I continued these qualities for a short time until I realized that the TV MASH characters were developing in a different direction from the film characters. Although he ostensibly played the same character in the series that he played in the film, Burghoff has cited differences in the portrayal: 'In the original feature film MASH, I created Radar as a lone, darker and somewhat sardonic character kind of a shadowy figure. Although several actors from the original film made guest appearances in the television series, Burghoff was the only actor cast as a regular, continuing in the role of Radar O'Reilly. M*A*S*Hīurghoff made his feature film debut in Robert Altman's M*A*S*H (1970). He and Carter remained friends, and she helped cast him in an episode of her later hit series The New Adventures of Wonder Woman, in the 1978 episode 'The Man Who Wouldn't Tell'. The group opened at the Sahara Hotel and Casino lounge in Las Vegas, Nevada, and played there for three months. Actress Lynda Carter was the band's singer. He was the drummer for a band called the Relatives in 1968. In 1967 he originated the role of Charlie Brown in the original Off-Broadway production of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He gained early experience acting with the Belfry Players of Williams Bay, Wisconsin. He studied tap dance and became a drummer, despite having a congenital deformity of three fingers on his left hand. Burghoff was born in Bristol, Connecticut.
