Profile of McLean Stevenson on Famous Like Me

McLean Stevenson (November 14, 1927 - February 15, 1996) (full name Edgar McLean Stevenson, Jr.), born in Normal, Illinois was an American actor most recognized for his role as Lt. Colonel Henry Blake on the TV series M*A*S*H. His father was a cardiologist.

Stevenson was the great-grandson of a brother of Adlai E. Stevenson, Vice President of the United States (Edgar McLean Stevenson (Sr.) appears on p. 138 of Samuel Harris Stevenson et al., A History and Genealogical Record of the Stevenson Family from 1748 to 1926 (2nd. ed., n.p., n.d.)). He was therefore also a second cousin (once removed) of Adlai Stevenson II who was governor of Illinois and two time Democratic presidential nominee, a first cousin (twice removed) of Lewis G. Stevenson, the Secretary of State of Illinois, and a third cousin of Adlai Stevenson III, an Illinois senator. He is also the brother of actress Ann Whitney.

After serving in the Navy, he attended Northwestern University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in theater arts. Afterwards he worked on a radio station, played a clown on a live TV show in Dallas, became an assistant director at Northwestern, and sold medical supplies and insurances. Afterwards he worked as a press secretary for his cousin in the presidental elections of 1952 and 1956. He formed the "Young Democrats for Stevenson".

In 1961, his cousin invited him to some parties, where he met some business luminaries. He followed his cousin's advice to look for a show business career. He auditioned and won a scholarship to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. His teachers included the well-respected Lee Strasberg, Sandy Meisner, David Craig, Lehman Engel and Sue Seaton.

Stevenson made his profession career debut in "The Music Man" in 1962 and appeared regularly in Warsaw, Indiana in summer stock productions. After this he appeared in New York on stage and television commercials. He also performed on Broadway. However, he began to establish himself as a comedy writer, writing for the seminal "That was the week that was", which Alan Alda appeared, and "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour". He performed occasionally on both shows.

After the guest-starring on "That Girl" (1966), with Marlo Thomas, he was signed on to the The Doris Day Show in 1969, playing magazine editor boss Michael Nicholson until 1971. Originally, he auditioned in the role of Hawkeye Pierce in "M*A*S*H but he was convinced to play Henry Blake. This role shot him to stardom. He eventually wrote one episode, The Trial of Henry Blake and provided the story for another, The Army-Navy Game. He received one Emmy nomination for his writing.

His Col. Blake character was one of the most popular on M*A*S*H, a carefree clod who preferred fishing to keeping close tabs on the unit under his command. Furthermore, the show was quickly one of the most popular sitcoms running, and would eventually become recognized as one of the top sitcoms in television history. But Stevenson grew impatient with playing second fiddle to the wisecracking Hawkeye character played by Alan Alda, and asked to be let out of his contract during the show's third season. The writers accomplished this transition in the final episode of the 1974-75 season, in which Col. Blake received a reassignment, boarded a plane that was shot down over the Pacific, and was presumed dead. Stevenson's departure turned out to be one of the most catastrophic show business career decisions in recent memory.

For years afterwards, Stevenson starred in a series of sitcoms that he hoped would bring him the comic leading-man status to which he aspired, but none of these efforts met with much success. They included The McLean Stevenson Show, In the Beginning, "Hello, Larry", and Condo. These were all dismissed by audiences and critics alike as sorry wastes of Stevenson's abilities. Not one lasted for more than a single season. He guest starred in shows such as Square One TV, The Love Boat, Different Strokes, Hollywood Squares, and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.

His screen credits include the Disney movie The Cat from Outer Space as a friend of Dr. Frank Wilson, (played by actor Ken Berry) who found a cat whose spaceship had crashed and needed a bar of gold bullion to get back home.

He died in 1996 from a heart attack and was interred in Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. Coincidentally, Roger Bowen, who played Henry Blake in the M*A*S*H movie, died of the same cause the following day.

One legacy of Mr. Stevenson is a word his name coined---McLeaning, which refers to an actor leaving a show, and his or her character's subsequent demise---as happened to Henry Blake when McLean left M*A*S*H.

When he died, Stevenson left behind a wife Ginny, his daughter Lindsey and actor Jeff MacGregor from a previous marriage.

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