Dr. "Spearchucker" Jones was a surgeon in the movie and television series M*A*S*H. He was portrayed by Fred Williamson in the movie and by Timothy Brown in the television series. Spearchucker was shown during several episodes during the first season of the series.

Character Information

Capt. Oliver Harmon "Spearchucker" Jones was one of the original Swampmen, along with Trapper, Hawkeye, and Frank. The TV show producers decided to drop the character after the first few episodes deciding they wouldn't be able to write enough meaningful episodes for Spearchucker if they were concentrating on Hawkeye and Trapper, and because they were made aware that in reality, the United States Army had no African-American surgeons in the Korean Conflict; see Chuck Cunningham syndrome.

"Spearchucker" Jones was also a character from both the novel MASH by Richard Hooker and Robert Altman's movie. In each, the Spearchucker character, who was a stand-out collegiate athlete ("Spearchucker," ordinarily a racial slur, referred in this case to his javelin-throwing prowess) as well as a surgeon, is transferred to the 4077 to help them win a football game against a rival outfit.

External Links

List and description of the M*A*S*H character cast.