more retro rewinds

“M*A*S*H” (MeTV and TV Land, daily) immediately followed, the story of war-weary, nurse-chasing surgeons at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the 1950s Korean War. As wisecracking Hawkeye Pierce, Alan Alda gave the sitcom its moral center and a mainstay throughout the series’ 1972-83 run. Faces came (Harry Morgan, Mike Farrell, David Ogden Stiers) and went (McLean Stevenson, Larry Linville, Wayne Rogers) but ol’ Hawk was always there in surgery or in the Swamp with a glass of bathtub gin in hand. A regular at Emmy time and one of the highest-rated shows in TV history.

“The Mary Tyler Moore Show” (Decades, weekdays) was another Hall of Fame entry. In WJM-TV newsroom producer Mary Richards, Moore created a woman of her time, a single woman making her way alone in a man’s world and business, though there were plenty of suitors who wanted to be by her side. The series boasted complex and realistic characters and storylines as well as a stellar cast that included Edward Asner, Valerie Harper, Gavin MacLeod and Ted Knight. Another much-decorated sitcom.

“The Bob Newhart Show” (Decades, weekdays) was no slouch and quite possibly Newhart’s finest work in his long career. His character of Chicago psychiatrist Bob Hartley dealt with a wide range of eccentrics at home and work, thus enabling Newhart to utilize his stammering, deadpan delivery style to maximum effect. Its understated humor made it arguably the funniest show of the night.

“The Carol Burnett Show” (MeTV, weeknights) was the final word in sketch comedy in an era before “Saturday Night Live.” A game repertory of Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Vicki Lawrence and Lyle Waggoner brought out the best in the uber-talented Burnett but the funniest scenes came when the giggling cast struggled to maintain composure and stay in character during vignettes. The audience ate it up.