Out of Sight, Out of Mind was the 101st episode of the CBS-TV series M*A*S*H, and also the fourth episode of the Season 5 of the series. Written by Ken Levine and David Isaacs, and directed by Gene Reynolds, it first aired on October 5, 1976.
Synopsis[]
Hawkeye is temporarily blinded while trying to fix the nurses' gas furnace, and Frank finds a sure-fire way to win bets on baseball games.
Full episode summary[]
In the middle of night, some of the nurses come to ask Hawkeye for help re-lighting their gas stove: it's gone out, leaving the nurses' tent without any heat. Hawkeye lights a match, causing a small explosion, which burns his face and blinds him. He staggers out onto the compound just as Col. Potter, B.J., and Radar come to see what's happened. Potter recognizes what's happened, and orders Radar to get a nearby ophthalmologist, Major Overman, to the 4077th immediately. The doctor examines Hawkeye and bandages him up. Hawkeye only has one question: is the blindness permanent? The doctor can't give him an answer, and says he'll be back in a week.
In the meantime, Hawkeye tries to adjust to his new condition. He bonds with a wounded soldier who's been blinded in battle, practices juggling, gets Radar to read him some mail, and short-sheets Frank's bed. Klinger brings him a duck call to summon help whenever he needs it, so he has Klinger walk him to the latrine. Margaret sends Klinger to Col. Potter, then takes Hawkeye from the latrine to the mess tent while he sings "I'll Hear You In My Dreams" (his rendition of "I'll See You In My Dreams"). He notices that Frank is scamming some of the enlisted men, including Radar, betting on the outcome of a baseball game (Frank already knows the results of the game, having caught an earlier broadcast while everyone else was asleep) and then cleaning up when they lose.
He later visits with Col. Potter, regaling him with tales of his hometown. When Potter has to leave the room, Hawkeye keeps talking, not knowing he's alone. When he realizes it, he panics and calls out to Potter and Radar, who rush back to him. He visits the blinded soldier before he ships out, offering moral support. He and B.J. have a conversation about what Hawkeye is going through, and Hawkeye reveals that he's going through something he didn't expect. Not being able to rely on his eyes, he feels like his other senses are heightened, and admits he's "never spent a more conscious day in my life". He visits the nurses' tent. Even though he can't see anything, Lieutenant Gage refuses to do what she'd normally do - get undressed - mostly because Hawkeye keeps goofing around while humming a slutty stripper-type tune.
The fun is interrupted when wounded arrive, and even though he can't operate, Hawkeye tries to help out (much to Frank's chagrin - he was gloating about how nice OR was without Hawkeye around). He helps B.J. when he smells something distinctive emanating from B.J.'s patient, leading to the discovery of a small wound in the intestine.
Hawkeye offers to help Radar get his money back. In the middle of the night he, B.J., Radar, and Klinger fake another ball game and broadcast so Frank, picking it up on his short-wave radio, thinks it's the real game. When the real game's score is announced later, Frank claims it must be wrong because he heard the (faked) game earlier - tipping the camp off to his actions. Everyone furiously demands Frank refund their money.
The ophthalmologist returns, and takes off Hawkeye's bandages. The verdict? Hawkeye's sight has returned! He's relieved, of course, but also grateful for the chance to experience what life was like without having to rely his eyes.
Later, Hawkeye visits the nurses' tent again, with his eyes rebandaged. He claims he had a relapse and can't see again, and should be OK in a few days. The nurses allow him to sit down, where he explains they should not mind him and go about their regular business - including getting undressed. Suspicious, the nurses "cure" his relapse by tossing him a coffee mug. He catches it reflexively, and is soon hounded out of the tent by the nurses.
Research note/Fun facts[]
- This is the first episode written by Ken Levine & David Isaacs, who would go on to write (and also produce) a significant number of M*A*S*H episodes over the next three years.
- Out of necessity for the plot, the nurses' stove is gas-fueled, but it is obviously a steel drum for burning wood or coal, as are all of the heaters heretofore seen in the series.
- First appearance of Judy Farrell (as Nurse Able), and of Enid Kent (as Nurse Bigelow), and the final appearance of Bobbie Mitchell (as Lt. Gage).
- William Christopher receives billing, but does not appear in this episode. In broadcast order, this is the second consecutive episode he has missed.
- The character of the blinded soldier, Lt. Tom S. Straw, was played by actor Tom Sullivan, an American actor, singer, and writer who has been blind since shortly after birth.
- The details of the first baseball game Frank listens to (a 4-3 walk off Brooklyn victory in the bottom of the ninth over the New York Giants, with Gil Hodges hitting a home run off Sal Maglie) don't match any real Dodgers/Giants baseball game played between 1950 and 1953.
- Always one to add insult to injury, when Frank walks back into the Swamp while Radar is reading Hawkeye's letter to him, Frank is whistling "Three Blind Mice."
- Right before Hawkeye meets Lt. Tom Straw, he fumbles an empty cot and remarks, "Oh, Claude Rains." Rains starred in The Invisible Man (1933). This is the second time Hawkeye has mentioned Claude Rains in the show, the first time being when he said "Don't move, I'll get Claude Rains." to Klinger in It Happened One Night
Guest stars/Recurring cast[]
- Tom Sullivan as Lieutenant Tom S. Straw
- Judy Farrell as Nurse Able
- Enid Kent as Nurse Bigelow
- Bobbie Mitchell as Lieutenant Gage
- Dudley Knight as Major James Overman
- Kellye Nakahara as Nurse Kellye
Uncredited appearances:
- Sal Viscuso as the P.A. Announcer
- Jo Ann Thompson - mess tent, joins Hawkeye's table (see Lieutenant Jo Ann)