I've noticed a gaffe in my favorite TV show of all-time for many years now -- something only a true Marvel Comics fan could catch. Check out these two images of "Radar" O'Reilly asleep in his cot:
See what that red arrow is pointing at? Look closely. Yep, that's an issue of Avengers #60 from 1969. Here's the full cover:
So tell me: How can Radar be reading a comic from at least sixteen years in the future?? (The Korean War lasted from 1950-1953.)
Answer: Because MASH, while set in Korea, was actually a reaction to Vietnam. This is also why large parts of the original movie are deliberately set dressed and costumed like Vietnam as well.
Posted by: Jeff the Baptist at June 19, 2009 08:35 PMI saw that gaffe several years ago; there is another major gaffe in that episode as well; it is one of the few episodes in which you get a clear (if only for a fraction of a second) shot of Radar's maimed left hand, which was missing two fingers if I recall correctly.
Posted by: steve Newton at June 19, 2009 09:15 PMSteve: Most of the sites I checked say that Burghoff's hand is merely "withered;" he suffers from "localized dysmelia" which caused his fingers to be short and his hand to have said "withered" look.
I've tried to catch a glimpse of his left hand after a friend told me how Gary always conceals it while on camera; however, I've never caught one. One 'net source says the only episode where it is clearly visible is the pilot episode.
Posted by: Hube at June 20, 2009 09:23 AM