The Late McLean Stevenson Admitted That He Screwed Up 'Hello Larry'

[Duster76]

In 1981, while the show was still on the air, Stevenson was interviewed for a book on M*A*S*H. In the interview, he said that if they came up with a plotline where they found Henry Blake's body, barely alive with a pound of seaweed up his nose, that he would be taken back to the 4077th and resume his duties.

Make of it what you will, but I interpreted that as him having regrets over his decision. Did he come out and say he regretted it? No. I read between the lines.

Of course he had regrets, who wouldn't, he walked away from a hit TV series that by 1981 had reached iconic status. Who among us doesn't regret a few decisions in our life that didn't work out the way we had hoped. That's not the issue, at the time he made the decision was it reasonable based on what was on the table at that time and what his goals were. My point was and is, it was reasonable, no guts, no glory.

I love this quote from Mclean Stevenson "I made the mistake of believing that people were enamored of McLean Stevenson when the person they were enamored of was Henry Blake", actors struggle with this their whole career.

[EccentricGenius]

It's painfully obvious that McLean regretted leaving "M*A*S*H" until the day he died...ditto for his fellow "M*A*S*H" alums Wayne Rogers and Larry Linville.

[Dr. Thong]

Originally Posted by EccentricGenius

It's painfully obvious that McLean regretted leaving "M*A*S*H" until the day he died...ditto for his fellow "M*A*S*H" alums Wayne Rogers and Larry Linville.

I never heard anything about Larry Linville regretting it. He always said that there was nothing more he could do with the character, nowhere for the character to go in terms of developing.

Wayne Rogers finally admitted his regrets a few years before he passed, saying that if he'd known the show would be doing episodes spotlighting the supporting characters, he would have stayed.

[TMC]

http://www.agcwebpages.com/BLINDITEMS/2018/JUNE.html

491. ENTERTAINMENT LAWYER 06/30 **#7**
Reader Blind Item: A tale of two comedic actors, one deceased and one living, who never worked together and as far as I can tell did not know other but had four things in common….

• 1. Both were the first of an ensemble cast on long running shows (one show still running) to become stars and it is widely agreed that as a result both left their respective shows too quickly as neither was able to duplicate their initial success either in TV (deceased actor) or movies and later tv (living actor).
  2. Both are tall, over six feet
  3. Both come from wealthy old money families with family trees that include both business and political leaders.
  4. Both have been mentioned recently in relation to various #metoo transgressions

The accusations against the deceased actor are shocking as his persona was of an amiable bumbler, often an incompetent authority figure. However, during his run on the high rated show that made him famous in the day he was notoriously handsy and also was accused of unwanted kissing and even full on sexual assault by two female crew members. The living actor has a reputation as kind of a jerk and in his first two marriages as well as other relationships he is rumored to have been physically abusive (primarily with his fists). As he has been happily married for several decades, he has blamed this on his drug abuse at the time and credits rehab for changing him.
Dead actor: McLean Stevenson (6’ 3") ("M*A*S*H")
Living actor: Chevy Chase ("Saturday Night Live") (6' 4") (abused as a child)

[Schmo]

Did Stevenson lack the talent and charisma to be a comedic leading man?

[Samme]

Yes, definitely. But I don't feel sorry that he had regrets. I also read an interview where he said he had to try to see if he could be the lead and carry a show, no matter what happened. McLean didn't have much in the way of comedy chops as an actor. He was funnier as himself on talk shows and game shows, but even there he would sometimes not know when to pull back and not be too silly. I've read that at one point he was sure he was gonna be chosen to take over The Tonight Show whenever Carson retired. He was funny as a person, but not quite up to that level. It may sound silly, but I think him wearing that hat and smoking cigars on MASH helped give him some personality on the show. He just didn't have enough personality or talent to carry a series. As an actor, he was lucky to get MASH.

[Schmo]

Originally Posted by Brian Damage

http://news.google.com/newspapers?id...e+sitcom&hl=en

In an interview dated April 14th, 1979 Mclean Stevenson said he felt responsible for the failure (Thus far) of his show 'Hello Larry.' He said he created the character Larry as a buffoon and then decided to "smarten him up" midway through the season. He also felt responible for its failure because he decreed himself the New Bonnie Franklin of TV despite his show being a lackluster ratings sitcom.

Unfortunately, a lot of people don’t remember Bonnie Franklin.

[EccentricGenius]

Originally Posted by Dr. Thong

I never heard anything about Larry Linville regretting it. He always said that there was nothing more he could do with the character, nowhere for the character to go in terms of developing.

Wayne Rogers finally admitted his regrets a few years before he passed, saying that if he'd known the show would be doing episodes spotlighting the supporting characters, he would have stayed.

Interesting point, Dr. Thong. Thanks for commenting.