klara

One of hundreds of letters sent to CBS after “Abyssinia Henry” aired 50 years ago today on March 18th, 1975. Many of them were from young children.

Last summer I started working on a project with these letters where I tracked down and spoke to many of the children who wrote them (now in their 60s). The project is on hold until I finish this school year, but I leaving cryptic messages on the answering machines of America's boomers resulted in some of the best conversations I've ever had. I'll keep you updated. I chose to share this image as the letter writer is anonymous.

Photo by me, “Letters from viewers regarding the death of Henry Blake.” Box 22, Folders 4. M*A*S*H Television Show Collection, 1950-1984, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. https://sova.si.edu/record/nmah.ac.0117/ref359?s=0&n=10&t=C&q=NMAH.AC.0117&i=0