David Strege

My all-time favorite TV show, M*A*S*H, is in the news today, despite having been off the air since 1983.

Apparently, the New Orleans victory in the Super Bowl set a record as the most-watched telecast in TV history with an estimated 106.5 million viewers compared to an estimated 106 million viewers that watched the last episode of M*A*S*H.

“If they broke our record, I’m happy for New Orleans and I hope it gives even more to cheer about to a city I love,” Alan “Hawkeye” Alda was quoted as saying.

Some are pointing out, however, that the comparison is not fair, what with approximately 308.6 million people in the U.S. today compared to 233.8 million in 1983. Whatever.

Ah, but one stat the Super Bowl didn’t break was the percentage of households tuning in. M*A*S*H produced the record with 60.2 percent of households watching the last show. Sunday’s Super Bowl had only 46.4 percent.

Wayne Rogers, another star from the sitcom, made a good point on Fox Business Network, saying, “That Super Bowl is never gonna earn what M*A*S*H earned that’s for sure, because there’s no reruns for that Super Bowl.”

An aside: I do believe I have viewed every M*A*S*H rerun – twice (at least).