Editing William Christopher (section)

==Career==
[[File:MASH Cast 1977.JPG|thumb|275px|Cast of ''[[M*A*S*H (TV series)|M*A*S*H]]'' (1977). Back row, L–R: William Christopher, [[Gary Burghoff]], [[David Ogden Stiers]], and [[Jamie Farr]]. Front row, L–R: [[Loretta Swit]], [[Harry Morgan]], [[Alan Alda]], [[Mike Farrell]] ]]
[[File:Good Times 1975.JPG|thumb|275px|Christopher (right) as an Army doctor on an episode of ''[[Good Times]]''. [[John Amos]] and [[Jimmie Walker]] are also pictured.]]
Christopher moved to New York and appeared in a variety of regional productions and later a number of [[off-Broadway]] productions such as ''[[The Hostage (play)|The Hostage]]'' at One Sheridan Square. His Broadway debut came in ''[[Beyond the Fringe]]'', a British revue, acting alongside [[Peter Cook]] and [[Dudley Moore]].<ref name="variety"/><ref name="tcm bio"/>

Christopher left New York City for Hollywood to attempt to gain work in television where he guest-starred in several well-known series, including ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'', ''[[Death Valley Days]]'', ''[[The Patty Duke Show]]'' and ''[[The Men from Shiloh]]''. He made several appearances (each time as a different character) on ''[[Hogan's Heroes]]'', and had recurring roles on ''Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'' and ''[[That Girl]]''. Christopher was a student at [[Harvey Lembeck]]’s famed L.A. improvisational workshop in the early 1970s during which time he performed improv skits (with two other performers, [[Carole Ita White|Carole White]] and Shelia Bartold, both also Lembeck students) during a January 1972 episode of ''[[The Carol Burnett Show]]''. While the appearance was officially uncredited, he was introduced by Burnett as Bill Christopher.

In 1972, Christopher gained the role of [[Father Mulcahy]] in the television series ''M*A*S*H'' when the actor who was first cast in the role, George Morgan, was replaced after a single appearance in the pilot episode.<ref name="variety"/> (Christopher was the third actor to play Mulcahy, following [[René Auberjonois]] in the [[M*A*S*H (film)|1970 film version of ''M*A*S*H'']] and George Morgan in the TV pilot episode.)

As Father Mulcahy, Christopher was a recurring cast member of ''M*A*S*H'' for the first four seasons of the series before being billed as a regular cast member from season five onwards. During production of the fifth season, Christopher contracted [[hepatitis]] and was bedridden for eight weeks, resulting in episodes being rewritten to account for Christopher's absence. The fifth season episode "Hepatitis", written by series star [[Alan Alda]], incorporated Christopher's battle with hepatitis into the show, when Mulcahy was bedridden with the disease. It was reported that production had considered writing Christopher out of the series entirely before Alda advocated on his co-star's behalf.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1419049/mash-william-christopher-hepatitis-episode/|title=One Cast Member's Ailment Ended Up Making It Into A M*A*S*H Script|website=SlashFilm|date=October 14, 2023 |access-date=April 22, 2024}}</ref> 

Christopher remained a regular cast member of ''M*A*S*H'' for the duration of the series, concluding with its eleventh season in 1983. Immediately following ''M*A*S*H'', Christopher continued the role of Father Mulcahy for the two seasons of the short-lived 1984-1985 [[spin-off (media)|spin-off]] ''[[AfterMASH]]''.<ref name="tcm bio"/>

In feature films, Christopher performed in ''[[The Fortune Cookie]]'', ''[[The Private Navy of Sgt. O'Farrell]]'', ''[[The Shakiest Gun in the West]]'', ''[[With Six You Get Eggroll]]'', and ''[[Hearts of the West (1975 film)|Hearts of the West]]''.<ref name="tcm bio"/> He had parts in telefilms including ''The Movie Maker'', ''[[The Perils of Pauline (1967 film)|The Perils of Pauline]]'', and ''For the Love of It''. The comedy film ''With Six You Get Eggroll'' is notable for fans of ''M*A*S*H'' because [[Jamie Farr]] and Christopher appear in it together, both playing hippies, five years before they co-starred in the series.<ref name="tcm bio"/>

After gaining attention for ''M*A*S*H'', Christopher appeared in various other television series, including ''[[Good Times]]'' (as the military doctor examining [[J.J. Evans]]) and ''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'', and made multiple guest appearances on ''[[The Love Boat]]''. In 1998, he guest-starred as a priest in an episode of ''[[Mad About You]]''.<ref name="tcm bio"/> He also remained active in the theater, including a tour of the United States in the mid-1990s with Farr, performing [[Neil Simon]]'s ''[[The Odd Couple (play)|The Odd Couple]]'' on stage.<ref name="tcm bio"/> In 2008–2009, he toured with ''Church Basement Ladies''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.troupeamerica.com/current_CBLTour.html|title=Church Basement Ladies Tour 2008|publisher=Troupeamerica.com|access-date=May 17, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717104531/http://www.troupeamerica.com/current_CBLTour.html|archive-date=July 17, 2011}}</ref>  One of Christopher's last roles was that of a priest (Father Tobias) on the daytime drama ''[[Days of Our Lives]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://soaps.sheknows.com/days-of-our-lives/news/49127/days-and-mash-alum-william-christopher-dead-at-84|title=Days and M*A*S*H alum William Christopher dead at 84|website=soaps.sheknows.com|date=January 2, 2017 |access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref>