B.J. Hunnicutt
Encyclopedia : B : BJ : BJH : B.J. Hunnicutt
| M*A*S*H character | |
 Captain B.J. Hunnicutt, played by Mike Farrell | |
| B.J. Hunnicutt | |
|---|---|
| Rank | Captain |
| Gender | Male |
| Hair color | Brown |
| Eye color | Brown |
| Home city | Mill Valley, California, USA |
| MASH (film)>Film portrayer | None |
| M*A*S*H (TV series)>Television portrayer | Mike Farrell |
| First appearance | "Welcome to Korea" |
Captain B.J. Hunnicutt (played by Mike Farrell) is a fictional character in the TV show M*A*S*H, which ran from 1972-1983 on CBS.
Captain Hunnicutt resided in Mill Valley, California before he was recruited to join the US Army to fight in the War. He was educated at Stanford University and was a member of the Tau Phi Epsilon fraternity. B.J. is married to Peg (who writes scores of letters to him while he is in Korea). The couple has a daughter, named Erin.
His full name remained a mystery throughout the series. He claimed—perhaps in jest—that he was named after his mother Bea and father Jay (hence Bea-Jay = B.J.). Hawkeye, for one, did not accept that explanation.
Captain Hunnicutt first appeared on the show in 1975, after Trapper John McIntyre was allowed to return home from the 4077. He often frustrated his bunkmate and best friend, Captain Hawkeye Pierce, with his traditional values and steadfast loyalty to his wife and his marriage. The enforced separation from his family was a habitual source of turmoil. In that regard, the missing of important family moments and the apparent neglect of his own domestic responsibilities were particularly upsetting to him while also taking insults to his familial loyalty very personally. In the fifth season episode "Hanky Panky" (2/1/77), B.J. unexpectedly has a one night stand with nurse Carrie Donovan, putting him in great shame and anguish. "I'm a happily married man!" he lamented, "Not like Frank Burns is happy because his wife owns real estate." He almost told his wife but Hawkeye advised against it, and B.J. eventually straightened things out and made peace with Carrie.
Hunnicutt is an excellent doctor with strong morals and is always looking to do the right thing. This was displayed in "Preventive Medicine" (2/19/79) where Hawkeye and B.J. spike the drink of a bloodthirsty commander to make him medically unfit to lead an unnecessary battle. Hawkeye unexpectedly ups the ante by claiming he has appendicitis and must be operated upon, a trick he and Trapper John once used to put Colonel Sam Flagg temporarily out of commission. This time however, B.J. objects to this needless surgery as human mutilation and a violation of his oath so he refuses to cooperate after a heated argument with the adamant Hawkeye.
In addition, he tended to be much less aggressive in his crusades than Hawkeye, usually preferring to be a quieter voice of reason to his friend. For instance, when Hawkeye tried to print a letter protesting an unfeeling Marine commander's treatment of a Dutch immigrant soldier in the military press, the letter was killed by the commander and Hawkeye was almost arrested for arguing with the commander about it. Hunnicutt, on the other hand, watched the drama from a distance until he calmly suggested that Hawkeye take his letter to the civilian press train in Seoul which is beyond the commander's control, thus frustrating the officer. Unlike Trapper, who was a class clown, B.J. was used more as a straight man to Hawkeye's antics.
In one episode, after which he is in a helicopter and forced to cut a rope leading down to a wounded soldier he and the pilot were trying to rescue from enemy soldiers (effectively abandoning him to capture or death), and receiving a bronze star for bravery for the act, he announced to Hawkeye that he cannot go on thumbing his nose at authority any more, and that the act he had committed turned him into a soldier.
Prior to his joining M*A*S*H, Mike Farrell's then-wife, actress Judy Farrell, appeared on the show in the early seasons playing various nurses. When he joined the show, he had B.J.'s daughter Erin named after his own daughter with Judy.
External links
- [Finest-Kind.net] - M*A*S*H website with character profile
- [Best Care Anywhere] - M*A*S*H website with character profile
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