Daily Dialogue — December 4, 2017

Capt. Peterson: What are you two HOODLUMS doing in this hospital?
Hawkeye Pierce: Ma’am, we are surgeons and we are here to operate. We just waiting for a starting time. That’s all.
Capt. Peterson: You can’t even go near a patient until Col. Merrill says its ok and he’s still out to lunch.
Trapper John: Look, mother, I want to go to work in one hour. We are the Pros from Dover and we figure to crack this kid’s chest and get out to golf course before it gets dark. So you go find the gas-passer and you have him pre-medicate this patient. Then bring me the latest pictures on him. The ones we saw must be 48 hours old by now. Then call the kitchen and have them rustle us up some lunch. [turns to Hakweye] Ham and eggs will be all right. [turns back to Capt. Peterson] Steak would be even better. And then give me at least ONE nurse who knows how to work in close without getting her tits in my way.
Capt. Peterson: [outraged] Oh! [turns to leave and bumps into Nurse] Oh! Fool!

She stomps out of the ward.

Nurse: How do you want your steak cooked?

— M*A*S*H (1970), screenplay by Ring Lardner Jr., novel by Richard Hooker

The Daily Dialogue theme for the week: Medical, suggested by Denise Garcia.

Trivia: The fourteen-year-old son of Director Robert Altman, Mike, wrote the lyrics to the theme song “Suicide is Painless”. Because of its inclusion in the subsequent television series, he continued to get residuals throughout its run and syndication. His father was paid seventy-five thousand dollars for directing, but his son eventually made about two million dollars in song royalties.

Dialogue On Dialogue: The thing about Trapper John and Hawkeye Pierce is that while they party hard, they are damn good surgeons and serious about caring for their patients. That duality of their personalities, as exhibited in this scene, reflects the dynamic tension in the movie as a whole: drama mixed with dark comedy.