The hit 1972 sitcom “M*A*S*H” introduced the world to a number of memorable and beloved characters, from the smart-mouthed yet compassionate Captain Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce to his endearing friend, Captain B.J. Hunnicutt. Almost every character had stuck in the minds of the fans.
One of the characters that often featured but was easily overlooked by his military counterparts due to his nervous nature was the 4077 MASH unit’s company clerk, Corporal Walter Eugene “Radar” O’Reilly. Although many of the staff on the base tended to take Radar’s effort for granted, the fans sure noticed him.
Radar was portrayed by the acclaimed actor Gary Burghoff from the start of the TV show in 1972 until the seventh season, which aired in 1979. Although fans clamored for more of the unassuming clerk, Burghoff revealed that he needed to step away from the show to rekindle his personal relationships and fight burnout.
“M*A*S*H’s” Influence and Burghoff’s Personal Identity
Although Burghoff enjoyed playing Radar, the role became increasingly demanding. The actor commented that it became difficult to separate himself from his character in the eyes of the public, which soon became tedious. He also noted that he despised being fawned over by the crowds:
“Aw, I know I’m cute. Cute, cute, CUTE! I was always cute because I was always the smallest kid on the block. I hate cute.”
Everyone saw Burghoff as an adorable, short, timid character as they’d known him on-screen and on the stage for many years. However, after years of being looked down upon, both metaphorically and physically speaking, Burghoff grew tired of the persona so easily attributed to him by scores of people he had never even met.
The actor lashed out against this view of him as a cute little fellow by defending his height. As he so rightly pointed out, 5 feet 6 inches isn’t irregularly short, and he would have seen the tops of Arte Johnson or Mickey Rooney’s heads had they ever met. Nonetheless, the persona stuck.
Luckily for all his fans, Burghoff didn’t let his disability stand in his way, and he pursued his dream of becoming an actor.
Despite his misgivings about how others perceived him, Burghoff’s fellow cast members adored him. The director Charles Dubin recalled working with Burghoff before he left “M*A*S*H,” noting how caring and pleasant Burghoff was to everyone on set. However, Burghoff had another aspect of himself that drove down his self-esteem.
Burghoff had been born with a congenital disability called Brachydactyly, a form of Poland Syndrome. The condition left the actor with three fingers on his left hand that were noticeably smaller than the rest of his digits, and the abnormality had plagued him since he was a small child. The actor commented:
“Of course, this defect affected me while I was growing up. I suppose when I was very young, I knew my disability would set me apart and make me special.”
Luckily for all his fans, Burghoff didn’t let his disability stand in his way, and he pursued his dream of becoming an actor. Yet, becoming a fan-favorite on one of the most iconic TV shows America had ever produced never managed to quell his insecurities about his stout fingers and stocky frame.
Throughout his run on “M*A*S*H,” Burghoff tried to hide his left hand from the camera. He would often position himself so that the camera could only see one side of his body and usually gestured with his right if the scene required it, although the actor would be obligated to use both hands now and again.
In one of the earliest episodes, viewers were introduced to Radar as he stood in an open area, wearing a greyish shirt and his trademark cap. As the actor turned around and looked at the sky — once again hearing approaching helicopters before everyone else — the camera briefly panned over both his hands holding a football.
When Colonel Sherman T. Potter first made his appearance on the show, taking over from the beloved Lieutenant Colonel Henry Blake, Radar and the new commander shared a scene where they first met. As Colonel Potter exited the room to find the latrines, the camera centered on Burghoff’s upper body as he opened a box with both hands.
Another infamous scene caught Burghoff with both hands on camera. During a regular morning salute, with the loathsome Major Frank Burns leading the ceremony, Radar does his usual morning salute with a bugle. In a hilarious twist, one of the men fires off the ceremonial canon at Burns’s behest.
Naturally, Radar gets the short end of the stick as the cannonball flies directly at him, knocking his instrument clean out of his hands. In the next few seconds, Burghoff turns toward the camera in a pantomime of rage, balling his fists and stomping in outrage. Here, both his hands can be seen for a brief second.
In one of the later episodes, the writers showed off Radar’s softer side when he cuddled his pet guinea pig, Babette. Naturally, Radar stood with his left hand beneath his right, but just as he started to sing, Father John Mulcahy called for him. Burghoff’s hands were visible again as he put the Babette away.
One of the scenes where Burghoff openly showed his left hand came as part of another gag the show pulled. At the start of the scene, Radar could be seen walking across a dirt road while two other military personnel walked away from the camera. The man on Radar’s right first lifted his hand in salute, followed shortly by one on the left.
