The famous and iconic MASH running nurses: You’ve seen them hundreds of times—a group of nurses running to the helicopter pad during the opening credits of MASH. One of the most popular questions about MASH is who these running women are in this iconic shot. With the revolving door nature of the nurse characters on MASH, it was not always clear who these actresses were! Did they appear again in the show?
Well, for decades, some of their names were a mystery, but intrepid internet sleuths finally figured it out! The identity of the woman running in the opening credits of MASH is no longer a mystery. It’s also erroneously reported that none of them ever appeared again in MASH.
At a Glance: The MASH Running Nurses
- The Leader: Kathy Denny Fradella (second from left) led the pack because she was the fastest runner in a production “race” of 20 women.
- The Identities: From left to right, the Mash Running Nurses are Gwen Farrell, Kathy Denny Fradella, Sheila Lauritsen, Marcia Gelman, and Lori Noel.
- The Mystery: For decades, fans thought the lead was actress Michelle Lee, but Kathy Fradella confirmed her own identity in 1978.
- The Legend: Though often called “extras,” several of these women appeared in dozens of episodes as the backbone of the 4077th.
I want to start this post off with a huge hat tip to MASH4077TV.com for getting the ball rolling and for some top-notch sleuthing. My purpose here is to just add in some details and flesh out anything that seems worth it. I’m not trying to outdo anyone who’s already done great work! Using the image above, I’ll discuss the women in the shot from left to right, but first, some background.
Even people who are not giant MASH fans don’t need me to describe this, but I’ll do so for the sake of completeness. The opening credits of MASH changed slightly over the years.
The Classic MASH Opening Credits
During the first seven seasons, we see the back of Radar’s head as he looks up at arriving helicopters, framed against the rugged mountains. That changed after Gary Burghoff departed. We see an aerial view of the MASH 4077, centered on the hospital, obviously filmed from a helicopter. We see the helicopters landing, and Hawkeye and whoever is the second lead, Trapper or B.J., run toward the wounded on the choppers, look serious, nod, etc. Then we see an aerial view of the patients being taken down to the compound by jeep as the names of the cast appear on the screen. There were other minor changes to some of the sequences, especially of the teams running up to the helicopters.
The MASH Running Nurses: Portraits of Grim Determination (To Win a Race)
But perhaps the most recognizable element of the opening credits, that never changed, is this group of nurses running as if their lives depended on it toward the chopper pad. They are a picture of grim determination and devotion. It’s the only shot of the entire show that truly captures the nurses of the Korean War as they should be captured. Perhaps that’s why it’s so iconic. Even after that first image of Radar was removed, those nurses always remained, whether or not the individuals remained on the show.
However, there is an extended opening sequence in the pilot episode where a group of nurses respond to an announcement about incoming casualties, run out of their tent, and then sprint to the chopper pad. The original group of running nurses had to be changed because Lt. Dish was present in the shot. She also could be seen over Hawkeye’s shoulder at the helicopter pad, and this too was removed since the character was pulled after the first season.
Original Running Nurses – MASH Pilot
Let’s talk more about how the running nurses changed. You may have never seen the original footage, as it was cut from most syndicated airings. An extended segment of these original running nurses only occurred during the pilot. Right now, I no longer have MASH available through streaming, so I am relying on my DVD collection. This scene is present on the DVD version of the pilot I own.
Originally, a group of at least 9 nurses was shown running out of a tent after an announcement of incoming casualties came over the loudspeakers. I say at least 9, but I believe there may be up to ten nurses coming out of the tent. The group is led by Lt. Dish (Maria “Dish” Schneider, sometimes Maggie), played by Karen Phillips. Dish may have been intended as a regular character, but was removed after only two episodes. Lt. Leslie Scorch, played by Linda Meiklejohn, can be seen just behind her, moving from Dish’s left to her right as they run.
Leslie Scorch had a longer run than Lt. Dish, even though Dish was more prominent in the extended opening credits of the pilot. Leslie (Meikejohn) appeared on eight episodes of Seasons 1 and 2 and will mainly be remembered as Col. Henry Blake’s main love interest. She’s the one he gave the fishing reel to!
As the opening credits in the pilot continue, a group of nurses is seen running up the steps on the hill leading to the upper chopper pad. I’m almost certain Lt. Dish is still present in this group, but she is not in the lead. Later, as a chopper lands on the pad, a group led by Hawkeye runs up to the chopper, and Lt. Dish can be seen over Hawkeye’s shoulder. She was later removed, and Hawkeye was shown from a different angle. The nurses are not shown sprinting in the way they are in later regular opening credits.
Not to take anything away from the running nurses in the pilot, but these are not the same as the famous MASH running nurses from the credits. As far as I can tell, the shot of the nurses running up the hill, and the “running nurses” shot, were all done around the same time, early on, before the original broadcast. Most of the nurses depicted were union extras brought in for just this occasion.
Regular Opening Credits – The MASH Running Nurses
In the second episode, To Market, To Market, we see the classic running nurses shot. It’s a brief, but more impactful shot. We don’t see the nurses running up the hill, only approaching it. Only a group of men is shown running up the steps. But before this, the group of five nurses is seen running toward the camera, in an all-out sprint. This is not the same group of nurses shown running up out of the tent or up the hill in the extended pilot credits. Or, at least it is not all the same women.
The next time you watch MASH, pay attention to the faces of these women. Notice that the nurse up front, leading the group, is running with an easy style and her mouth is open. The nurses behind her are gritting their teeth and look as if they are having a hard time in a competitive race. It appears that this is just what happened. They were racing against quite a fast runner, and she just so happens to be gorgeous, so for years, people wondered who she was. She was perhaps the most difficult to identify.
