"Deal Me Out" was the 37th episode of the ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (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 Richard Hooker. The ...

'' television series and the thirteenth of season two. The episode aired on December 8, 1973.

Plot

Captain Sam Pak (

Pat Morita Noriyuki "Pat" Morita (June 28, 1932 – November 24, 2005) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for his roles as Matsuo "Arnold" Takahashi on ''Happy Days'', Mr. Miyagi in ''The Karate Kid'' film series, Captain Sam Pak on the sitco ...

) and Major Sidney 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 series ...

) arrive at the 4077th for a "conference" that is actually a marathon poker game in the Swamp, also attended by Henry Blake, Hawkeye, Trapper, and Klinger. The game is interrupted several times during the night.

Radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

pulls Henry aside with news that he has struck a local resident while driving a jeep. The man is taken to Post-Op and later threatens to report Radar to the MP's unless he receives $50. From Radar's description, Pak recognizes him as "Whiplash" Hwang, a con artist who fakes being hit by vehicles and then extorts the drivers for whatever he can get. The poker players contribute money from their winnings to placate him. A wounded soldier is brought into the hospital, but

Frank Burns This is a list of characters from the ''M*A*S*H'' franchise, covering the various fictional characters appearing in the novel '' MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors'' and its sequels, the 1970 film adaptation of the novel, and the televisi ...

refuses to operate on him as he is an intelligence (CID) officer; protocol dictates that a second such officer must be present before he can be anesthetized in order to record any confidential information inadvertently revealed by the first. Hawkeye and Trapper decide to operate immediately due to the serious nature of the man's injuries, ignoring Frank's warning that they are violating Army regulations by doing so. Some time after the surgery is over, CID officer Captain Halloran ( Edward Winter) eventually arrives from headquarters, and Hawkeye assures him that the wounded man did not give away any secrets. Ignoring Frank's insistence that Hawkeye and Trapper be arrested, Halloran joins the game. Private Carter (

John Ritter Johnathan Southworth Ritter (September 17, 1948 – September 11, 2003) was an American actor. Ritter was a son of the singing cowboy star Tex Ritter and the father of actors Jason and Tyler Ritter. He is known for playing Jack Tripper on the ...

), a wounded soldier recovering in Post-Op, rejects a meal and tells Frank that he refuses to go back to the front. Frank threatens to send Carter back that night, but Carter becomes agitated at Frank's gung-ho patriotism. Later that night, the game is interrupted by the sound of gunfire; the shooter is Carter, who has seized a pistol and taken Frank hostage in the shower tent. As Sidney tries to persuade Carter to let Frank go, Trapper sneaks in and subdues him. The game continues into the night, punctuated one last time by Hwang pretending to be hit by an ambulance as Radar drives through the camp. Hawkeye and Trapper help him up and send him back to Post-Op.

Notes

Generally considered one of the best episodes of the series, "Deal Me Out" marks the first of Edward Winter's eight appearances on ''M*A*S*H''. In all subsequent appearances, he portrayed Intelligence Officer Colonel Flagg. This first appearance—as Captain Halloran—is often cited by fans as the same character, with Halloran being one of Flagg's many aliases. In the fourth-season episode "

Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler? "Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler?" was the 82nd episode of the ''M*A*S*H'' television series, and the tenth of season four. The episode aired on November 7, 1975. " Quo Vadis" is Latin for "Where are you going?" and is a reference to a conversation r ...

", Flagg's and Dr. Freedman's conversation refers to a previous poker game that the two had attended. In "What's Up, Doc?" it is Major Winchester who is taken hostage by an unstable patient, although Klinger soon trades places with Winchester.

Quotes

Klinger: Hi, sirs! Sandwiches from the Mess Tent!
Hawkeye: I hope everybody likes carrier pigeon.
Klinger: There's ham, chicken, and something brown that just lays there.
Hawkeye: I wonder what the chances are of my getting the 5th Jack? Oh well, not to worry.
Sidney: Your five, and up five!
Klinger: That's mean!
Sidney: I'm gonna beat the pants off ya, lady!
Halloran: Pierce? McIntyre? You two are under arrest!
Henry: Woah! Hold the phone! I'm Col. Blake, here. Nobody arrests them without telling me the whys, the wherefores, or the reason thereofs!
Frank: They operated on a CID man without another CID man standing by!
Halloran: ntroduces himselfCaptain Halloran.
Henry: Okay. Did you guys really do that?
Trapper: Henry, the guy could have died!
Hawkeye: He was bleeding, Henry! And Frank here, who studied medicine under General Rommel, was too chicken to operate! He was afraid that under anesthesia, the Lieutenant might give away Harry Truman's hat size!

External links

* {{M*A*S*H episodes M*A*S*H season 2 episodes 1973 American television episodes