| M*A*S*H Season 9 | |
|---|---|
| "M*A*S*H - Season Nine" | |
 DVD Cover for Season 9 of M*A*S*H. | |
| Season: | Season 9 |
| Original network: |
CBS-TV |
| Country/Language | United States |
| Original Run: | |
| First episode: | November 17, 1980 |
| Final episode: | May 4, 1981 |
| Number of episodes | 20 |
| Created by: | Larry Gelbart |
| Executive producer(s): | Burt Metcalfe (executive producer) |
| Season guides | |
| Previous Season 8 |
Next Season 10 |
The first episode of Season 9 of M*A*S*H, "The Best of Enemies", aired on CBS-TV on November 17, 1980; the final episode, "The Life You Save", aired May 4, 1981.
Major events[]
- Max Klinger's ex-wife marries Klinger's best friend.
Season 9 (1980-1981): List of Episodes[]
- This table lists the episodes in the order they were first broadcast. The episodes were not all broadcast in the same order as they were produced. The broadcast order is also the order of episodes in the DVD set. However, syndicated reruns and paid streaming services such as Netflix sometimes follow the production order (e.g.Z-401, Z-402, Z-403....)
- There is a gap on December 22, 1980. A rerun of Season 8 "Captains Outrageous" was broadcast in that slot. This was probably done to bring A War for All Seasons closer to the New Year.
- Other gaps in broadcast:
- March 23, 1981: A rerun of "Father’s Day" was shown.
- March 30, 1981: "The Life You Save" was scheduled but the broadcast was held over and the time slot occupied by news coverage of assassination attempt on President Reagan.
- April 20, 1981: A rerun of "The Best of Enemies" was shown.
- April 27, 1981: A rerun of "Your Retention, Please" was shown.
- Episodes Z-419, Z-420, Z-423 and Z-424 were produced during Season 9 and held over for broadcast as part of Season 10.
| Season 9 episodes | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ep.# | # in Series | Date aired | Episode title | Directed by | Written by | Prod. code |
| 1 | 199 | November 17, 1980 | "The Best of Enemies" | Charles S. Dubin | Sheldon Bull | Z-404 |
| En route to R&R, Hawkeye is flagged down by a North Korean soldier (Special guest star Mako) who holds him at gun point, forcing him to treat his wounded comrade. | ||||||
| 2 | 200 | November 24, 1980 | "Letters" | Charles S. Dubin | Dennis Koenig | Z-403 |
| The staff of the 4077th answer letters from school children from Hawkeye's home town of Crabapple Cove. | ||||||
| 3 | 201 | December 1, 1980 | "Cementing Relationships" | Charles S. Dubin | David Pollock & Elias Davis | Z-401 |
| To fight an ongoing infection in the O.R., the staff decides to remove the old wood floor and make a concrete one. The surgeons do the menial labor while Klinger acts as foreman (he knows cement and it's not that hard); while an Italian soldier falls head-over-heels for Margaret. | ||||||
| 4 | 202 | December 8, 1980 | "Father’s Day" | Alan Alda | Karen Hall | Z-405 |
| Margaret's cold-hearted father, retired Colonel Alvin "Howitzer" Houlihan (Andrew Duggan) comes to visit while the gang tries to dispose of a stolen side of beef. | ||||||
| 5 | 203 | December 15, 1980 | "Death Takes a Holiday" | Mike Farrell | Story by: Thad Mumford, Dan Wilcox & Burt Metcalfe Teleplay by: Mike Farrell, John Rappaport & Dennis Koenig |
Z-408 |
| While local orphans attend a Christmas party in the mess tent, Hawkeye, B.J., and Margaret try to save the life of a critically injured soldier so that his family won't think of Christmas as the day that their father died. | ||||||
| 6 | 204 | December 29, 1980 | "A War for All Seasons" | Burt Metcalfe | Dan Wilcox & Thad Mumford | Z-409 |
| As the year 1950 comes to a close, the 4077th staff and surgeons hope 1951 is "a damn sight better" and hopefully they'll be going home. We see a series of related events that took place over the course of 1951. | ||||||
| 7 | 205 | January 5, 1981 | "Your Retention, Please" | Charles S. Dubin | Erik Tarloff | Z-406 |
| When an pushy retention officer (Barry Corbin) comes to the camp to persuade staff to extend their terms of service, Klinger, distraught at his domestic situation, is persuaded to do so. | ||||||
| 8 | 206 | January 12, 1981 | "Tell It to the Marines" | Harry Morgan | Hank Bradford | Z-410 |
| B.J. and Hawkeye try to get a hardship discharge for an immigrant Marine whose Mom is being deported before he can get home. Winchester becomes C.O. for a few days, using his new position to get himself silk sheets and other "basic necessities of life". | ||||||
