| Trapper John, M.D.* Season 1 | |
|---|---|
| "Trapper John, M.D. - Season One" | |
 | |
| Season: | Season 1 |
| Original network: |
CBS-TV |
| Country/Language | United States |
| Original Run: | |
| First episode: | September 23, 1979 |
| Final episode: | March 30, 1980 |
| Number of episodes | 22 |
| Created by: | Richard Hooker |
| Executive producer(s): | Don Brinkley (executive producer) Frank Glicksman (executive producer) |
| Season guides | |
| Previous None - N/A |
Next Season 2 |
Season 1 of Trapper John, M.D. consisted of a total of 22 episodes which was originally broadcast on CBS-TV from its debut with the airing of the "Pilot" episode on September 23, 1979 to the season finale episode, "Hotline" on March 30, 1980.
Season 1: 1979–80[]
| No. in series |
No. in season |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Pilot" | Jackie Cooper | Don Brinkley | September 23, 1979 | A-910 |
| The first episode features pictures from the set of M*A*S*H, including a picture of Wayne Rogers as Trapper and Alan Alda as Hawkeye, which would link the series to the continuity of M*A*S*H. Both Hawkeye and Radar are referred to in the first scene. The character of Starch was also apparently in the 4077th with Trapper. This series also uses a PA Announcement character, similar to After M*A*S*H, to a lesser extent. Special Guest Star Roddy McDowall. | ||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Flashback" | Murray Golden | Don Brinkley | September 30, 1979 | V-403 |
| Trapper and Gonzo deal with a deranged Vietnam vet, while Stanley tries to save on taxes by incorporating himself. | ||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Exposure" | Joseph Pevney | Jim Rogers & Don Brinkley | October 7, 1979 | V-407 |
| When an employee from a local nuclear power plant is admitted to SFM with signs of radiation poisoning, Gonzo cannot understand why it appears that nothing is being done to protect other workers from exposure. Meanwhile, Riverside must contend with a very distrusting Gypsy. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Love Is a Three-Way Street" | Marc Daniels | Don Brinkley | October 2, 1979 | V-401 |
| A persistent swain of his ex-wife, Melanie, causes both professional and romantic turmoil for Trapper, as his hopes for a reconciliation dwindle when she asks him to treat her new fiancé. Meanwhile, Stanley is determined to get rid of the "Titanic". | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "The Shattered Image" | Corey Allen | Shimon Wincelberg | October 28, 1979 | V-404 |
| Special Guest Star Shelley Long, who is trying to get a job at San Francisco Memorial Hospital, but despite being a brilliant nurse's aid, she finds difficulty due to her past. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "What Are Friends For?" | Ralph Senensky | Ray Brenner | November 11, 1979 | V-408 |
| A medic who once saved Gonzo's life in Vietnam now wants his friend's help in a fraudulent medical claim.
