M*A*S*H Unfortunately Predicted The Future For One Of Its Real-Life Inspirations
The classic wartime sitcom series "M*A*S*H" was entirely fictional, but it was often inspired by real people and events. Heck, Alan Alda, who starred as Captain Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce and also wrote, directed, and served as a consultant on the series, even served as an Army officer in Korea shortly after the war — though he was not in a medical unit. Not only that but Jamie Farr, who played the eccentric yet lovable Corporal Klinger, served during the Korean War and even wore his own dog tags on the show. Both of them helped bring some authenticity, but even then it was important for the series' head honchos to get a better understanding of the Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) life, which meant visiting the United States Army's 8055th, still stationed in South Korea at the time.
In the DVD commentary for "M*A*S*H" (via the book "TV's M*A*S*H: The Ultimate Guide Book"), series creator Larry Gelbart shared a sad but fascinating story about how one time the series took inspiration from real life only to accidentally predict the future. As it turns out, one especially lively character was based on a real-life Army pilot whom Gelbart and director Gene Reynolds had met while visiting the 8055th. Of course, they never could've expected life to mirror art when they gave his character a tragic diagnosis.
Predicting the future for a poor pilot
According to Gelbart, he and Reynolds visited the 8055th after the second season of "M*A*S*H," where they recorded 22 hours of audio with the people working in the unit. One individual really stood out and inspired a fictionalized version as the titular character in the episode "Smilin' Jack." As Gelbart explained:
"One of the people interviewed was a chopper pilot named Dan Sullivan. A very colorful guy, we created a character for the series based on his experiences. We added a twist by having our fictional chopper pilot fall victim to diabetes. This was purely a creative invention. Sullivan never had that condition. Sometime after the episode aired, Dan — the real Dan — became afflicted with diabetes. It was a bizarre case of life being imitated by art only to have art then be imitated in life. I only mention all of this now because I was recently written by a friend of Sullivan's (ah, the wondrous Web) telling me of his illness (of which I had been unaware) and saying that a group of friends were gathering this week to honor him — and would I care to write a few words to him, as well. Of course, I was happy to."
In the episode, Smilin' Jack is a helicopter pilot who transports wounded soldiers from the front lines to the MASH units, and he's in competition with some of the other pilots to have the highest number of wounded transported. Sadly, he has diabetes, which brands him a risk, although he refuses to be grounded.
Life imitating art based on life
In the episode, Smilin' Jack defies doctors' orders to try and beat the record and make himself the greatest chopper pilot in South Korea, only to end up having his own record immediately smashed anyway. The character himself is a fast-talking hustler who seems like he would be more at home as some sort of smuggler than a guy transporting wounded. Nevertheless, he's good at his job, aside from the diabetes diagnosis being a potential risk due to complications from changes in blood sugar. (Pilots with diabetes these days have regular access to insulin and medications that make this much less of an issue.)
It's a shame that Dan ended up having the same fate as his fictional counterpart, though he will live on forever through "Smilin' Jack." "M*A*S*H" is a series that takes place in a version of the real-life Korean War that is itself actually a secret representation of the Vietnam War, and is inspired by many real-life experiences. However, in this one strange instance, it didn't recreate the past or comment on the present; it inadvertently predicted the future.