Radar, the pleasant character he was, lifted his right hand in response to the first salute, as military etiquette dictates. Caught off guard by the quick second salute, Radar lifted his left hand as well, essentially performing a double salute. Feeling sheepish, he frowned and lowered his hands slowly in one of Burghoff’s classic displays of confusion.
Аngеlinа Jоliе’s lеаkеd еmаil tо Вrаd Рitt’s shоws thе rеаlity оf thеir mаrriаgе аnd divоrсе
When Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston split, the world went silent. But as much as fans were devastated over the failed romance, they were as eager and as excited to see how the on-screen relationship between the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star and actress Angelina Jolie will proceed in real life.
Eventually, Brad and Angelina became a thing.
Sadly, the couple called it quits years later, when Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, shortly after the news of an alleged incident involving Pitt and the couple’s oldest son Maddox on the family’s private plane emerged.
Although no one knows what really happened, the alleged child abuse was investigated by the FBI and the Los Angeles Department of Child and Family Services, and Pitt was cleared of any child abuse allegations almost immediately, as per US Weekly.
The divorce and the lengthy custody battle between Pitt and Jolie is remembered as one of the nastiest ones in recent times when it comes to celebrity couples.
On January 21, 2021, Jolie emailed her ex-husband, and that email became public. In it, she states that she writes “with a heavy heart,” informing Pitt of her decision to sell Miraval, “a business that is centered around alcohol.” Many believe this is a reference to the above mentioned plane incident during which Pitt allegedly chocked Maddox and then poured alcohol on her and the children.
The Maleficent star further wrote, “Even now impossible to write this without crying.
“Above all, it is the place we brought the twins home to, and where we were married over a plaque in my mother’s memory. A place…where I thought I would grow old…. But it is also the place that marks the beginning of the end of our family.
“Miraval for me died September 2016,” she continued, “and everything I have seen in the years since has sadly confirmed that.”
In February 2021, Pitt agreed to pay Jolie $54.5 million to buy her stake in Miraval. However, the business deal was affected by their ongoing divorce proceedings.
She submitted sealed documents which involved information regarding the plane incident, after which Pitt asked Jolie to sign an NDA which prohibited her from “discussing outside of court any of Pitt’s personal conduct toward her or the family” for the sale of the property.
Jolie dubbed the request an “unconscionable gag order.”
But Pitt framed his request as vital toward the sale as he wanted to “ensure the seller doesn’t damage the value of the asset after being paid for it.”
On October 5, 2021, Jolie Nouvel, the holding company which controlled her portion of shаrеs for Miraval to Tenute del Mondo, the wine division of the Stoli group controlled by Russian billionaire Yuri Shefler, for $67 million.
“It is not a coincidence that she sold her interest in Miraval to an adversarial party, and part of the family home to a stranger, right after a judge granted Brad a huge win: 50-50 custody,” a source close to Pitt shаrеd with ET Online. John Ouderkirk, the judge who had awarded Pitt joint custody was later removed from the case by a panel of three judges, and his ruling was vacated.
In February 2022, Pitt filed a lawsuit against his ex, her holding company, and the new owners of Miraval claiming that Jolie had “contributed nothing to Miraval’s success.” Stoli filed a cross-complaint “for the illegal and malicious actions of Pitt and his allies to injure Nouvel by devaluing its investments and depriving it of its proper role in the management of Chateau Miraval, the world-famous producer of rosé wine.”
Pitt filed an amended complaint seeking to have Jolie’s sale of Nouvel reversed on June 1, 2023.
“Brad has owned everything he’s responsible for from day one, but he’s not going to own anything he didn’t do,” Anne Kiley, who represents Pitt said.
Following the fuss surrounding their divorce, Pitt has moved on and is now dating someone else.
“Brad is very careful and intentional about who he dates. He likеs to ease into things and let things grow naturally,” a source said.
Rumors are that Pitt’s new girlfriend is Ines de Ramon, who was famously married to Paul Wesley of Vampire Diaries fame. People close to the couple say they are “happy being low-key.”
“Brad and Ines are still seeing each other and having fun. They enjoy each other’s company and have similar interests. They’re both creative, likе to travel, and are happy being low-key. Things are good between them, but Brad isn’t rushing anything,” the source clarified.
As per Entertainment Tonight, the couple was spotted together in December 2022. “It is still new, but they are seeing where things go and likе each other,” a source revealed at the time. “They are having a good time together.”
They were vacationing in Mexico together.
Whether or not he introduced her to his children has not yet been revealed, but people close to him say she’s in the room when he speaks to his kids.
Ines was spotted wearing a charm necklace with the letter B hanging on and it’s not confirmed whether if it’s in honor of her new love.
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