MishM*A*S*H 59: M*A*S*H/20th Century Fox Styrofoam Cups

If you were to visit the set of M*A*S*H on Stage 9 in the late 1970s and early 1980s, you were likely to see several M*A*S*H branded items in addition to the famous tents and buildings of the 4077th compound. You might see crew members wearing M*A*S*H jackets, or you might have received your invitation to visit the set on M*A*S*H letterhead. After watching the cast and crew film some scenes, you may have been offered a cup of water or coffee, and that drink would probably have been delivered in a styrofoam cup like the ones seen here. These cups came from the collection of someone who worked for M*A*S*H, and they came directly from the set itself. The claim when I purchased them was that they were used for the final taping of M*A*S*H on January 14, 1983, but is that true? Let’s take a deeper look!

When I purchased a collection of objects that belonged to an employee of 20th Century Fox Television who worked for M*A*S*H, eight of these cups were part of that collection. The styrofoam cups features the M*A*S*H 4077th logo on one side and the 20th Century Fox Television logo on the other. The claim was that these cups were created specifically for the final day of filming in January 1983. So, I began to research. The 20th Century Fox Television logo does match the logo that Fox was using towards the end of the show’s run, so the time frame checks out. Styrofoam cups like this were common in the 1980s as well, and the Call Sheets from M*A*S*H called out how much coffee was needed each day in gallons, so cups would have also been necessary. It makes sense that Fox might have provided branded cups. Then there’s the circumstances of January 14, 1983. There were 400+ reporters from around the world on Stage 9 to capture the moment when the series wrapped. Were these cups there? I did a lot of research by looking at photos from that day in my collection and in the Getty archive, but I couldn’t find any photos that showed anyone drinking from these cups. That doesn’t prove that these cups weren’t on set that day, but I think they were likely on the set before the final day of filming was even planned.

While I cannot prove that these cups were created specifically for the final day of filming of M*A*S*H on January 14, 1983, it is very possible that these cups (or ones just like it) were on the set that day. It would not be uncommon to see M*A*S*H branded items on the set of the show, especially one that was in its 11th season. I feel fairly confident in saying that these cups were from the set of M*A*S*H, but were likely there daily for the cast, crew, and visitors to drink water or coffee while they were at work. Similar to how the company I work for today has branded bottles of water with our logo, 20th Century Fox Television could have easily had these styrofoam cups created and stocked on the set. What is unusual is that these survived. Most people would have had their drink and thrown them away without giving them a second thought. Thankfully, someone did have the foresight to save a few and preserve a small piece of M*A*S*H history.