Today, learn whether Gary Burghoff really hid his left hand throughout the filming of the TV series, M*A*S*H.
TV URBAN LEGEND: Radar O’Reilly’s left hand was never shown on M*A*S*H
Gary Burghoff, otherwise known as Radar O’Reilly, was one of the few actors to star in both the film M*A*S*H. and the TV series M*A*S*H.
Radar was the innocent supply clerk for the M.A.S.H. unit (his naivatee was contrasted with the surgeons, who would do all sorts of crazy stuff, like have a casino in their tent), and Burghoff is one of the actors most associated with M*A*S*H (perhaps only Jamie Farr and Alan Alda are more associated with the series than Burghoff).
Look again at the picture above. Notice anything? In the photo, Burghoff is hiding his left hand. This is because Burghoff had the disorder, Poland Syndrome, when he was born, leaving him with three fingers on his left hand that were much smaller than the fingers on his right hand. Reader Eric P. wrote in to ask if it was true that Burghoff’s left hand was never seen on the series.
The answer is no. While Burghoff hid the hand quite often (often through the use of holding clipboards), there are more than a few instances where it is visible, including interestingly enough, in his first scene in the first episode of the series!
Check it out…
Here is a detail…
So no, Eric, while they did hide it, they did not hide it entirely.
The legend is…
STATUS: False
Thanks to Eric for the question!
Everyone else, feel free (heck, I implore you!) to write in with your suggestions for future installments! My e-mail address is brian@poprefs.com
This is close to how I would explain it to someone starting out. The same input can behave differently over time, which is easy to forget. The trade-off is at least visible now.
I always heard this rumor growing up and assumed it was completely true! It’s wild that you can actually spot his left hand right there in the very first episode, though he was definitely a master at using clipboards and props to keep it out of focus.
I always heard that rumor growing up, but once you start watching closely, you definitely catch glimpses of it! It’s impressive how cleverly he used clipboards and props to keep it out of focus most of the time.
I always noticed how he carried that clipboard everywhere, but I never realized it was actually visible in the pilot episode! It’s amazing how these classic TV urban legends take on a life of their own over the years.
I always wondered about this rumor! It’s impressive how clever they were with using clipboards and props to conceal it, but neat that you can still catch a glimpse of his hand right from the very first episode if you look closely.
I grew up watching M*A*S*H reruns and always heard this rumor, so it’s neat to see it debunked. It’s really impressive how cleverly he masked it most of the time with just a clipboard or a well-placed prop!