Whatever happened to McLean Stevenson? He was great in "M.A.S.H." He didn't seem to last long. - Mrs. J.F.B., Riverview, Mich.
Stats: Born Nov. 14, 1929, in Normal, Ill. B.A. in theater arts, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill. Married twice, two daughters.Early years: Stevenson did a stint in the Navy before he went to college. He did various jobs, including working for his distant relative Adlai Stevenson's election campaign, before getting into acting. After he studied acting in New York, he made his stage debut in summer stock. He started TV in New York in "Naked City" and "The Defenders." He was a writer and actor on "That Was the Week That Was." His first Hollywood TV job was as a writer for "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour." He was a regular on "The Doris Day Show" and "The Tim Conway Show" before "M.A.S.H."
Famous for: For three seasons he was Lt. Col. Henry Blake, the commander of the 4077 MASH. After leaving the hit series in 1975 (the series lasted until 1983), he appeared in a succession of flop TV shows.
In recent years: Stevenson's parade of bombs includes "The McLean Stevenson Show," "Celebrity Challenge of the Sexes," "In the Beginning," "Hello, Larry," "Condo," "America" and "Dirty Dancing." He lives in California and appears in theater and TV guest roles.
- Send questions to Whatever happened to . . ., Detroit Free Press, 321 W. Lafayette Blvd., Detroit 48226. Volume of mail prohibits personal replies.