of two-time presidential nominee Adlai E. Stevenson II. 2 McLean Stevenson - MASH MASH was instantly one of the biggest shows on television when it debuted in 1972, boasting one of the best ensemble casts in the history of sitcoms. His last acting credit was in 2003, and in the years following, he could be found talking business on Fox News as chairman of the investment strategy firm Wayne M. Rogers & Co. Stevenson was born in Normal, Illinois. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com: accessed ), memorial page for McLean Stevenson (14 Nov 1927–15 Feb 1996), Find a Grave Memorial no. He is best known for his role as Lt. He was 66. After departing the series in season 8, Burghoff appeared in other hits of the era like "Fantasy Island" and "The Love Boat," but he has acted sporadically in recent years. [2] After this he appeared in New York City on stage, and in television[3] commercials. 20th century fox tv/Jason Merritt/Getty Images, Harry Morgan's Col. Sherman Potter was met with distrust when he took command of the 4077th in the fourth season, but the character was soon embraced and earned Morgan an Emmy. He wore a fishing hat with his green fatigues. When word got to other MASH units, doctors started doing arterial repairs there, too, and after the Korean War ended in 1953, doctors who dared to do … [9] During the 1988–89 television season, he returned to a supporting TV role in an ensemble, playing Max Kellerman in the short-lived CBS series adaptation of Dirty Dancing. (Taken from the episode Rainbow Bridge) Afterwards he wor… Watching Jamie Farr's Cpl. "So if you go and do The McLean Stevenson Show, nobody cares about McLean Stevenson. He did not survive the crash. 00 Get it as soon as Thu, Feb 11 FREE Shipping by Amazon Only 1 left in stock - order soon. He made his professional career debut in The Music Man in 1962 and appeared regularly in Warsaw, Indiana, in summer stock productions. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, he also appeared in TV commercials for products such as Kellogg's, Libby's fruit cocktail, Dolly Madison and Winston cigarettes, in which he was shown sprinting around a parking lot of Winston delivery trucks and painting over the product slogan, replacing the "like" in "like a cigarette should" with the grammatically correct "as. Enjoyed watching him on mash… He was a priest in 1994's "Heaven Sent," and he portrayed Father Tobias on the daytime soap "Days of Our Lives" in 2012. Stevenson's screen credits include the Disney movie The Cat from Outer Space as a friend of Dr. Frank Wilson (played by Ken Berry) along with his M*A*S*H replacement Harry Morgan. Even McLean Stevenson, the man who lived through them, prefers to forget many of the ill-conceived sitcoms he's starred in since leaving "M*A*S*H" 15 years ago. that’s why he replaced him! He followed his cousin's advice to look for a show business career. Stevenson guest-starred as Stan Zbornak's brother Ted in the hit sitcom The Golden Girls in 1987, in addition to guest-starring in shows such as Square One TV, The Love Boat, Diff'rent Strokes (as part of a cross-over with his series Hello, Larry), and Hollywood Squares. He formed the "Young Democrats for Stevenson. He eventually began acting in sketches. His father, Edgar, was a cardiologist.After serving in the U.S. Navy, he attended Northwestern University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in theater arts and was a proud and well-liked Phi Gamma Delta (Fiji) fraternity brother. "[citation needed]. Source(s): www.imdb.com 0 0 Kostas 6 years ago This Site Might Help You. Their shared middle name, "McLean," came from Edgar Sr.'s mother, Lottie McLean. M*A*S*H (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American war comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1972 to 1983. Then Radar announced to a stunned O.R. and then the colonel Sherman Tecumseh Potter! Stevenson attended Lake Forest Academy and later joined the United States Navy. 1," this unfortunately never played out. After playing Father Francis Mulcahy, the respected friend and spiritual leader of the 4077th, actor William Christopher took on a unique set of roles. While occasionally filling in as the guest host of The Tonight Show, Stevenson's first attempt at his own show was an NBC variety show special named "The McLean Stevenson Show" on November 20, 1975. McLean Stevenson gives a beautifully understated performance in this scene. Col. Henry Blake on the television series "M*A*S*H" for three seasons, died on Thursday at the Tarzana Regional Medical Center in … After his service he attended Northwestern University, where he was a Phi Gamma Delta fraternity brother, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in theater arts. Stevenson's career decline resulted in his becoming a target for industry jokes. "[citation needed], In 1961, Stevenson's cousin invited him to social functions where he met a few business luminaries. 