Letters Home From Korea: From Quijonbu to Mill Valley, Letter #9

[willows_whiten]

Letter #8

TITLE: Letters Home From Korea: From Quijonbu to Mill Valley, Letter #9
AUTHOR: willows_whiten/spell_divine
FANDOM: M*A*S*H
PAIRING: BJ/Peg
GENRE: Het
TABLE: #11: Song Titles A
PROMPT: #4: I Guess You Had To Be There.
RATING: G
WORD COUNT: 673
SUMMARY: BJ tells Peg about his prank to make Winchester think he's lost weight, gained weight, grown and shrunk.

Comments

[marie1964]

What's a section eight, and what does this have to do with Frank leaving the show?

[willows_whiten]

A section 8 is what is "rewarded" to soldiers who are diagnosed as being crazy. The reason Klinger kept wearing dresses is because he was trying to get a section 8.

In Winchester's first episode, it begins with Frank being on R&R. When he doesn't return promptly, Radar and Potter begin to be concerned, and Potter puts in some phone calls. (One being to Tokyo to get them a new surgeon for 48 hours -- who winds up being Winchester). Potter gets multiple phone calls stating that the MPs are after Frank for chasing blonde women calling them Margaret. He's finally caught when he jumps in to a hot tub with someone high up in the military (a general I believe) and a blonde, calling the blonde "Margaret" and he pretends to wash her hair. Frank's charged with a section 8, and sent home, leaving the 4077th short a surgeon as this happens when Winchester is supposed to be going back to Tokyo. Potter requests that Winchester stays, and is granted permission. Which is how Winchester came to be on the show for keeps.

Does that make sense?

[marie1964]

It does. Thanks for explaining it to me. But, is Frank only acting crazy, like Klinger, or does he truly become crazy?

[willows_whiten]

You're welcome :). It seems to depend upon who you ask. The way they portray it, it seems as though Frank did quite literally think every blonde woman was Margaret. However (and I forgot this part when I was first explaining), the Army winds up dropping the charges, promotes him to Lieutenant Colonel and lets him work at a veterans' hospital.