"Radar's Report" was the 27th episode of ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richa ...

'', and third of season two. The episode aired on September 29, 1973.

Overview

October 17, 1951: This episode is told as a

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique used in radio, television, filmmaking, theatre, and other media in which a descriptive or expository voice that is not part of the narrative (i.e., non- ...

Radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

reading a report as he is typing it. Comically, it includes where he puts punctuation and how he spaces the report. In each scene of the episode, the viewer hears the actual scene as well as the report that Radar is making. An enemy prisoner who is being treated in the OR grabs a scalpel and attacks a nurse, Lt. Erika Johnson (

Joan Van Ark Joan Martha Van Ark (born June 16, 1943) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Valene Ewing on the primetime soap opera ''Knots Landing.'' A life member of The Actors Studio, she made her Broadway debut in 1966 in '' Barefo ...

), and inadvertently splashes foreign matter into the wound of a patient of Trapper's before being subdued by Hawkeye. When Trapper's patient subsequently dies, Trapper is furious at the enemy soldier and stands over his bed menacingly, as if he is going to sabotage his care. However, Hawkeye talks him down from acting. Hawkeye, meanwhile, has fallen head over heels in love with Erika. Although he is temporarily deterred by seeing a wedding ring on her hand, he is happy to discover that the ring is merely a shield against unwanted advances. Hawkeye is prepared to propose to the nurse, but she is not interested in a long-term relationship and is shipped out to Tokyo. During the crucial conversation, in which she reveals to Hawkeye that they can't have the kind of relationship that he desires, the PA system plays " As Time Goes By", and Hawkeye says, "Not their song," thinking of the implicit parallel to Rick and Ilsa in ''

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

''. After Frank mistakes Klinger for

Margaret Margaret is a feminine given name, which means "pearl". It is of Latin origin, via Ancient Greek and ultimately from Iranian languages, Old Iranian. It has been an English language, English name since the 11th century, and remained popular thro ...

, the two majors decide to get rid of Klinger. They convince Lt. Col. Blake to have Klinger undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Dr. Milton Freedman (

Allan Arbus Allan Franklin Arbus (February 15, 1918 – April 19, 2013) was an American actor and photographer. He was the former husband of photographer Diane Arbus. He is known for his role as psychiatrist Dr. Sidney Freedman on the CBS television serie ...

), an Army psychiatrist, interviews Klinger, and tells him that although he believes Klinger to be sane, he is willing to grant him a Section 8 discharge if he will sign a report confirming that he is a

transvestite Cross-dressing is the act of wearing clothes traditionally or stereotypically associated with a different gender. From as early as pre-modern history, cross-dressing has been practiced in order to disguise, comfort, entertain, and express onesel ...

and a homosexual (a report which Freedman notes will follow him into civilian life). Insisting that he is neither ("I'm just crazy!"), Klinger refuses to sign, and Freedman files a report saying that Klinger is sane.

Production

This was the first episode to feature Allan Arbus as Army psychiatrist Dr. Freedman. In this episode, he is called "Milton Freedman"; in later episodes, the character is renamed " Sidney Freedman".

References

External links

* {{M*A*S*H episodes M*A*S*H season 2 episodes 1973 American television episodes Television episodes directed by Jackie Cooper