1.” Although Mac left the show to become “No. Colonel Henry Blake in the television series M*A*S*H, which earned him a Golden Globe Award in 1974. For a moment this year, the Internet thought, 20th century fox tv/newsmakers/getty images. Learn how and when to remove this template message, Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Comedy, Best Supporting Actor – Television Series, Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, "MCLEAN STEVENSON, HENRY BLAKE ON 'M*A*S*H, "McLean Stevenson; Played Lt. Col. Blake in Early, "Remembering 'M*A*S*H' Star Harry Morgan", The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946–Present, "Inferiority complex is big star at Emmys", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=McLean_Stevenson&oldid=999999403, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Game Show Participant / Celebrity Guest Star, Episode: "The Case of the Deceptive Data", This page was last edited on 13 January 2021, at 01:00. So sorry for your loss. Stevenson was the great-grandson of William Stevenson, second cousin, once removed, of Presidential Candidate Adlai Stevenson II. 20th century fox tv/Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images. Colonel Henry Blake in "M*A*S*H," McLean Stevenson couldn't find much success as an actor until he starred in "Hello, Larry," a spinoff of "Diff’rent Strokes." He auditioned and won a scholarship to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. In 2011, he starred in a stage production of Mitch Albom's "Tuesdays with Morrie. McLean Stevenson, who played the Colonel decided to leave the show because he was tired of his supporting role to … I did everything by choice."[12]. After the series ended, Swit kept acting on stage and screen but has more recently sought other creative pursuits such as art and jewelry design. Morgan had a strong career before "M*A*S*H" with "Dragnet" and "Gunsmoke," and he kept the momentum after the series ended. Originally, he auditioned for the role of Hawkeye Pierce in M*A*S*H, but was persuaded to play Lt. Col. Henry Blake instead. Missed out on 8 After his departure from M*A*S*H, Stevenson's acting career faltered. Career never recovered (e.g. In 1981, he became a regular panelist on the daily syndicated version of Match Game, staying with the show until its cancellation a year later. His death on MASH felt I’m Colonel Henry Blake in the television series M*A*S*H, which earned him a Golden Globe Award in 1974. in 1974. After guest-starring in That Girl with Marlo Thomas, he was cast in The Doris Day Show in 1969, playing magazine editor boss Michael Nicholson until 1971. The long-running TV classic "M*A*S*H" premiered on September 17, 1972. He also was a co-host of the syndicated daytime talk show America, which lasted 16 weeks between September 16, 1985, and January 3, 1986. For the first three of the show's 11 seasons, Wayne Rogers portrayed the fun-loving Capt. Check out this biography to know about his birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him. Some critics have referred to it as television's first \"dramedy\". "[5] Although he had played ensemble parts for several years, he has stated that the primary reasons for his departure were systemic problems with 20th Century Fox, especially disregard for simple comforts for cast and crew on location,[6] and the more lucrative opportunities presented to him at the time. The beloved "M*A*S*H" character was shot down while heading home from Korea, leaving the audience watching at home shocked. So, like the movie which spawned it, the television series recounted in 26 minute weekly segments the experiences of a group of US Army doctors, nurses and m… Hunnicutt joined the fray as Hawkeye's new confidant. He wrote the episode "The Trial of Henry Blake," and provided the story for another, "The Army-Navy Game," which earned him an Emmy nomination. He voiced Angel Smurf on "The Smurfs," appeared in "Murder, She Wrote" and, funnily enough, continued to play men of the cloth.