Several changes were made in the cast line up during the 11-year run. Ugly John and Spearchucker were dropped after the first season, while Klinger and Father Mulcahy were retained and became permanent cast members in, respectively, the fourth and fifth seasons.[5][6] Rogers and Stevenson left the series at the end of the third season and were replaced in the fourth by, respectively, Mike Farrell as Captain B. J. Hunnicutt and Harry Morgan as Colonel Sherman Potter.[4] Linville left the series at the end of the fifth season and was replaced in the sixth by David Ogden Stiers as Major Charles Emerson Winchester III.[4] Burghoff left the series during the eighth season.[4] Two recurring characters—Allan Arbus as Major Sidney Freedman, a psychiatrist (called Milton Freedman in his first appearance) and Edward Winter as Colonel Sam Flagg (a Lieutenant Colonel, before the fourth season), CIA—were introduced in the second season.
Although not an immediate success, the popularity of M*A*S*H increased in its second season, when it ranked among the ten most-popular programs on prime time American television. Except for the fourth season, where it dropped to number 15, the series stayed in the top 10 for the remainder of its run. The final episode, "Goodbye, Farewell and Amen", became the most-watched show in American television history with 106 million viewers.[7] During its 11-year run M*A*S*H received 14 Emmy Awards.[8] The series continues to air in syndication, while the entire run has been released on DVD.
^Long, David (2010). "Best Care Anywhere". Archived from the original on March 1, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2010. (Note: Database in Microsoft Access form needs to be downloaded)
^Erickson, Hal (2010). "M*A*S*H Season 1". AllMovie. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
