Dear Peggy was the 83rd episode of the CBS-TV series M*A*S*H, and also the 11th episode of the fourth season of the series. Written by Everett Greenbaum and Jim Fritzell, and directed by Burt Metcalfe, it first aired on a special Tuesday, November 11, 1975 (Veteran's Day), at 8:30PM; it was repeated as "Dear Peg," on April 27, 1976.
Synopsis[]
B.J. writes a letter home to his wife, and Father Mulcahy gets a visit from one of his more rigid superiors.
Full episode summary[]
During a lull in the fighting, when everyone at the 4077th is bored out of their minds, B.J. writes his third letter in a week to his wife Peggy, filling her in on what's going on in camp. He relates a story from the OR where Frank abruptly gives up on his patient, Private Davis, the moment he loses a pulse. B.J. yells at him to do something, but when Frank refuses, B.J. takes over and is able to revive Davis with CPR, which only earns a snarky comment from Frank.
In post-op, B.J. keeps a nervous watch over Davis, but he is not improving. Klinger asks him what he knows about dreams, and tells him of one he had about Potter declaring him crazy, going home to a parade, and Major Houlihan wanting a lock of his hair. B.J. says it just means he wants to go home (this part about the dream is usually cut from syndicated airings). Father Mulcahy, who also seems edgy, tells B.J. he's nervous about an impending visit from Divisional Chaplain Colonel Maurice Hollister, who is known as “the Attila the Hun of chaplains.” B.J. tells him not to worry, for Hawkeye thinks he's one of the best chaplains in the business; Mulcahy smiles and says, "That crazy agnostic!"
Continuing his letter, B.J. tells Peggy about Hawkeye, whom he calls “one of a kind” and admits they’d all go nuts without him. With that, he relates a story of Hawkeye wanting to break the record for most people squeezed into a Volkswagen, but since German autos are scarce in Korea, Hawkeye substitutes a canopied Jeep. Frank and Margaret object to the stunt, but Hawkeye talks Margaret into being the record-breaking person stuffed in the Jeep. The record is broken and a commemorative photo is taken just as Colonel Hollister arrives, looking down his nose at the event. His skepticism is heightened when he sees one of the Jeep-stuffers emerge: Father Mulcahy.
Next morning, the mess tent is packed for Father Mulcahy's service, after which everyone gives him exaggerated congratulations and compliments - everyone, that is, except Frank and Margaret, who instead suck up to Hollister saying they “get chills in the presence of a real spiritual leader.” After they all leave, Hollister dresses down Mulcahy for his milquetoast attitude and for not having the crowd in the palm of his hand.
B.J. continues his letter and tells how Potter wanted local Koreans to help with hospital duty, so the medical staff was drafted to teach them English. Frank starts teaching locals some medically relevant phrases, but soon reverts to having them chant anti-Communist epithets ("Better dead than red", and "Get us out of the U.N."). Hawkeye arrives to take over, but he takes it less seriously, teaching the Koreans to recite Mairzy Doats, and then after Frank leaves, insults directed towards the Major ("Frank Burns eats worms").
Davis still has not improved, but Hollister orders Mulcahy to write a letter to the boy's parents telling them he will be okay, and then takes the letter himself to mail to Davis' parents. As Hollister leaves, Davis is rushed back into the OR because it turns out that Frank failed to remove all the shell fragments the first time around. Hawkeye and B.J. re-open him and, much to Mulcahy's relief, Davis pulls through. When Frank snaps back at one of Hawkeye's comments, Hawkeye points to the Koreans, who regale the major with “You tell 'im, ferret face!” in their own wonderfully clipped English.
Subplot[]
Interspersed in this episode are three attempts by Klinger to escape camp:
- First, he disguises himself as a Korean peasant woman, hiding his face in a rice hat. When the MPs bring him to Potter's office, Potter easily discerns it's Klinger, noting that "Korean women are not known for hairy knuckles."
- Second, he is brought in for trying to escape via one of the rivers into the sea, using a self-inflating raft, which he promptly inflates in Potter's office.
- Finally, at the episode's end, he is brought back disguised as a tree, his cover having been blown by a urinating dog (this scene is usually cut from syndicated airings).
Research notes/Fun facts[]
- Colonel Hollister is loosely based on a character from the M*A*S*H novel named "Shaking Sammy", a Protestant chaplain from a nearby engineering unit who loved shaking hands, hence his nickname. Despite repeated admonitions, Sammy frequently wrote letters to parents of wounded soldiers telling them their boys were well and coming home soon, without first checking to see how badly the soldiers were wounded, or for that matter, if they were even still alive. Sammy wrote and sent one such letter to a soldier's family, but the soldier died two hours after the letter was mailed; a furious Trapper John pretended to burn Sammy in effigy by tying him to a stake and throwing what looked like a Molotov Cocktail at him, but turned out to be phony. Trapper John was later reprimanded by Colonel Blake for this.
- Hawkeye reads about Elizabeth Taylor getting married to someone named "Ni...". Taylor married Conrad "Nicky" Hilton May 6, 1950. But this is a bit of old newspaper which Peggy had used to stuff a parcel, so it could have been some time ago. Hawkeye thinks "Ni..." is Vice-President Richard Nixon. Nixon was elected with Eisenhower on November 4, 1952, so this places the timeline somewhere Nov-Dec 1952 or early 1953.
- This timeline is still plausible for Season 4, given that Potter took command on September 19, 1952 about 7 episodes prior. But it advances the story quite far and doesn't leave much of the Korean War (which ended in July 1953) for the rest of the seasons. That's why the timeline will be quietly reset or abandoned later in Season 4.
- The title of this episode is one of the very few times B.J.'s wife is ever referred to as "Peggy" rather than "Peg". The only other time she is referred to as Peggy is in "The Late Captain Pierce". When this episode was repeated in 1976, the title as listed in TV Guide was changed to "Dear Peg", but the title has since reverted to the original "Dear Peggy".
- Of note: During the arrival of Colonel Hollister, Margaret emerges from the Jeep and instantly recognizes him, and he her (to a degree, mispronouncing her name).
Guests stars/Recurring cast[]
- William Christopher as Father Mulcahy
- Ned Beatty as Colonel Maurice Hollister
- Uncredited appearances:
- Todd Susman as the P.A. announcer
- Bobbie Mitchell has several lines. Hawkeye specifically calls her Lieutenant Gage
- Dennis Troy - M.P. (has a line). Also seen in the crowd outside the Jeep
- Gwen Farrell - was also in the Jeep
- Kellye Nakahara - dancing with Radar, who calls her "Nurse Kellye". Also seen in the OR, at the sermon, and in the crowd outside the Jeep
- Jeff Maxwell - visible behind Hollister and Potter at the sermon