M*A*S*HCast #16 – The Ringbanger

M*A*S*HCast -  Season 1, Episode 16: The Ringbanger

Special Guest Star: Dan Greenfield

Air Date: January 21, 1973

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Theme music by Johnny Mandel

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10 responses to “M*A*S*HCast #16 – The Ringbanger

  1. I don’t recall this episode, but its one I definitely have to check out. Leslie Neilsen AND Jackie Cooper? Now that I’m out of Halloween season, I need to catch up on my MASH and Cheers to follow along with the network.

    Jackie Cooper directed several episodes of the late 80s/early 90s Superboy TV series toward the end of his career as well, so in that instance, Clark Kent could call him “chief”!

    I never get tired of your wonderful Loretta Switt story Rob. I think that may be the best fan experience story ever.

    Chris

  2. I think the person Hawkeye is actually referencing is Dick HAYMES and not Dick HAYNES.

    Haymes (1916-80) was a popular actor/singer of the 1940s & 1950s. He may be best remember today as the singer who was picked to replace Frank Sinatra in the Tommy Dorsey band. Haymes was married 6 times, most notably to actresses Joanne Dru & Rita Hayworth. His wiki page mentions this episode of MASH.

  3. Great episode as always Rob. I remember this episode of MASH clearly. I particularly loved your story about Loretta Swit! It’s so wonderful when you get an experience with a celebrity that lives up to and even surpasses your expectations. Childhood heroes are important and when their image is shaken it’s crushing but when their greatness is confirmed it can mean the world to you. For example in comparison and contrast I was lucky enough to meet Mr Sam J. Jones last weekend (Flash Gordon!). He was amazing and such a nice guy. Such a positive experience, I was glad I took the time and forked over the cash because paying for signatures and photos ops is something I rarely do. Unfortunately in contrast I had the experience of meeting Mr. Gerry Conway at a convention a couple of years ago. I am not a bigger fan of anyone. My love of Firestorm rivals even Shagg’s. So meeting Mr. Conway was huge to me. I shook the man’s hand, got a couple of books signed and expressed to him how much his writing and Firestorm in general had meant to me as a teenager and growing up… I’ve never seen a person look so disinterested and frankly treat me so rudely and be so short with me. It broke my heart. Maybe it was a bad day for him, maybe it was something else. Maybe I’ll get another chance to meet him again someday. Oh well, I wish I had a story like yours with Loretta Swit. Hearing that made my heart feel good. Good for you Rob!

  4. Great show-both the episode and your review. I”v always loved Leslie Neilson. Americans probably don’t know it, but he often appeared in Canadian shows, so as much as you saw him in movies and TV, so we received double the treats-especially in shows like Due South–where he was a sort of Frank Drebben, if he were a red-coated Mountie.
    He was great in this show, and though his character was of a military bent in the negative mode, the writers never presented him as a cigar chomping stereotype. It’s easy to see how Hawk and Trapper were sucked in by him. I also liked that even though they were pulling a prankish trick to get him off the line, the pranks were low key enough to not come across as mean spirited — putting mind games to the test.

    1. Forgot to say that I enjoyed your Loretta Swit story. Had it been me, and she said that the figure didn’t look like her, I might have joked that it was supposed to be Sally Kellerman. Thankfully, it was you not me.

  5. Another great episode, and one I can contribute to. I don’t know if the terminology has changed over the years, or with the different branches, but if you had searched for the term “ring knocker,” you’d have found it’s a way to call attention to the Academy class ring. The service academies are highly selective, and need something like a congressman’s recommendation, so either individually impressive, or from a family with pull, or both.

  6. Great episode, fun discussion with Rob and Dan, and I don’t remember one darn bit of it because Rob’s fantastic Loretta Swit story completely stole the show from my brain.

  7. One of the reasons I love this podcast is it has inspired me to watch episodes I have seen dozens of times over with a more critical eye. I am paying attention to details I wasn’t consciously aware of before. I could already recite many lines of dialogue. Now I am assigning more meaning to them.
    One thing I noticed in this episode is there are actually two times Leslie Nielsen bangs his ring. The first being in the Swamp with Hawkeye and Trapper. The second time is when he is backed to the wall by Margaret. He seems to be trying (unsuccessfully) to assert his dominance again.
    Thanks for sharing your Loretta Swit story again, Rob. I’ve heard you tell it before somewhere, but there were new details in this telling and I can definitely can hear the emotion in your voice. I can only imagine what it was like to meet one of your (and my) idols.

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