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Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Guide to the M*A*S*H Television Show Collection
Summary
- Collection ID:
- NMAH.AC.0117
- Creators:
-
Levine, Ken, 1950- (scriptwriter)Alda, Alan (actor, scriptwriter)Bull, Sheldon (scriptwriter)Bloodworth, Linda (scriptwriter)Davis, Elias (scriptwriter)Greenbaum, Everett (scriptwriter)Gelbart, Larry, 1928-2009 (television scriptwriter)Hall, Karen (scriptwriter)Isaacs, David (scriptwriter)Klane, Robert (scriptwriter)Koenig, Dennis (scriptwriter)Marks, Laurance (scriptwriter)Mumford, Thad (scriptwriter)Place, Mary Kay (scriptwriter)Rappaport, John (scriptwriter)Reynolds, Gene (scriptwriter)Twentieth Century-FoxWilcox, Dan (scriptwriter)
- Dates:
-
1950 - 1982, undated
- Languages:
-
English.
- Physical Description:
-
8.4 Cubic feet28 boxes, 1 map-folder
- Repository:
The television show M*A*S*H was initially broadcast from September 17, 1972 to February 28, 1983. It told the story of doctors and nurses assigned to a fictitious medical unit, the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, based in Uijeongbu, Korea during the 1950-1953 war.
Scope and Contents
Scope and Contents
The collection includes the scripts from the television shows starting with the pilot episode and continuing through the eleven season run of two hundred and fifty one episodes. Also included are transcripts of over fifty50 interviews conducted by the writers and producers with former doctors and nurses that served in Mash units in Korea and Vietnam and soldiers who were patients in those units. These transcripts reveal the source of many of the story lines. There are a number of letters from viewers, mostly concerning their regret over the death of one of the characters, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake. Notes on Korean customs and the history of an actual Mash unit are included in the collection.
Arrangement
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into four series.
Series 1, Scripts, Storylines and Music Cue Sheets 1971-1982
Subseries 1.1, Scripts, 1971-1982
Subseries 1.2, Storylines and Music Cue Sheets, 1971-1982
Subseries 1.3, Script Notes 1973-1974
Series 2, Interviews of Mobile Army Surgical Hospital Personnel and Patients, 1973-1977
Series 3, Other Materials, 1970-1975, undated
Series 4, Photographic Materials, 1950-1970, undated
Biographical / Historical
Biographical / Historical
M*A*S*H was an award winning television show based on the bestselling novel and Oscar winning motion picture film of the same title. It portrayed the lives of doctors and nurses assigned to a fictitious medical unit, the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, based in Uijeongbu, Korea. While the goal of producers was for the program to be a comedy series, it often portrayed very different sentiments of war and in this case the Korean War. The program was initially broadcasted from September 17, 1972 to February 28, 1983 and achieved a very successful run.
Administration
Author
Frank R. Jenkins and Vanessa Broussard Simmons
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Collection donated to the National Museum of American History Museum by Twentieth Century Fox, through Suzy Kalter on July 23, 1984.
Processing Information
Processed by Frank R. Jenkins (volunteer), March 2004 and Emily Woessner (intern) 2017, revised by Katrina Schoorl (intern), January 2010, supervised by Vanessa Broussard Simmons, archivist.
Custodial History
Series One was transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life) on March 4, 1986.
Series Two and Three were transferred from the Division of Science, Medicine and Society (now Division of Medicine and Science) on July 15, 2003.
Series Four was transferred from the Division of Science, Medicine and Society (now Division of Medicine and Science) on August 13, 2017.
Additional materials (.66 cubic feet) was transferred from the Division of Politics and Military History in 2021.
Accruals
Series Four was transferred from the Division of Science, Medicine and Society on August 13, 2017.
Using the Collection
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Preferred Citation
M*A*S*H Television Show Collection, 1950-1984, undated, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Conditions Governing Use
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Related Materials
Related Materials
Materials in the Archives Center
Thomas Garvin Korean War Scrapbook (AC0756)
Keywords
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
P.O. Box 37012
Suite 1100, MRC 601
Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
Business Number: Phone: 202-633-3270
Fax Number: Fax: 202-786-2453
archivescenter@si.edu
