Trapper John, M.D.


Trapper John, M.D. is an American medical drama television series and spin-off of the film M*A*S*H. Pernell Roberts portrayed the title character, a lovable surgeon who became a mentor and father figure in San Francisco, California. The show ran on CBS for seven seasons, from September 23, 1979, to September 4, 1986. Roberts played the character more than twice as long as had Wayne Rogers on the TV series M*A*S*H. The role of Trapper John was played by Elliott Gould in the film.

Overview

Trapper John, M.D. focuses on Dr. "Trapper" John McIntyre 28 years after his discharge from the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in the Korean War. During that time after the war, the character had mellowed considerably. He did not merely learn how to stop fighting the system but became a part of it, in a sense, as the Chief of Surgery at San Francisco Memorial Hospital. Trapper shows tremendous compassion toward his patients, often violating "established hospital procedures."
Working with Trapper is an aspiring young professional named Dr. George Alonzo Gates, usually referred to as Gonzo, who has a lot in common with Trapper, having also served in a MASH unit. His sense of humor and love of life also reflect elements of Trapper's younger days. Gonzo resides in his motor home in the hospital parking lot.
The show also involves several other characters that serve as hospital staff.
The show underwent a number of changes during Trapper John's seventh and final season.
Only nine further irregularly-scheduled episodes of Trapper John were produced after Harrison's departure.
After Harrison's last episode, the show was off the air for three weeks, then brought back on a different night before being pre-empted three times in the next four weeks. A top 30 hit for most of its run, Trapper John, M.D. fell out of the top 30 during season seven, and was cancelled by season's end.
The final four episodes were aired late in the summer of 1986, well after the show's cancellation had already been announced.

Cast

Recurring:
Cast notes:
It has sometimes been reported that after Trapper John, M.D. premiered, the producers of the television series M*A*S*H filed suit claiming they were entitled to royalties from the new show because their series had also featured Trapper John McIntyre as a character, portrayed by actor Wayne Rogers. According to these reports, although Rogers left M*A*S*H in 1975 and the character had been written out of the series, the M*A*S*H producers argued Trapper John, M.D. was a spin-off of the TV series M*A*S*H. The producers of Trapper John, M.D responded that their series was a spin-off of the 1970 motion picture M*A*S*H, which itself was an adaptation of Richard Hooker's , but was not a spin-off of the M*A*S*H television series and that series' producers were not entitled to royalties from Trapper John, M.D. Both TV series came from the same studio, 20th Century Fox Television, and the movie M*A*S*H was produced by parent company 20th Century Fox.
The reports appear to be a confused description of Preminger v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp, filed in New York state court. In the suit, claimant Ingo Preminger, the original producer of the 1970 film, claimed that under his deal with 20th Century Fox, his production company had both the right of first refusal to produce any spin-off of the movie and the right to fees from the use of the book and film's material. New York State Supreme Court Justice Martin Stecher found in part for Preminger, saying that his agreement with Fox did not give him the right of first refusal to produce Trapper John M.D., but he did have a right to participate in profits from the show. Stecher awarded Preminger a 25% share in the show's profits.
This decision was later cited by the same court in its 2008 decision in Kellman v. Mosley, involving a claim for royalties involving the Easy Rawlins detective series.

Episodes