Harry Morgan, Col. Potter on ‘M*A*S*H,’ Dies
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Harry Morgan on "M*A*S*H." CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images
Harry Morgan has died, and if his name didn’t register at first when you saw the headline, try thinking instead of Col. Potter on “M*A*S*H.” Or Detective Gannon on “Dragnet.” Or the judge in “Inherit the Wind.” Or any of a hundred other roles he inhabited in a long career. He was 96, and he died at home in Los Angeles.
He made his first film appearance in 1942 (“To the Shores of Tripoli”) and was still working in 1999. He appeared in “High Noon,” “You Can’t Take It With You” and “3rd Rock From the Sun.” In his early career he mostly did Westerns, in supporting roles to such stars as Henry Fonda, John Wayne and Gary Cooper.
But in his time, he was perhaps the best-known commanding officer in America, as Col. Sherman T. Potter of the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital unit in the Korean War. He played the role on “M*A*S*H” from 1975 to 1983, trying to keep the likes of Hawkeye Pierce (Alan Alda) and Hot Lips Houlihan (Loretta Swit) in line. He played Col. Potter with a dry wit, a firm but kindly man in charge.
He was not the first choice to command the fictional hospital. The show, based on a book and film, first went on the air in 1972 with McLean Stevenson as Lt. Col. Blake. Morgan appeared as an eccentric general in an episode in 1974, and was nominated for an Emmy for it. The next season he replaced Stevenson, won an Emmy in 1980, and stayed through the finale in 1983 — one of the most-watched entertainment episodes in American television history.
“‘M*A*S*H’ was so damned good,” Morgan later said in an interview with the AP. “I didn’t think they could keep the level so high.”
He leaves behind three sons, eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Turn on your TV tonight, surf the channels, and you’re more likely than not to see him.
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He had a great life! LOVED watching him on M*A*S*H. RIP,
Posted by: Potter Fan | December 7, 2011, 2:12 pm 2:12 pm
Great show! I never missed an episode of M*A*S*H when I was growing up.
Posted by: radar | December 7, 2011, 2:19 pm 2:19 pm
Wayne Rogers left M*A*S*H right before Harry Morgan came on board. His replacement was BJ Hunnicutt played by Mike Farrel. Morgan was a great C.O.
Posted by: Cody | December 7, 2011, 2:28 pm 2:28 pm
He was excellent in everything, but that Bird Colonel in M*A*S*H was just written for him – he was perfect.
Posted by: Sheila | December 7, 2011, 2:37 pm 2:37 pm
So sorry to read of his passing. A great actor who had great parts he acted in during his career. He will always be Col. Potter but will also remember him as the judge in one of my all time favorite films “Inherit The Wind”. Rest In Peace Harry. You will be missed.
Posted by: Janet Chandler | December 7, 2011, 2:43 pm 2:43 pm
Sorry Radar, Wayne Rogers was still on board when Harry Morgan came on board. He and Alan Alda helped catch Sofie, Colonel Potter’s horse in an episode!
Posted by: Charlie | December 7, 2011, 3:04 pm 3:04 pm
Oh yes he will be greatley missed,i have watched all the epsodes of all the mash,and all his other tv and movies he did.Hes now in Gods loving armes,RIP.
Posted by: maureen | December 7, 2011, 3:06 pm 3:06 pm
Sorry to hear this, I loved his character Col. Potter, but he lived a long and fruitful life. Any of us would like to be so lucky.
I agree with Radar, I believe Wayne Rogers was gone when he took over as CO but I am not sure.
Posted by: Jeremy | December 7, 2011, 3:12 pm 3:12 pm
Loved the guy as Potter. He will be missed.
Radar & Jeremy are right, it was BJ and Hawkeye who helped catch Sophie. I have it on DVD.
Posted by: Chuck | December 7, 2011, 3:31 pm 3:31 pm
What a great actor. He WAS Col. Potter. Also enjoyed him in other films & TV movies.
Posted by: 3rdFred | December 7, 2011, 3:32 pm 3:32 pm
This is what happens when you idiots vote in Obama!
Posted by: Ed | December 7, 2011, 3:42 pm 3:42 pm
Just where in the hell did I say anything about Sophie , Wayne Rogers or Mike Farrell?
