I've always thought the character of Sidney Freedman was an example of absolutely perfect casting. When Sidney paid a visit it was always a great episode.

Alan Arbus was my favorite character on MASH. He, along with Flagg, really added to the presentation.

I saw Alan Arbus interviewed one time and he told a story about how his daughter had been injured and went to the hospital. When Alan arrived the doctor on duty started talking to him like he was a real doctor. He had to remind the doctor that he was only an actor and didnt understand on the medical jargon

I have to agree that Sidney was one of the great characterizations of a kind and dedicated professional - my students all wanted to be Dr. Freedman... maybe me, too!

So down to earth, that's Alan Alda. A realist with a heart of gold.

Sydney Freedman is the reason I became a therapist. I love the line, "Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice. Take down your pants and slide on the ice." Brilliant, wry delivery. And I agree with Alan Alda - Alan Arbus was completely convincing.

That he talks about treating Alan Arbus as an actual psychiatrist is rather amusing. In one of his books, Alda describes going to the doctor's office and having his doctor speak to him as if he was a physician. "I don't understand what you're saying. I'm not a surgeon in real life."

Alan Alda represents a time in TV shows when thoughts, ideas, morality and good taste ruled out over action or simply "bad writing."

The legendary Air Raid! episode.

3:58 What Alda said about writing is spot on. It's so satisfying to write something, put it down, then come back to it awhile later and say "well, hey! This is pretty good." It's especially satisfying because so often, you look back on something you wrote years (even months) ago and you're mortified that you could jot something so flawed from top to bottom.

This show is to this day my favorite show of all time. The characters were all very well done. And Sidney Friedman was a great character

I am a writer and this whole "antenna" thing is spot on! I was listening to Mr. Alda describing that notion and saying "Yes" repeatedly!

I always value listening to Alan Alda's memories, thoughts, and opinions.

Anger turned inwards is depression. Anger turned sideways is Hawkeye Pierce. One of my favorite quotes from the episode.

57 year old pro photographer from seattle here... would watch MASH with my parents growing up and LOVED it...of course. How did I never know that Allan Arbus was married to Diane Arbus and they both shared a photography business with each other? Diane was a photo guru! Allan was no slouch himself now that Im researching it a bit...just blown away learning this!

Dear Sigmund episode is perhaps one of the my all time favorite episodes.

They needed Sidney more often than he appeared. My favorite episode was the one with both Dr. Freedman and Col Flagg. Comedy gold.

Love him/hate him: The heart and soul of M*A*S*H. I admire him.

You just gotta love Alan Alda!!!!!!

Dear Alan, I'm so glad you wrote "Dear Sigmund" JUST AS YOU DID! Allan Arbus was great as Sidney, and creating an episode that centered on him was a really nice idea. And the episode was humorous and very touching. I also thought "Inga" was a great show that focused Hawkeye in a new direction. M*A*S*H had a great way of pivoting the characters from what they had been and toward what they would be.

Alan Alda, contemporary understander of the Aeolian Harp. To have intuitions like he does for writing is such an incredible talent.

I always thought that it would have been a better ending if the big reveal at the end of the episode had been that Friedman was the mystery practical joker (as a way of relieving his depression) rather than BJ.

My aunt, a former MASH nurse, ended up taking her own life...she missed this show and I can't help but wonder if she would have found any solace in it's presentation.

Alan Arbus was my favorite guest star of the series. Mr Miyagi was #2

Alda is one of the first men I ever loved...at least in my imagination. He is also such a classy guy. This interview demonstrates that perfectly.

Love Alan Alda

My favorite episode

I also loved Alan Arbus and the man who played Col Flagg. This was an excellent episode. Hawkeye's evolution from player to more dimensional guy was wonderful.

that is one of my favorite episodes. it's like i new more about the actors / actress. in that one episode then any other and i stile watch mash every time it's on

"Pull down your pants and slide on the ice"

One of my biggest influences Capt. HAWKEYE

It's one of the best MASH episode ever very funny

One of my favorite people. I like this man enormously.

