It always bothers me that Henry Blake had to die...but i guess that's a part of being in a war...but why Henry?????
It always bothers me that Henry Blake had to die...but i guess that's a part of being in a war...but why Henry?????
It was the most brilliant and unexpected decision they ever made. It's what transitioned MASH from comedy with drama to drama with some comedy. It marked a turning point in that show that allowed it to keep going for as long as it did.
Here's an interview with Larry Gelbart talking about Henry's final episode. Most of it is about the filming of the final scene, but there's some quick discussion at the beginning of the video, then discussing the response at the end of the video.
The first few seasons were mostly goofy and full of great laughs, and tricked us to thinking this was a nice generally lighthearted show, but they snatched that from us because it’s a war, and war is war. It was the greatness that was/is MASH.
Also the final scene should’ve been given an award for the acting alone. They didn’t know about his death until minutes before the scene was shot. The emotion displayed was true talent.
According to The Carol Burnett Show, which aired the next day, Col. Henry Blake was seen floating in a raft at sea screaming out that he'd survived the plane crash.... but then he was never seen again afterwards. He probably landed on a deserted island somewhere. You know the Sea of Japan is just full of them.... and sharks. I hope he made it to an island.
Although nobody knew it was coming, what you see in the show is actually the second take.
It wasn't the Carol Burnett show, Henry appeared on Cher's variety show.
I think the beginning of the series was produced as a parody of the Vietnam War full of humorous dislikes of the war that began toward Vietnam since the movie was produced amid and the series continues during the ongoing battles. The transition when “draftee” Lt. Col. Henry Blake died began with “regular army” was altered to episodes where Col. Sherman T. Potter was concentration on the historic and ongoing “evils of war.