Posted by: radar | December 7, 2011, 3:54 pm 3:54 pm
Rip Harry. Funny, when I think of him I always think of the flim “The Oxbow Incident”. Harry was always the glue in a film or show that held it together.
Posted by: Hoodoo | December 7, 2011, 4:02 pm 4:02 pm
Well lets try this again…l thank that Harry was about the best one on M A S H in that sort of role. He had to put up with alot from the crowd but seem to have a commanders heart for fun. I dont believe I did not like all the epsoides he played in, he was great in all that he stared in. And Harry keep God laughing until we all get there.
Posted by: John | December 7, 2011, 4:21 pm 4:21 pm
I loved him…I’m sad. Good night Colonel Potter! RIP
Posted by: jane | December 7, 2011, 4:21 pm 4:21 pm
So sad to hear of Mr. Morgan’s passing, he did however, leave a great body of work behind for all of us to enjoy, and, hey, he lived to be 96 years old, we should all be so lucky.
Posted by: Tom S. | December 7, 2011, 4:28 pm 4:28 pm
Sorry Janet Chandler, Season 4, Episode 7 “Dear Mildred” shows Hawkeye, BJ and Radar rescueing a horse (Sophie) for Col Potter.
Posted by: John M | December 7, 2011, 4:38 pm 4:38 pm
Fan mail for the Col., you say he has left the area, carry on trouper, I feel so sad. Bless you Harry, you made all of us laugh, we will miss you.
Posted by: Steve Patterson | December 7, 2011, 5:28 pm 5:28 pm
I can’t believe no one is praising his iconic work (along with Jack Webb) on Dragnet. That was classic. I guess I’m just older than everyone here :)
Posted by: Stan | December 7, 2011, 5:41 pm 5:41 pm
Rest in peace, Harry. We’ll all miss you, and you were so perfect for M.A.S.H.
Posted by: Patrick | December 7, 2011, 6:01 pm 6:01 pm
WIFE BEATER – -
LOS ANGELES Harry Morgan, the seemingly mild-mannered “Dragnet” and “M*A*S*H” TV star, was charged yesterday with attacking his 70-year-old wife, Los Angeles authorities said.
The 81-year-old actor brawled with his wife, Barbara, in their Brentwood, Calif., home July 2, leaving her with an injured foot, a cut near her right eye and a bruised arm, officials said.
Morgan, who played a Los Angeles cop in “Dragnet,” was released on $5,000 bail after being booked at the West Los Angeles stationhouse that night.
The Emmy-winning actor is to be arraigned July 23 on spousal battery charges. If found guilty, he faces a year in jail and a $6,000 fine. Police sources said Barbara Morgan is not cooperating and is living with her husband of nearly 10 years.
Posted by: Baal | December 7, 2011, 6:40 pm 6:40 pm
I remember him as the sheriff in The Shootist with John Wayne & Lauren Bacall. What a great actor. RIP
Posted by: Jeff | December 7, 2011, 6:41 pm 6:41 pm
Lost all respect for this as shole when he beat his wife I hope they r berating and torturing his as s in hell Harry u never ever should hit a woman that incident shows ur a piece of sh it
Posted by: Lee | December 7, 2011, 6:44 pm 6:44 pm
Looking forward to my own time when I will leave this earth. When that time comes, it will be fun. There will no regrets about things I should have, could, yet didn’t do. Life owes no guarantees to anyone.
Posted by: NoFlyZone2 | December 7, 2011, 6:45 pm 6:45 pm
RIP Mr. Morgan. I grew up watching watching MASH, mind you, I am 20. I will let your legacy live on by showing my children your great works.
Posted by: Kat | December 7, 2011, 6:50 pm 6:50 pm
What a wonderful actor he was! I enjoyed watching him while I was growing up, as he made the whatever part he played believable.
My condolences to his family.
Posted by: Lydia | December 7, 2011, 7:40 pm 7:40 pm
I grew up on MASH. I remember the shows when I was child. I love Harry as Col. Potter. He definitely was great! :) Sorry, Janet, but Rogers left the show *before* Morgan came aboard as Col. Potter.