I could listen to Alan talk all day long Alan will always be Hawkeye

Was so glad Alan Arbus (Sidney Friedman) had a pretty big role in the show finale, he was perfect casting and just had this aura when he was on an episode, it would be a good one… He and Colonel Flagg were on here and there, but were welcomed cast members!

One of my favourite episodes

One of Alan Arbus's best guest starring roles was as the scientist Bleaker in the episode 'The Girl from Ilandia' on TV's Wonder Woman in 1977.

Most of my favorite episodes included Sydney or Flagg!

It just shows the brilliance of an actor he is.

He went to my high school: archbishop stepinac. What a legend!

Alan Alda -- a truly talented person and a real gentleman.

Great episode, One of the best i remember it well !

Hawkeye, irreplaceable! Love ❤️ you

I could listen to Alan all day.

This is my favorite MASH episode

GREAT Episode

I like the way he puts it, that when you're writing, some of the best stuff just comes by. I've written a couple novels and some of the best characters just appeared one day and their story was easy to tell because they told it through me. It sounds strange, but that is how it works. If I could explain it, I would do it more often and be closer to Steven King than the guy who writes stuff he doesn't like for money and stuff he loves for himself. But if you haven't tried it, you really should because as Alan points out, when you write something and then revisit later and realize it's pretty good, well, that's a feeling that's hard to beat.

I wish we learned about Col. Flagg. What a great character.

At times I thought Alan was a tad overbearing as Hawkeye the wisecracker. Now I think he is so intelligent, real and a kind person.

AIR RAID AIR RAID!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best episode..i loved it

Mister Alda, you are the the backbone of M*A*S*H, its skeleton, the heart and soul of the whole thing! Thank you a lot! I give you four thousand and seventy seven high fives!

"Lady's and gentleman take my advice. Pull down your pants and slide on the ice." - Dr Sidney Freedman

But enough about me, let's talk about you. What do you think about me?

I liked what he said about writing. Sometimes it is just magical. He didn't say magical but I know what he meant

It’s my favorite episode

Could it just be a coincidence that Sidney Freedman and Sigmund Freud's first and last names start with the same two syllables?

GOD, do I wish that writers on other shows -- and I'm talking about GOOD shows -- had heeded Alda's advice about being careful to keep a character from affecting the audience negatively, in the way that they are meant to affect the other CHARACTERS negatively. The writers on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" did this perfectly with Ted Baxter; the writers on "Barney Miller" failed abjectly with Inspector Luger, who was as grating and unpleasant for the viewers as he was for the men of the 12th precinct. Even "M*A*S*H" didn't entirely escape this problem. The Frank Burns character's racism and unending grouchiness really got to be a pain to watch after a while; I was SO thankful when Charles -- a much more complex and interesting character -- replaced him.

he waited 2 solid minutes to display ''directed by ALAN ALDA" after ''written by'' ALAN ALDA".what is up w/ that? I'm a big fan, but well,...3 paragraphs of dialogue subsequently passed by.

I am apetite I am delight

" Okay, Alan and Mike. We agreed this would be a rap session. Not another Psych session. Damn! I have zero idea how to cure male shtuff! " -- Alan Arbus

Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice. Pull down your pants and slide on the ice...

Nonsense--writing is easy you just sit down staring at a blank page and open a vein.

So-called "Alan Alda" isn't even his real name. He sold-out his birth name of Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo to 'Hollywood'.

you couldn't pay me to watch mash

These episodes could never have happened! Freudian psychiatrists touring mash units during the Korean War! Think about that. Hawkeye having nervous breakdowns every so often and the psychiatrist coming in observing him speaking to him and treating him. Never could have happened. This was war. It was brutal. Hawkeye standing outside at night bouncing basketballs through a hoop, yes we had a basketball hoop In Korea at a mash unit, crazy huh? And the psychiatrist is there talking to him observing him, if you think that could happen in war you’re out of your mind. Mash was an anti-war anti-conservative leftist gobbledygook of 1960s pop psychology mixed in with this fake war format! It could never have happened.

Alan Alda sort of ruined MASH with his liberal views and feminism as well as making Wayne Rogers and McClean Stevenson both quit because he hogged most of the lines and stories.