Note:First appearance of O'Malley. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "One for My Baby" | Bernard McEveety | Charles Larson, Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | November 18, 1979 | V-409 |
| The staff at SFMH help a teenage boy with alcoholism. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "In the Rain" | Barry Crane | Shimon Wincelberg, Larry Arnstein & David Hurwitz | December 12, 1979 | V-410 |
| A local street person known as "Harry the Hinge" is admitted to SFM with kidney failure. Meanwhile, Trapper and Gonzo decide to protest a decision to divert free-clinic funds to the pet project of one of the hospital's major benefactors. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "Licensed To Kill" | Bernard McEveety | Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | December 19, 1979 | V-411 |
| A group of radicals kidnaps Melanie, and gives Trapper an ultimatum: Either he kills a policeman who has survived two earlier murder attempts, or they will kill his ex-wife. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "The Surrogate" | Alex March | Don Brinkley | December 23, 1979 | V-405 |
| An injured boy is torn between the mother he ran away from and the man he considers to be his father. A grateful sheik gives Gonzo a present he can't refuse - his daughter. | ||||||
| 11 | 11 | "Whose Little Hero Are You?" | Robert Douglas | Don Brinkley | December 30, 2979 | V-402 |
| A brilliant improvisation saves the life of a hit-and-run victim, but causes problems for Trapper and Riverside. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "Boom!" | Seymour Robbie | Don Brinkley | January 6, 1980 | V-412 |
| There is a bomb somewhere in the hospital set to go off at midnight, the night of Trapper's 10th anniversary as chief of surgery. The bomb squad can't find it, and the man who planted it is dying from bullet wounds. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Have You Hugged Your Nurse Today?" | Ralph Levy | Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | January 13, 1980 | V-406 |
| Gloria falls for a man in a wheelchair - who happens to already have a wife. Gonzo firmly believes that he can cure a disabled man with surgery, but said patient is against the operation. Trapper resents Starch labelling him "predictable", and decides to do something about it. | ||||||
| 14 | 14 | "Missionary's Downfall" | Joseph Pevney | Ray Brenner & Don Brinkley | January 27, 1980 | V-414 |
| A former patient who recovered from terminal cancer using a holistic approach he devised has written a book and is looking for converts. The patient convinces a lupus patient to stop all medical treatment, and nearly allows her to die before accepting that she needs help he cannot give her. Meanwhile, SFM admits a gang member who likes to draw graffiti and does so on hospital property. | ||||||
| 15 | 15 | "Warning: I May Be Hazardous to Your Health" | Alf Kjellin | Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | February 3, 1980 | V-413 |
| Stanley thinks he has finally found the love of his life in the hospital's excellent new neurosurgeon, until he learns how she made the money to get through medical school. A sleazy reporter looking for dirt around the hospital gets more than he bargained for. | ||||||
| 16 | 16 | "'Til Life Do Us Part" | Bernard McEveety | Jack Guss | February 10, 1980 | V-417 |
| A patient who is diagnosed with a serious form of cancer finds inspiration in a woman with Lou Gehrig's disease. | ||||||
| 17 | 17 | "If You Can't Stand the Heat" | Murray Golden | Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | February 17, 1980 | V-416 |
| At first Trapper is not concerned when an old friend starts to behave erratically, but Gonzo suspects that something is wrong, especially when the doctor freezes during an emergency. Meanwhile, San Francisco Memorial is flooded with patients from a nearby hospital, after it is damaged by fire. | ||||||
| 18 | 18 | "Strike!" | Alex March | Kenneth Berg | February 24, 1980 | V-418 |
| A possible nurse's strike threatens the hospital as well as Gonzo's love life. | ||||||
| 19 | 19 | "It's a Wise Surgeon" | Robert Douglas | Jack Guss | March 2, 1980 | V-415 |
| Gonzo is suspicious of a young Korean man who comes to the hospital claiming to be the long-lost son of Trapper. A woman with a history of faking illness is surprised when she is diagnosed with a rare disease. | ||||||
| 20 | 20 | "Short Odds" | Murray Golden | Jeff Stuart | March 9, 1980 | V-419 |
| Gonzo tries to date a new surgeon who suffers a loss of confidence after her first patient dies. | ||||||
| 21 | 21 | "Quarantine" | Seymour Robbie | Deborah Zoe Dawson & Victoria Johns | March 23, 1980 | V-420 |
| Trapper's ex-wife Melanie finds a baby in a fitting room and the hospital is put at risk when the baby is found to have a form of the plague. | ||||||
| 22 | 22 | "Hot Line" | Barry Crane | J.B. Hall | March 30, 1980 | V-421 |
| Gonzo and the staff decide to start a hot-line for people to anonymously call with their problems. Trapper takes a risk by bringing in a retired doctor with an alcohol problem to help perform a rare eye operation. Last appearance of Clara 'Starch' Willoughby. In "Girl Under Glass," her character is said to have gotten married, moved away and retired. | ||||||