Posted by: GWP | December 7, 2011, 7:54 pm 7:54 pm
So sad to hear that…that show kept me bussy all through my Middle School & High School years at 10:30 after the night news. It kept me home & out of trouble…luv his work
Posted by: Elsa | December 7, 2011, 8:13 pm 8:13 pm
Baal ~~~~~~ The man just died. Let him rest in peace. It’s very tacky to bring up things like that in a eulogy story. Besides, nothing in what you posted indicates he was ever convicted of the charges.
Posted by: Minorkey1 | December 7, 2011, 8:34 pm 8:34 pm
Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry to hear of his passing. I’m old enough to remember him in “Dragnet,” and I loved him as Col. Potter in M*A*S*H.
He certainly had a long and productive career. He’ll live on forever in the archives of television. RIP, Mr. Morgan, and thank you for many pleasant hours of entertainment!
Posted by: Cat Whisperer | December 7, 2011, 9:04 pm 9:04 pm
Kind of ironic that he died on the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor invasion. He would have been about 20 when it happened, and am sure he remembered it and honored this date for a reason. I loved him in M*A*S*H !
RIP Harry Morgan.
Posted by: Beth | December 7, 2011, 9:59 pm 9:59 pm
was a Democrat. Beat his wife: In July 1997, Morgan was charged with abusing his wife a year earlier, after a beating left her with injuries to her eye, foot, and arm…
Figures..
Posted by: Rudi Taft | December 8, 2011, 12:24 am 12:24 am
Comment to the people who bring up Harry Morgan’s domestic violence case: he was 82 at the time. I don’t know if he had any problems with dementia or Alzheimer’s or issues with depression, all of which are possibilities in a man his age. He was married for 45 years to his first wife, who passed away in 1985; he remained married to his second wife at the time of his death. To me this certainly argues that whatever the situation was at the time of the event, it was resolved in a way that kept him and his wife together. It is worth noting that the charges were dropped when he completed a counseling program, and there were no other occasions involving violence in the relationship.
Having cared for an elderly parent, and observed the elderly parents of my friends and relatives, I have to say that it isn’t that unusual for changes in personality to take place in someone as old as Harry Morgan was. Excluding outright dementia and Alzheimer’s, there are a lot of elderly people who develop depression and experience anger and frustration at the onset of aging-related problems: memory issues, physical disabilities, sometimes pain from physical problems like arthritis. This can really be a problem, especially where the person who is experiencing the problems wants to deny that they exist or are affecting him/her.
I think that it’s very unfair to brand Harry Morgan as a “wife-beater” on the basis of a single incident that happened when he was 82 years old, especially without knowing any details of the situation. And especially when he and his wife remained married 15 years later.
Posted by: Cat Whisperer | December 8, 2011, 1:15 am 1:15 am
An excellent actor and an officer I would have been proud to follow.
Posted by: tacticalguy | December 8, 2011, 1:21 am 1:21 am
I recall Harry being arrested for beating his wife. He may have been talented on camera, but obviously had some real problems off camera. I have no respect for a man who’s attained so much money and fame, yet goes home and beats his wife.
Posted by: Mac | December 8, 2011, 9:27 am 9:27 am
Well done Colonel Potter.
Posted by: Rober Lindsey | December 8, 2011, 2:39 pm 2:39 pm
Well done Colonel Potter. May you rest in peace.
Posted by: Bob | December 8, 2011, 2:41 pm 2:41 pm
I loved Harry Morgan in virtually every movie or tv show I ever saw him in. He appeared in December Bride as Pete neighbor to Matt (Dean Miller). And, he was hysterical. Dean and Harry remained friends for many years after the series. Dean owned the radio station I once worked for. I answered the phone one day and it was Harry Morgan looking for Dean. We chatted briefly and he seemed to me to be one of the nicest guys you would ever want to meet. I have since met and talked at length with a number of celebrities, but few impressed me as much as that brief contact with Harry Morgan. I only wish I would have had the opportunity to meet him. He will be sorely missed, but his work will remain to delight us forever.
Posted by: Thomas E. Caldwell | December 9, 2011, 12:58 pm 12:58 pm
You have received your discharge papers Col. Potter. Enjoy your deserved rest and peace.
Posted by: Mark H Pelech | December 15, 2011, 11:28 am 11:28 am