The Sticky Wicket Scene Featuring the Classic Group of Nurses
In the linked article, The Episode Sticky Wicket is mentioned as the only time you see the iconic running nurses running out of a tent. This is one of several episodes at the end of Season 2 where a new, and quite awful, arrangement for the MASH opening theme is tried (not the only time different arrangements were tried). However, the opening credits still show as usual.
Then, at the beginning of the episode, Hawkeye, Trapper John, Radar, and Ugly John are playing poker. Ugly John has fallen asleep, as was not unusual for the extra characters in the first season when the writers didn’t want to give them anything to do. Radar hears choppers coming and we see the choppers high up in the distance.
Then a group of nurses runs out of a tent, similar to the scene in the pilot, except at a different angle. This group appears to be the classic running nurses from the opening credits, although a few of them are missing from the running shot. More of them have hats in the beginning, and we see them removing their hats while running out of the tent (it was blazing hot). The shot is very quick! But, now, we see the origin of the iconic nurses in the credits, and it’s clear that this is a different group than the one led by Lt. Dish in the pilot episode. But who are the running nurses?
I’ll list the running nurses from left to right, based on the image above, and provide whatever information I have been able to find, including the other episodes they appeared in, if any.
Gwen Farrell aka Gwen Adair
Gwen Farrell, who also worked under the name Gwen Adair, is the black nurse seen running on the far left. She appeared in many episodes of MASH. She was a fixture, in fact! Larry Gelbart said that he didn’t think she ever “spoke a scrap of dialogue” (see links in the above-linked MASH4077TV article). He was incorrect, however. She did speak a scrap of dialogue, in Season 3, Episode 6, titled Springtime. Radar refers to her as Lt. Baker. He is just making an excuse to be near a group of nurses because his nurse crush is there.
Radar asks her, “Have you ever had cholera, diphtheria, bubonic plague, jungle rot, or not?” Gwen, as Baker, answers, “Not.”
However, Gwen Farrell was, in all other regards, a nurse extra, and she was never assigned an official character on the show. I’m quite sure she appeared in over 30 episodes. She was only officially credited in eleven, that I know of.
Her first appearance was as a running nurse in the opening credits of the second episode of the series, To Market to Market. Her next five appearances in season one go uncredited. When she is given a credit and a name, the name only serves to mark her credit, not as a sign that she was given an official character. She always played a nurse. In one Season 5 episode, she is serving as an anesthetist in the O.R. and is credited as such. Nurses often served as “gas passers” in MASH units during the Korean War.
Below is a partial list of her appearances. I believe she also appeared in several other episodes, but I haven’t found her yet. If I spot her, I’ll update the list. Larry Gelbart shared that Gwen was often seen walking in the background, which I can certainly confirm. However, this can make her hard to spot, so it’s possible she appeared in more episodes than I can say. There are several episodes in which I’m pretty sure I spotted her walking in the compound outside a tent, such as the mess hall, but it is very hard to be sure, as the background resolution is too low. I believe, however, that she was often seen walking in the distance and probably appears in many other episodes.
🎬 Gwen Farrell: MASH Appearance Log
| Season | Episode | Title | Role / Character |
| 1 | 2 | To Market, To Market | Running Nurse (Opening Credits) |
| 1 | 4 | Chief Surgeon, Who? | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 6 | Yankee Doodle Doctor | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 12 | Dear Dad | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 13 | Edwina | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 14 | Love Story | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 16 | The Ringbanger | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 17 | Sometimes You Hear the Bullet | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 18 | Dear Dad… Again | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 19 | The Longjohn Flap | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 20 | The Army-Navy Game | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 21 | Sticky Wicket | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 22 | Major Fred C. Dobbs | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 24 | Showtime | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 2 | 5 O’clock Charlie | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 4 | For the Good of the Outfit | Nurse Butler |
| 2 | 5 | Dr. Pierce and Mr. Hyde | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 10 | The Sniper | Nurse |
| 2 | 11 | Carry On, Hawkeye | Nurse Wilson |
| 2 | 13 | Deal Me Out | Nurse |
| 2 | 16 | Henry in Love | Nurse |
| 3 | 6 | Springtime | Lt. Baker (Spoken: “Not.”) |
| 3 | 24 | Abyssinia, Henry | Gwen (Uncredited) |
| 4 | 16 | Dear Ma | Nurse Able |
| 5 | 15 | 38 Across | Anesthetist |
| 8 | 6 | Period of Adjustment | Nurse |
| 9 | 20 | The Life You Save | Gwen |
| 11 | 16 | Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen | Nurse |
| Season | Episode | Title | Role / Character |
| 1 | 2 | To Market, To Market | Running Nurse (Opening Credits) |
| 1 | 4 | Chief Surgeon, Who? | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 6 | Yankee Doodle Doctor | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 12 | Dear Dad | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 13 | Edwina | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 14 | Love Story | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 16 | The Ringbanger | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 17 | Sometimes You Hear the Bullet | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 18 | Dear Dad… Again | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 19 | The Longjohn Flap | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 20 | The Army-Navy Game | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 21 | Sticky Wicket | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 22 | Major Fred C. Dobbs | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 1 | 24 | Showtime | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 2 | 5 O’clock Charlie | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 4 | For the Good of the Outfit | Nurse Butler |
| 2 | 5 | Dr. Pierce and Mr. Hyde | Nurse (Uncredited) |
| 2 | 10 | The Sniper | Nurse |
| 2 | 11 | Carry On, Hawkeye | Nurse Wilson |
| 2 | 13 | Deal Me Out | Nurse |
| 2 | 16 | Henry in Love | Nurse |
| 3 | 6 | Springtime | Lt. Baker (Spoken: “Not.”) |
| 3 | 24 | Abyssinia, Henry | Gwen (Uncredited) |
| 4 | 16 | Dear Ma |