| "Major Fred C. Dobbs" | |||
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| M*A*S*H episode | |||
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 22 |
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| Directed by | Don Weis | ||
| Written by | Sid Dorfman | ||
| Production code | J320 | ||
| Original air date | March 11, 1973 | ||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| List of M*A*S*H episodes | |||
"Major Fred C. Dobbs" was episode twenty-two of the first season of the TV series M*A*S*H. It originally aired on March 11, 1973.
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Hawkeye's and Trapper's latest scheme succeeds where no other one has; Frank has finally demanded that he be transferred to another unit. But when another prank embarrasses both Frank and Hot Lips over the P.A., she also demands a transfer. However, when Hawkeye and Trapper discover they will be assigned double duty until replacements are found, they decide to trick Frank into staying by convincing him there’s a fortune in gold to be found near the camp.[1][2][3][4][5]
The title of this episode is a reference to the John Huston film The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, in which Fred C. Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) becomes consumed with greed - a weakness to which Hawkeye and Trapper appeal in order to keep Frank from actually leaving. The episode does not actually feature a character named Major Fred C. Dobbs.
The plot device of Radar O'Reilly planting a microphone in Margaret's tent, and embarrassing her and Frank by broadcasting them over the camp PA system, is reminiscent of a sequence from the original MASH film.
Among those involved in the making of M*A*S*H, this is often considered to be the worst episode, centering as it does on Hawkeye and Trapper trying to keep Majs. Burns and Houlihan at the 4077th.[6]
Hawkeye makes a reference to his favorite soap opera, "Just Plain McArthur," a reference to a real radio soap from the Golden Age called "Just Plain Bill."
This was the last of the episodes to have the "jazzier" version of the theme.
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