MishM*A*S*H 29: M*A*S*H Finale Magazines and TV Guides

Tomorrow marks the 41st anniversary of the original broadcast of “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen,” the two-and-a-half hour M*A*S*H finale. To celebrate the anniversary in the past, I have posted the episode’s script, production documents, the press release from Fox announcing the final episode, and a collection of finale press photos. All of those materials were from Twentieth Century Fox Television or CBS, but how was the finale being promoted in the press? The short answer is that the M*A*S*H finale was EVERYWHERE leading up to February 28, 1983. TV Guide, Newsweek, and countless tv guides from across the country had M*A*S*H covers and feature stories. In this week’s post, let’s take a look a selection of the press coverage leading up to the M*A*S*H grand finale.

TV Guide

To celebrate the finale, the February 12, 1983 edition of TV Guide featured three articles about M*A*S*H and a special fold-out cover featuring the cast. The series had been on the cover of the magazine more than a dozen times throughout its eleven year run, but this was a special moment. The first of the three articles, by Alan Alda, was titled “My Favorite Episodes.” Alda discussed his favorite episodes, plural, because he didn’t have one single favorite. The next article, by Alistair Cooke, was a tribute to the series titled “M*A*S*H was one of a Kind.” The final article was “The Troops Scatter – but the Memories Linger” by Burt Prelutsky. Again, this article is a tribute to the series, but with a twist. Prelutsky wrote eight episodes of the series between seasons four and six, so he offered a unique perspective of the series. This issue of TV Guide is a must own for M*A*S*H collectors!

Newsweek

The weekly magazine Newsweek dedicated its February 28, 1983 cover to M*A*S*H, and had a few tie-in articles. The primary article in this issue, “Farewell to the M*A*S*H Gang” asks whether television shows will be able to stand up to the precedent set by the eleven year series. There had never been a show that mixed comedy and drama like M*A*S*H, and that rare combination gave everyone in the audience something to like. The broad appeal of the series was a rarity. In addition to the article by Harry F. Waters and Janet Huck, there was a diagram of the 4077th, a short article about “M*A*S*H Hysteria,” and information about “The Real Hawkeye Pierce,” Richard Hornberger (MASH surgeon and author of the original M*A*S*H novel). This is another magazine that I urge M*A*S*H collectors to have in their collection.

TV Week (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

Beginning the local/regional publications is TV Week from The Philadelphia Inquirer. While some local publications had articles about the finale in their local TV guides, this isn’t one of them. The cover of the issue is dedicated to the finale, and of course, the finale appears in the TV listings. But there isn’t an article in this issue.

TV Prevue (Chicago Sun-Times)

The February 27th issue of TV Prevue by the Chicago Sun-Times had a M*A*S*H cover and a short article. There is an illustrated cast photo on the cover. Inside, there is a short article by Rick Kogan. The guide also lists the full cast credits for “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen.”

Tele-View (Chronicle-Tribune) – Marion, Indiana

It wasn’t just the big city publications that were celebrating. Small town publications also featured M*A*S*H on their weekly television listings, and this example from Marion, Indiana is a great one. The magazine Tele-View by the Chronicle-Tribune features a familiar cast photo on the cover, and then inside, there is a full article titled, “So long, 4077th.” The author, P.J. Bednarski, praised the show for its human touch, even in moments of humor. The article also quotes Alda and several episodes from the series.

Television Times (Los Angeles Times)

The Los Angeles Times‘ TV guide, Television Times, did more than just feature M*A*S*H on the cover and publish an article, but it also featured advertisements for a number of other M*A*S*H related broadcasts on local stations. Of course, the cast is featured on the cover, and there is an article about “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” in the “Show of the Week” section. What I find interesting is that there are several advertisements in the issue that tie into the finale. For example, the ABC affiliate aired the original M*A*S*H movie at 6pm. Another local channel aired the first four episodes of the series on February 28. Then, there is also an advertisement for the finale itself. M*A*S*H was truly going to be on TV in shape or form just about everywhere in Los Angeles on February 28, 1983!

The TV Book (Detroit Free Press)

The Detroit Free Press‘s The TV Book featured M*A*S*H on the cover, and had an article titled “M*A*S*H cast is Tired of War and Ready to Move On.” In the article, Bettelou Peterson offers a brief summary of what each of the cast members would likely do after M*A*S*H. Interestingly, the article mentions the spin-off series AfterMASH, and the fact that it would likely star Jamie Farr, Harry Morgan, and William Christopher. The finale hadn’t even aired, and speculation about AfterMASH had already begun.

Television (The Detroit News)

The February 27 issue of Television from The Detroit News featured a great cast photo on the cover, but there was sadly no article inside. Instead, you can see where “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” was scheduled to air at 8:30pm on the evening of February 28.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of magazines, newspapers, and publications across the United States and world that featured photos and articles as part of the build-up to the M*A*S*H finale. Of course, we now know that “Goodbye, Farewell and Amen” broke every television record up to that point on February 28, 1983, but that was not guaranteed at the time. There were debates about whether the M*A*S*H finale would top all viewership records. The hype around the finale was real, and it brought together the people across United States together to watch a single episode of a television in numbers that wouldn’t be seen for decades. And the rating record of 60.1 is a number that will likely never be broken in today’s fractured television/streaming market. Looking back, the M*A*S*H finale was groundbreaking because it truly ended the series. It ended the war, and it gave audiences closure for each of their favorite characters as it closed with the best “Goodbye” in television history.