| M*A*S*H episode | |
|---|---|
| “Bombshells” | |
 Marilyn Monroe's possible visit has the whole 4077th abuzz, but B.J. is more interested in taking a day off to go fishing in "Bombshells" in Season 11. | |
| Season 11, Episode # 6 Number (#246) in series (256 episodes) | |
| Guest star(s) | Gerald S. O'Loughlin Allen Williams Michael Bond Stuart Charno Robert Townsend Ken Neumeyer Robert Carmine Paul Tuerpe |
| Network: | CBS-TV |
| Production code: | 9B02 |
| Writer(s) | Dan Wilcox & Thad Mumford |
| Director | Burt Metcalfe |
| Original airdate | November 29, 1982 |
 IMDB
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Bombshells |
| Episode chronology | |
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| "Who Knew?" | "Settling Debts" |
Bombshells is the 246th episode of the CBS-TV series M*A*S*H, also the 6th episode of Season 11 of the series. Written by Dan Wilcox and Thad Mumford, and directed by Burt Metcalfe, it originally aired on November 29, 1982.
Synopsis
The entire 4077th is looking foward to a visit from Marilyn Monroe, but B.J. is more interested in going fishing.
Full episode summary
B.J. is thrilled to have the day off, and plans to spend it with a chopper pliot friend fishing.
While on their way to the lake, they spot a wounded solider laying in the brush. They land, load him onto one of the pads, and head back home. But on the way back, they spot another wounded G.I.
With no place to land, the chopper pilot has B.J. lower a rope down to the wounded man, and they'll carry him off to a clearer spot.
But the G.I. is too weak to get the rope around him securely, so B.J. prepares to climb down and do it. Just as he begins to get out, snipers start firing on the chopper. One bullet hits the oil cooler, sending black smoke spilling out.
The pilot says that the extra weight is too much and they can't take off. He demands B.J. cut the rope, which B.J. protests, saying the young man will be killed if they leave him behind.
The pilot insists, saying they'll all be killed if they stay where they are. B.J., panicking, cuts the rope, and the wounded solider falls to the ground. The chopper takes off, and heads back to the 4077.
B.J. is haunted by what he's done, and he tries to find out if any of the other wounded know who that young man was. But no one seems to know.
Before the chopper pilot leaves, he commends B.J. for trying to save the guy, telling him he put B.J. in for a medal. He tries calling I-Corps to find out if the 8063rd has reported any wounded matching the wounded soldier, but they are no help.
Col. Potter asks B.J. about the medal, but B.J. is tight-lipped and only asks that Potter stop the medal from going forward, which Potter agrees to, a tad confused.
B.J. heads to the 8063rd himself to see if the young man is there, but he has no luck. He makes it back to the 4077th just in time to catch the giant welcoming celebration for Marilyn Monroe, who everyone believes is coming to visit.
After its clear that Marilyn isn't coming, a visiting General (Gerald O'Laughlin) goes ahead with awarding B.J. with a Bronze Star medal for bravery. B.J. grimly accepts it, wandering off towards the Swamp after the party breaks up.
Hawkeye follows him, and B.J. admits how disgusted he is with himself: he has always considered himself anti-authority, anti-war, and "oh-so superior" to those "military fools who kill each other." But he realizes that, in that moment in the chopper, he was everything he thought he wasn't. Hawkeye tries to comfort him, but it doesn't work.
Hawkeye is called away by a patient, who miraculously recovers when he overheard that Marilyn Monroe was coming to the 4077th. B.J. gives the young man his Bronze Star, and when asked what he did to deserve the citation, B.J. says, "Its a little something we give you for getting out of here with your butt in one piece."
Fun Facts: The B-plot involving Marilyn Monroe supposedly visiting the 4077th gets started by Hawkeye and Winchester, and it quickly snowballs completely out of control. Note MArilyn Monroe didnt get to Korea until February 1954!!!
Recurring/Guest cast
- Gerald S. O'Loughlin as General Franklin Scherwin (as Gerald O'Loughlin)
- Allen Williams as Lieutenant Priore
- Michael Bond as Captain Hobart
- Stuart Charno as Corporal Sonneborn (as Stu Charno)
- Michael Carmine as Patient
- Robert Townsend as Patient #2
- Ken Neumeyer as Patient #3
- Paul Tuerpe as I-Corps Courier