At the beginning of the hit war comedy-drama “M*A*S*H,” Wayne Rogers played fan-favorite Trapper John opposite Alan Alda’s “Hawkeye” Pierce. While the sitcom ran for a landmark 11 seasons from 1972 to 1983 and Rogers was destined to be a star, he ultimately left after just season 3 to the dismay of producers and fans alike. Its main character was fired during the first episode of the fourth season in an anticlimactic ending to its story: the moment didn’t even take place on screen.
Rogers’ reason for leaving was no different than why George Clooney left his role as Dr. Doug Ross on “ER” which was a desire for a career change. But in Rogers’ case, he had also grown tired of playing second fiddle to Alda’s character, who was starting to receive more screen time due to audience appeal. After leaving “M*A*S*H,” Rogers went on to star in “City of Angels,” which was short-lived and only had one season.
More than half a century later, “M*A*S*H” fans still take to the Internet to express their frustrations with Rogers and his character’s sudden departure. “What makes me a little sad in the universe is that Trapper never contacted Hawkeye after he left. No letter, no phone call, no photo, no postcard, no package of goodies from the United States,” he said. reddit said the user. The reason for the actor’s departure was also less favorable among viewers than The real reason Gary Burghoff left his role as Radar on “M*A*S*H” as it turned out to be more selfish and bitter due to his rumored resentment over Alda stealing the show. “As much as I love Trapper, I feel like Wayne’s ego would have eventually caused problems,” said one reddit The user speculated.
Fans are still frustrated by the departure more than half a century later.
Although the show ended more than 50 years ago, fans still take to online forums to discuss the fate of their favorite “M*A*S*H” characters and the stars who played them. “Mash wasn’t the same after Henry or Trapper left. I feel like they made Trapper and Hawkeye’s goodbye dirty,” he said. reddit said the user. “It’s because he resigned in the offseason. There was no opportunity to do a farewell episode,” reads one comment explaining how Wayne Rogers’ abrupt departure denied viewers a proper on-screen send-off.
Another user disputed the claim that the producers of “M*A*S*H” had made it dirty and instead complained about Why McLean Stevenson left his role as Colonel Henry Blake after the actor grew tired of being part of an ensemble cast and hoped his character’s popularity would lead to bigger and better things. “They didn’t really do anything dirty to Trapper, but they had EVERY reason they did dirty to Stevenson. I could write paragraphs and paragraphs about it, but I’m tired. I really want to know who the guy at NBC was who was in Stevenson’s ear telling him he was going to take over a late-night talk show or have his own union show (he did, but it was terrible),” he said. reddit said the user.
While fans still wrestle with the fate of Rogers’ popular character, some have found peace in the way the show turned out after his departure. “While I enjoyed Trapper, I think he and Hawkeye were too similar characters. Like there wasn’t much that could be done with the womanizing, hands-on doctor character, so I understand why Wayne left. I think BJ (Mike Farrell) and Hawkeye complemented each other but were different enough to fit into their own niches,” he said. reddit supported user.
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