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Richard Hooker

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Author

The Resume

    (February 1, 1924-November 4, 1997)
    Born in Trenton, New Jersey
    Birth name was H. Richard Hornberger
    Physician
    Wrote the novel 'MASH' (1968)

Why he might be annoying:

    He hated the TV series based on his book, with his son explaining, 'My father was a political conservative and he did not like the liberal tendencies that Alan Alda portrayed Hawkeye Pierce as having.'
    Despite that, he was not above cashing in on the show's popularity with a batch of 'MASH Goes to...' sequels ('MASH Goes to London,' '...to Las Vegas,' '...to Hollywood,' etc.) under the 'Richard Hooker' name, only one of which ('MASH Goes to Maine') was not ghostwritten.
    His son said, 'He liked the movie because he thought it followed his original intent very closely.' (How closely was he watching the movie? It ain't much more conservative than the TV series he loathed.)

Why he might not be annoying:

    He actually served in a MASH unit, the 8055th, during the Korean War.
    Dr. Melvin Horowitz, who was also in the 8055th, called him 'a very good surgeon with a tremendous sense of humor.'
    A note of encouragement for struggling writers: 'MASH' was rejected by 21 publishers before becoming a best seller.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 20.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 6 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 71 Votes: 49.30% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 20 Votes: 45.00% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 51 Votes: 39.22% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 16 Votes: 68.75% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 77 Votes: 64.94% Annoying