| 9 | 207 | January 19, 1981 | "Taking the Fifth" | Charles S. Dubin | Elias Davis & David Pollock | Z-407 |
| Klinger happens upon a bottle of vintage French wine and Hawkeye uses it to lure a nurse into his clutches. Winchester deals with Klinger to get more bottles of the wine. Col. Potter trades with the Canadians for a special anesthetic forbidden by the U.S. Army. | ||||||
| 10 | 208 | January 26, 1981 | "Operation Friendship" | Rena Down | Dennis Koenig | Z-412 |
| When the autoclave explodes in O.R., Klinger pushes Charles out of the line of fire just in time and breaks his nose, but B.J. catches more of the blast and has a serious arm injury. For saving his life, Charles declares he is fully indebted to Maxwell Klinger and becomes his personal assistant. But after several days of bowing to Klinger's every command, Charles begins to wish he had been killed. Meanwhile, Hawkeye doesn't like the doctor called in to help treat B.J., who refuses to admit there is anything wrong with him. | ||||||
| 11 | 209 | February 2, 1981 | "No Sweat" | Burt Metcalfe | John Rappaport | Z-402 |
| We're having a heat wave! The 4077th deals with a sudden heat wave in their own personal ways: Klinger disassembles the P.A. system, Charles goes through all of his tax returns and bonds, B.J. stresses over a letter from Peg, Margaret develops a severe case of prickly heat, and Colonel Potter can't get a good night's sleep. | ||||||
| 12 | 210 | February 9, 1981 | "Depressing News" | Alan Alda | Dan Wilcox & Thad Mumford | Z-411 |
| After placing an order for 5,000 tongue depressors, the 4077th receives 500,000. Hawkeye decides to use most of the extras to build a monument to Army inefficiency, and dedicate it to all the brave men and women who have passed through, while Klinger presses his luck when he starts a printing press. | ||||||
| 13 | 211 | February 16, 1981 | "No Laughing Matter" | Burt Metcalfe | Elias Davis & David Pollock | Z-413 |
| Hawkeye's challenge to go through a day without telling a joke is complicated by Winchester's amusingly desperate attempt to curry the favor of a visiting officer, namely Colonel Baldwin, the same officer who initially had Winchester transferred to the 4077th. | ||||||
| 14 | 212 | February 23, 1981 | "Oh, How We Danced" | Burt Metcalfe | John Rappaport | Z-414 |
| When Winchester goes to inspect the sanitary conditions at another camp, the failing mark he gives the commander is met with physical violence. Meanwhile, the gang comes up with a surprise for B.J. on his anniversary. | ||||||
| 15 | 213 | March 2, 1981 | "Bottoms Up" | Alan Alda | Dennis Koenig | Z-415 |
| Margaret's good friend Captain Helen Whitfield visits the 4077th and it seems like old times again, but what the Major doesn't know is that Whitfield is still a raging closet-alcoholic; Meanwhile, Hawkeye pulls one prank that goes too far when he drops Charles' pants in O.R. | ||||||
| 16 | 214 | March 9, 1981 | "The Red/White Blues" | Gabrielle Beaumont | Elias Davis & David Pollock | Z-416 |
| Col. Potter's blood pressure is too high and he has two weeks to get it back down, causing everyone to mollycoddle him, much to his dismay. Meanwhile, the malaria medicine they are sent makes Klinger sick. | ||||||
| 17 | 215 | March 16, 1981 | "Bless You, Hawkeye" | Nell Cox | Dan Wilcox & Thad Mumford | Z-417 |
| Hawkeye starts inexplicably sneezing uncontrollably until Col. Potter suspects it's psychological in nature and calls in Dr. Sidney Freedman (Allan Arbus). | ||||||
| 18 | 216 | April 6, 1981 | "Blood Brothers" | Harry Morgan | David Pollock & Elias Davis | Z-421 |
| Father Mulcahy tries to prepare himself and the camp for a visit from Cardinal Reardon, a VIP to both the Army and the church. Hawkeye, meanwhile, prepares to tell a young soldier (Patrick Swayze) why he can't donate blood to his wounded buddy; Hawkeye and B.J. have discovered the soldier has leukemia. | ||||||
| 19 | 217 | April 13, 1981 | "The Foresight Saga" | Charles S. Dubin | Dennis Koenig | Z-422 |
| Klinger accidentally breaks Potter's eyeglasses, requiring a visit from traveling optometrist Dr. Bud Herzog. The 4077th receives fresh vegetables from a grateful Korean. Potter questions the authenticity of an upbeat letter from Radar. | ||||||
| 20 | 218 | May 4, 1981 | "The Life You Save" | Alan Alda | John Rappaport & Alan Alda | Z-418 |
| Winchester goes on a spiritual journey when he undergoes a near-death experience. Pierce experiences the problems of being the officer in charge of food services. | ||||||