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| "The Incubator" | |
|---|---|
| M*A*S*H episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 12 |
| Directed by | Jackie Cooper |
| Written by | Larry Gelbart & Laurence Marks |
| Production code | K412 |
| Original air date | December 1, 1973 |
| Guest appearances | |
| Robert F. Simon Logan Ramsey | |
"The Incubator" was the 36th episode of the M*A*S*H television series, and the twelfth episode of season two. The episode aired on December 1, 1973.
Henry Blake has taken delivery of a new barbecue, and with Radar's help, is assembling it in preparation for barbecuing steaks.
Meanwhile, Hawkeye and Trapper express concern that a cell culture will have to be sent to a laboratory in Tokyo, which will mean a 72-hour wait for the results. They look into requisitioning an incubator for the 4077th. Supply Officer Captain Sloan (Eldon Quick) tells them they cannot have one, according to the Basic Equipment List for a M*A*S*H unit, but they can have a pizza oven or other non-essential equipment.
Another supply officer, Major Morris (Ted Gehring), has hoarded three incubators but refuses to release any of them, and his superior Colonel Lambert (Logan Ramsey) is selling military equipment for personal profit. Hawkeye and Trapper eventually take their frustrations to General Mitchell (Robert F. Simon) at a press conference, leading to chaos as the journalists begin questioning both the doctors and Mitchell.
Back at the camp, Hawkeye and Trapper have to explain their actions to Blake. As they leave his office, Radar reveals his latest acquisition—an incubator, for which he has traded away Henry's barbecue.
Eldon Quick would make two further guest appearances in M*A*S*H, in the episode "Payday" (Season 3, March 1975) returning as Captain Sloan, and in the episode "The Late Captain Pierce" (Season 4, October 1975) as Captain Pratt, a character with a very similar affinity for army bureaucracy to Sloan.
Series regular Loretta Swit (Hot Lips Houlihan) does not appear in this episode.
This episode features a rare mention in prime time TV of the word "abortionist", as Henry advises Hawkeye and Trapper to not "show up looking like a couple of freelance abortionists" when they request an incubator. Abortion was not legal in most areas of the United States until earlier in the year this episode was released, following the US Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision of January 22, 1973. At the time of the Korean War, "freelance abortionists" would have implied people practicing medicine without a license and committing felonies.
The pilot episode of M*A*S*H, the first episode of the first season was broadcast on September 17, 1972, although the initial script was first written in November 1971. The episode was written by Larry Gelbart and directed by Gene Reynolds, who received the Directors Guild of America Award for it. It was also nominated for two Emmys for its direction and writing.
"Bananas, Crackers and Nuts" is an episode from M*A*S*H. It was the seventh episode broadcast and aired on November 5, 1972 and repeated April 22, 1973. It was written by Burt Styler and directed by Bruce Bilson.
"The Late Captain Pierce" is an episode from M*A*S*H. It was the fourth episode of the fourth season and aired on October 3, 1975 (first-run) and April 6, 1976 (repeat). It was written by Glen Charles and Les Charles and directed by Alan Alda.
"The Ringbanger" was the 16th episode of the first season of the TV series M*A*S*H. It originally aired on January 21, 1973.
"The Longjohn Flap" is the 19th episode of the first season of the TV series M*A*S*H. It originally aired on February 18, 1973, and was the first episode of M*A*S*H to be written by series star Alan Alda.
MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors is a 1968 novel written by Richard Hooker with the assistance of writer W.C. Heinz. It is notable as the foundation of the M*A*S*H franchise, which includes a 1970 feature film and a long-running TV series (1972–1983). The novel is about a fictional U.S. Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War.
"Abyssinia, Henry" is the 72nd episode of the M*A*S*H television series and the final episode of the series' third season. It was written by Everett Greenbaum and Jim Fritzell, and it first aired on March 18, 1975. The episode is notable for its shocking ending, in which the unit's amiable commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake receives an honorable discharge and leaves for home but, in the final scene, is reported killed by enemy fire. This ending prompted more than 1,000 letters to series producers Gene Reynolds and Larry Gelbart, and drew fire from both CBS and 20th Century Fox.
"To Market, to Market" is the second episode of M*A*S*H. It was first aired on September 24, 1972 and repeated on April 29, 1973. Like many other M*A*S*H episodes, this one parodies army bureaucracy.
"Adam's Ribs" is the eleventh episode of the third season of M*A*S*H, and fifty-ninth overall. The episode premiered November 26, 1974, on CBS.
"Divided We Stand" was the 25th episode of the M*A*S*H television series, and the premiere entry for season 2.
"Radar's Report" was the 27th episode of M*A*S*H, and third of season two. The episode aired on September 29, 1973.
"The Trial of Henry Blake" is episode 8 from season 2 of the TV series M*A*S*H.
"Carry On, Hawkeye" was the 35th episode of the M*A*S*H television series, and eleventh of season two. The episode aired on November 24, 1973.
"Deal Me Out" was the 37th episode of the M*A*S*H television series and the thirteenth of season two. The episode aired on December 8, 1973.
"Crisis" was the 45th episode of M*A*S*H, and the 21st episode of the second season. It was first transmitted on February 9, 1974.
"A Smattering of Intelligence" was the final episode in season two of the American television series M*A*S*H. It first aired on March 2, 1974. The character of Lieutenant Colonel Sam Flagg was first introduced by name in this episode. Winter portrayed a similar character called Captain Halloran eleven episodes earlier in "Deal Me Out", and the two are implied in "Quo Vadis, Captain Chandler?" to have been one and the same. Flagg has any number of aliases.
"The Consultant" is the 17th episode in the third season of the television series M*A*S*H. It originally aired on January 17, 1975. It was written by Robert Klane, from a story by Larry Gelbart, and was directed by Gene Reynolds.
"House Arrest" is the 18th episode in the third season of M*A*S*H. It originally broadcast on February 4, 1975.
"Requiem for a Lightweight" is the third episode of the television series M*A*S*H. It was first aired on October 1, 1972 and was repeated on December 31, 1972, the first episode of M*A*S*H to do so. In Watching M*A*S*H, Watching America, a sociological examination of M*A*S*H as an illustration of shifting American values in the 1970s and early 1980s, James H. Wittebols cites this episode as an example of the sexual humor which was common in early M*A*S*H episodes, but downplayed later in the program's history.
