Episode 4: Wrong Playwright
This live one-hour special is hosted by Howie Mandel in front of a live audience in New York City to commemorate the show's 100th episode. The pre-recorded challenges shown: The guys conduct interviews while the others try to make them laugh from behind a two-way mirror, fake injuries at a grocery store, and cross off their "bucket list" items.
Episode 4: Wrong Playwright
Wrong Playwright was the fourth episode of Season Four of Impractical Jokers and the eighty-first episode overall. It had 1.09 million U.S. viewers and aired on February 19, 2015. The Inside Jokes version of this episode aired on March 7, 2018.
The series ran for 25 seasons, aired 6280 episodes, and was a cultural phenomenon. And while that's beyond impressive, something always felt rather jokey and lacking when I occasionally stumbled upon an episode on television.
Former Manhattan family court Judge Judith Sheindlin oversaw real-life small-claim disputes, and most episodes featured disagreements between former lovers, disputing neighbors, or family and friend relations.
Laurie is a playwright born, raised and based in Glasgow. He has had work performed at the Traverse Theatre, Tron Theatre, Macrobert Arts Centre, and the Paisley Book Festival. He has also written for animation and for projection.
The Pritchett-Dunphy-Tucker clan recount all their biggest celebrity encounters. Phil shows a house to his musical hero and is determined to make a good impression despite the intense pain radiating from a very inconvenient part of his body. Meanwhile, Jay's day at jury duty takes an unexpected turn when he gets to serve it alongside one of America's biggest football icons. Finally, Manny's encounter with his favorite playwright and a celebrated actor and comedian don't go exactly as you'd expect.
Created by comedic writer and playwright Larry Gelbart, the legendary, Emmy-winning series was adapted from the 1970 Robert Altman film of the same name, which was based off a book by wartime-surgeon Richard Hooker. The comedy-drama, which focused on the lives of the doctors and staff stationed at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War, ran from 1972 to 1983 and aired more than 250 episodes in its 11 seasons. It lasted longer than the actual Korean War by around eight years. The "M*A*S*H" series finale still ranks as the most-watched TV finale of all time, with nearly 106 million viewers tuning in to say farewell.
"M*A*S*H" remains the gold standard for TV writing; in 2013, the Writers Guild of America voted it the fifth best-written TV series of all time. It's inspired countless shows today, partly because the show's talented writers weren't afraid to take risks with its characters and storytelling. The show pioneered narrative techniques like 30-minute episodes with two plotlines, usually one funny and one serious. The writers also refused to shy away from hard truths about war and the human condition despite network pressure, leading to some of the series' most powerful episodes.
The title of this episode, strangely, has nothing to do with the mysterious, unseen George character mentioned briefly two episodes earlier. Instead, it refers to Private George Weston, a gay soldier who shows up at the 4077th with injuries he sustained from a beating at the hands of his unit.
If nothing else, "M*A*S*H" will go down in history for its gall in addressing the harsh realities of the American Military Industrial Complex. An episode that embodies what "M*A*S*H" did best, "For the Good of the Outfit" sees Hawkeye and Trapper confronted with an unseemly truth: The U.S. military is responsible for many civilian deaths after reigning artillery fire down on the South Korean village of Tai Dong.
Of course, this was network television, so some narrative compromises were made. For example, the artillery fire is believed to be an "accident." Digging a little deeper in its critique, the episode takes things further by having the higher-ups call for the incident to be covered up. With the frequency and volume of protests over the years leading up to 1973, this corrupt wartime reality had moved from the pop culture status of "conspiracy" to "probability," but it was still incredibly controversial.
Hawkeye and Trapper play vampire in this episode, tapping Frank (during his sleep) for a pint of blood to help save a POW with the rare AB negative blood type. But when their patient develops hepatitis, they worry Frank may be a carrier and have to devise a series of misdirections and distractions to keep him away from everyone (especially Hot Lips) until his tests come back. Aside from the darkness of its subject matter, this episode is notable for including the last appearances of supporting characters Spearchucker, Private Boone, and Lt. Dish.
