[Sca-cooks] OT: Veracity of Entertainment Sources (WAS RE: Fig Newtons from God?)

Susan Fox selene at earthlink.net
Mon Mar 31 07:38:58 PDT 2008


Mike C. Baker wrote:
>
> I am told by a usually reliable source (my father) that particularly for
> the first two seasons, M*A*S*H as a television show was exactingly
> correct on a lot of things.  No, they did not have a recognizable Max
> Klinger, but there were a number of Section Eight seekers...  Yep, the
> barter system got pretty wild & wooly, and they dealt with the black
> market for things they could not get through regular supply chain.
> There were certain episodes from later seasons that also could have been
> drawn directly from his memory, and situations that it would be
> impossible to turn into family-hour television.
Word.  Your dad too, huh?  My father was on a MASH in Korea, circa 1949 
or so. He approves of the show as well. The show went on so long, rather 
longer than the actual "police action," and the producers started 
hitting up all their age-mates in the Writers Guild who had been there 
for their stories.  If you see the bit where the guys snap shower 
pictures of the nurses and have to bribe the X-Ray guy, with the only 
darkroom for many miles, to develop the photos... that's my dad's 
story.  Of course, none of the characters is supposed to "really" be 
anybody specific... my dad wasn't motor pool but he certainly perfected 
his dickering skills in those days!

Um... food content... the guy who played the mess hash slinger wrote a 
cookbook, SECRETS OF THE M*A*S*H MESS, but it was really not Army food 
by any means, just a hook to hang a cookbook on.  I salute the poor 
military members worldwide who happen to be "foodies" and have to live 
with the very opposite of what they want to be eating. 

Selene



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