12 Celebrities You Forgot Guest-Starred on ‘M*A*S*H’ Before They Were Famous
From Patrick Swayze to Shelley Long, these stars made early stops on 'M*A*S*H''
For a show that made household names out of Hawkeye, Hot Lips and Radar, M*A*S*H proved itself adept at surprising viewers with a variety of famous (or soon-to-be-famous) faces. And in true M*A*S*H fashion, their roles often gave them more to do than just fill a bed in Post-Op.
Patrick Swayze shows up not as a heartthrob, but as a young soldier with leukemia, Ron Howard drops the wholesome Mayberry image for a sobering turn as an underage Marine and a pre-Cheers George Wendt stumbles in with a drinking injury during one of the show’s rare Halloween episodes.
Then there are the future comedy legends like John Ritter, Andrew Dice Clay, and Teri Garr—each bringing a different energy to their brief but memorable stints. Blythe Danner and Susan St. James gave Hawkeye a little romantic turbulence, while Leslie Nielsen turned in a sharp dramatic performance that might surprise fans who only know him from Airplane! and The Naked Gun films.
Looking back, these guest spots feel like a time capsule—moments frozen before careers exploded, tucked into a show that balanced absurdity with poignancy better than just about any other. And these guest stars added even more dimension to a series that already had plenty.
1. Patrick Swayze (‘Blood Brothers,’ Season 9)
Before he was dancing dirty or ghosting Whoopi Goldberg, Patrick Swayze made an early stop at the 4077th. In the Season 9 episode “Blood Brothers” (1981), he played a young soldier with leukemia, delivering a moving performance that hinted at the star power to come.
2. Ron Howard (‘Sometimes You Hear the Bullet,’ Season 1)
At just 19, Ron Howard traded Mayberry and The Andy Griffith Show for Korea in one of M*A*S*H’s most powerful early episodes. In Season 1’s “Sometimes You Hear the Bullet,” he played an underage Marine whose truth hits harder than any battlefield injury and was a reminder early on that not every story had to end with a punchline. Only a couple of years later, Howard would find himself still in the 1950s as the star of Happy Days.
3. Laurence Fishburne (‘The Tooth Shall Set You Free,’ Season 10)
Laurence Fishburne brought quiet intensity to his guest spot in Season 10’s “The Tooth Shall Set You Free” (1982), playing a wounded GI whose mistreatment exposes racial discrimination in the ranks. It’s a weighty episode, and Fishburne—still early in his career—more than rises to the moment.
4. John Ritter (‘Deal Me Out,’ Season 2)
John Ritter made an impression well before his days at the Regal Beagle on Three’s Company. In Season 2’s “Deal Me Out” (1973), he played a nervous young private dealing with the trauma of accidentally wounding his commanding officer. It’s a small role, but Ritter’s mix of vulnerability and comic timing was already on full display.
5. Shelley Long (‘Bottle Fatigue,’ Season 8)
Just a couple of years before she began serving drinks at Cheers, Shelley Long checked into the 4077th. In “Bottle Fatigue” she played a visiting nurse named Mendenhall, who crosses paths with Hawkeye during his short-lived attempt at sobriety.
6. Teri Garr (‘The Sniper,’ Season 2)
Teri Garr brought a touch of levity to the tense Season 2 episode “The Sniper” (1973), playing a nurse caught in the chaos when enemy fire rains down on the compound.
7. Andrew Dice Clay (‘Trick or Treatment,’ Season 11)
Yes, that really is Andrew Dice Clay in “Trick or Treatment” (1982), the Halloween episode from the show’s final season. Still years away from his leather-jacketed fame, he appears as a wounded Marine with a broken hand—and zero trace of the swagger that would later define his stand-up persona.
8. George Wendt (‘Trick or Treatment,’ Season 11)
Not long before he found his permanent stool at Cheers, George Wendt popped up at the 4077th in “Trick or Treatment” (1982). As a GI with a drinking mishap and a head injury, Wendt made the most of his brief screen time—raising a glass in what turned out to be one of M*A*S*H‘s more future star-studded episodes.
9. Leslie Nielsen (‘The Ringbanger,’ Season 1)
Before he made deadpan comedy an art form, Leslie Nielsen played it straight as a hard-charging colonel in “The Ringbanger” (1973). As a gung-ho officer whose reckless tactics raise red flags, Nielsen brought just the right mix of charm and menace. We’re serious. But don’t call him Shirley.
10. Susan Saint James (‘War Co-Respondent,’ Season 8)
Susan Saint James guest-starred in “War Co-Respondent,” playing war journalist Aggie O’Shea, who finds herself romantically drawn to the married B.J. Hunnicutt (Mike Farrell).
11. Ed Begley Jr (‘Too Many Cooks,’ Season 8)
In “Too Many Cooks” (1979), Ed Begley Jr.plays Private Paul Conway, a real-screw-up in battle, but who, upon being sent to the 4077th to recover from an injury, proves himself to be a gourmet cook. So good is he that the team tries to keep him on permanently, though things don’t work out the way they’d hoped.
12. Blythe Danner (‘The More I See You,’ Season 4)
In “The More I See You” (1976), Blythe Danner, then a new mother to Gwyneth Paltrow, brought heartache to the 4077th as Nurse Carlye Breslin Walton, a woman from Hawkeye’s past who reenters his life—and turns it upside down when he learns that she’s married.
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