Once he's back, the boys twist his arm into staying, and although he claims he's going to tighten up on the disciplinary front this time around, the final scene of him joining in for poker and martinis suggest a full return to normal. The emotional highlights of this episode arrive early in the awkwardly tender goodbyes between a tongue-tied Henry and his men. However, the ease with which Hawkeye and Co. convince Henry to return drains the dramatic tension by the end of the episode, which in retrospect feels like a low-stakes dress rehearsal for Henry's permanent departure in the third season finale, "Abyssinia, Henry."
Ho-Jon, the Swamp's Korean houseboy, is accepted to college at Hawkeye's old alma mater. Hawkeye and Trapper then host a raffle party to pay for his first semester's tuition, the grand prize being a date with the alluring Nurse Dish. The pilot episode of "M*A*S*H" established instant chemistry between Hawkeye and Trapper, and established the formula of fun hijinks in the service of a higher cause (well, usually). It features one of only two Father Mulcahy performances by George Morgan, who was replaced by William Christopher early on in the show's run. It's also the only episode to feature a cold open before the theme music.
After searing defeats in football, basketball, and softball, the 4077th challenges Col. Pitt and his Marine squad to a bowling match. Col. Potter and B.J. lead the team while Hawkeye must wrestle with the fact that his father is going under the knife back on American soil. He eventually processes with Charles, who calls him Hawkeye for the first and only time in the show's 12-year run. It also marked the first time the closing theme replaced the opening theme and the intro only consisted of five shots. And while neither of those things is too impactful, they accurately reflect the outlying nature of the episode, a clear standout in the series.
"No Sweat" envelops viewers in a state of stress and...well, sweat. This particular sweat is caused by an extreme heatwave that keeps the company from being able to get comfortable in their own skin. Of course, they're already more or less living in a bare-bones camp in the jungle, so it's not like they're in terrific conditions to start. Slap a heatwave on top, and we find our beloved 4077th in dire straits. The episode follows individuals (Peg, Margaret, Charles, Potter, etc.), examining how they all cope with the unwanted sweat storm, from TV repair to tax returns.
A nuanced take on the episode's popularly used "letter home" framework, "Letters" has the company responding to mail from children of Crabapple Cove where Hawkeye grew up. The format allowed space for an episode where Charles gets especially emotional. It's a muted version of emotional because it's Charles, but emotional nonetheless. The episode is chock full of stories from different characters. They range from touching to forgettable to hilarious and combine to make for an interesting special episode steeped in significant character development.
As per usual, hot topics abound in this classic episode. The central topic is racism. Guest star Tom Atkins plays Maj. Lawrence Weems, an impressive, selfless, and caring major when it comes to the way he treats his men. Or so the company thought. After a few fishy situations, they discover that Maj. Weems is racist. He's been intentionally sending his Black soldiers into the most deadly situations. Laurence Fishburne also guest stars as Dorsey, who helps unveil Weems's cruel racist behavior. Potter goes so far as to accuse Weems of fighting the Civil War.
Winchester, after a near-miss encounter with a sniper, begins spending his free time with a patient whom he and B.J. brought back from the brink of death. The comedy takes a backseat in this episode, which capped off its ninth season on a serious note. It was intended to be broadcast on March 30, 1981, but in light of the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan earlier that day, CBS feared the sniper plot point might not sit well with viewers and aired a rerun instead.
Leaning into its identity as one of the greatest prank shows on primetime television, "M*A*S*H" regularly devoted entire episodes to labyrinthian prank wars. "The Joker Is Wild" sees Hawkeye eerily left alone amidst all the hijinks, prompting his concern that a much greater prank threatens his dignity around every corner. It's episodes like these that exemplify how easy it is to love "M*A*S*H," a show that can simultaneously address grave ethical issues and fool around with the best of them.
After giving a bad sanitation review to another campsite, Winchester gets a fist to the face from the camp's major and ends up questioning his masculinity. Meanwhile, the crew is devoted to finding a harmonica for an injured Korean boy brought into the camp. The episode also makes a point of reminding viewers how significant the thought and memory of loved ones is for stationed soldiers through the depression of B.J., whose longing for his family back home is too difficult to overcome on his own.
Through a snowball effect that starts with Hawkeye seeking out a breakfast beer, various members of the 4077th end up at Rosie's Bar, which turns into one big party. This is a format-busting episode in that there are no scenes at the 4077th. The character of Rosie, having previously been played by two other actresses, is here portrayed by Eileen Saki, who would continue in the role throughout the rest of the show's run. 041b061a72