- B.J. and Hawkeye try to get a hardship discharge for an immigrant Marine whose Mom is being deported before he can get home. Winchester becomes C.O. for a few days, using his new position to get himself silk sheets and other "basic necessities of life".—Kathy Hofmann
- Potter has to travel for a few days for a conference and assigns Winchester as CO in his absence. B.J. and Hawkeye try to get a hardship discharge for an immigrant Marine Pvt Jost Van Liter (Stan Wells) whose Mom is being deported before he can get home. Jost has 2 Purple Hearts, 2 bronze stars and is the point man for his company on the battlefield. Van Liter is Dutch, his mom married an American 2 yrs ago and they moved to USA. Van Liter joined the army and got shipped to Korea, but now his mom is getting divorced, and since she is not an American, she is getting deported. Jost will be discharged in 3 weeks, and all he wants is a discharge a week earlier so he can meet his mother before she is deported. Hawkeye tries reasoning with the Marine's CO Col Mulholland (Michael McGuire), but he is totally unsympathetic and wants Jost back in the unit pronto. Mulholland says by busting his arm, Jost has only done his duty and no more, and he is not about to approve an early discharge to every softy who wants to go home and see mommy.
Winchester becomes C.O. for a few days, using his new position to get himself silk sheets, opera records, anchovies and other "basic necessities of life". Hawkeye confronts Winchester, but he retorts that he is doing his job (all the reports are being read and filed) and he has the money to afford the things he has requested. Hawkeye sees an article on the back of Winchester's newspaper on how plight of a GI in Korea resulted in a blood donation drive. So decides to print an article describing Pvt Jost's plight, with the aim to generate public sympathy. Hawkeye shows the article to Jost before sending it to the Stars & Stripes, for publication. Stars and Stripes is a military newspaper.
Soon enough, Col Mulholland summons Hawkeye (he sends MPs to arrest Hawkeye and bring him to his HQ) as the newspapers didn't publish the article before checking facts with the Marines. Mulholland informs Hawkeye that he killed the story and it will never be published. Post that Mulholland refuses to release Pvt Jost not a minute before his service tour is over. BJ and Hawkeye then seek out civilian reporters (from the press train at Munsan) and contact Murray (James Gallery), who agrees to publish the report as he wants to help Jost. The article is all over the mainstream newspapers in the US. Eventually it is printed in the Stars and Stripes as well.
Col Mulholland shows up at MASH 4077 to confront Hawkeye and is met by Potter, who is back by then. Potter stops Mulholland from arresting Hawkeye and BJ and Hawkeye refuses to release Jost by saying that he has a flu for 21 more days, post which his tour of service will be over and he will be discharged. Mulholland retreats, but has the sadistic satisfaction that Jost wont get to say goodbye to his mom. But Hawkeye and BJ get word that the Dutch Consul in SFO read the article and hired Jost's mother as a secretary. Now she has diplomatic immunity and cannot be deported.
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