| rdfs:comment | - William Christopher (October 20, 1932 – December 31, 2016) was a veteran actor who was best known for playing Father Mulcahy on the television series M*A*S*H and Private Lester Hummel on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
- __NOEDITSECTION__ Image:Information-silk.png|Character Template rect 0 0 20 20 Staff Template desc none William Christopher Real Name Unknown First publication Unknown
- After attending New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, he went to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut in 1954. He majored in drama and was also active in fencing, soccer, singing with the glee club and performing in various dramatic performances. He met his future wife, Barbara O'Conner, on a blind date. They married in 1957 and have two sons, John and Ned. Christopher is also suppose to be a direct descendent of Paul Revere. He also remained active in the theater, including a tour of the U.S. in the mid-1990s with Jamie Farr doing Neil Simon's The Odd Couple on stage.
- When auditioning for his M*A*S*H role, Christopher essentially ignored the monologue prepared for him and instead ad-libbed a rambling speech in a priestly tone. While the producers were disappointed that he didn't deliver his prepared lines, they liked his performance and manner well enough to offer him the role--on the condition that from then on, he would stay with the script. Although his priest character was Roman Catholic, Christopher is actually a Methodist.
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| abstract | - After attending New Trier High School in Winnetka, Illinois, he went to Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut in 1954. He majored in drama and was also active in fencing, soccer, singing with the glee club and performing in various dramatic performances. He met his future wife, Barbara O'Conner, on a blind date. They married in 1957 and have two sons, John and Ned. Christopher is also suppose to be a direct descendent of Paul Revere. After appearing in a variety of regional productions, he landed roles in a number of off-Broadway productions, most notably The Hostage at One Sheridan Square. His Broadway debut came in Beyond the Fringe, a British revue. Christopher left the New York stage for Hollywood television production, where he was seen on The Andy Griffith Show, , The Patty Duke Show and The Virginian. He then had recurring roles on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., That Girl and Hogan's Heroes. Since AfterMASH, Christopher has appeared in several series, including Murder, She Wrote and Mad About You. In featured films, Christopher performed in The Fortune Cookie, The Private Navy of Sgt. O'Farrell, The Shakiest Gun of the West, With Six You Get Eggroll and Hearts of the West. He also won parts in such telefilms as The Perils of Pauline and For the Love of It. Christopher devoted much of his spare time to the National Autistic Society because his son Ned is autistic. He has done several public service announcements to bring attention to this serious problem. In 1985, he and his wife wrote Mixed Blessings, a book about their experiences raising Ned. He also remained active in the theater, including a tour of the U.S. in the mid-1990s with Jamie Farr doing Neil Simon's The Odd Couple on stage. Christopher died at his home in Pasadena, California on December 31, 2016. According to his son, John Christopher, the 84-year old actor died as the result of small-cell carcinoma. He had been diagnosed with cancer about 18 months earlier, according to his New York-based agent, Robert Malcolm.
- William Christopher (October 20, 1932 – December 31, 2016) was a veteran actor who was best known for playing Father Mulcahy on the television series M*A*S*H and Private Lester Hummel on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
- __NOEDITSECTION__ Image:Information-silk.png|Character Template rect 0 0 20 20 Staff Template desc none William Christopher Real Name Unknown First publication Unknown
- When auditioning for his M*A*S*H role, Christopher essentially ignored the monologue prepared for him and instead ad-libbed a rambling speech in a priestly tone. While the producers were disappointed that he didn't deliver his prepared lines, they liked his performance and manner well enough to offer him the role--on the condition that from then on, he would stay with the script. Although his priest character was Roman Catholic, Christopher is actually a Methodist. Christopher was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity and a longtime student of Homeric [classical] Greek. He and his wife, Barbara, had been married since 1957. They have two sons, John and Ned. The latter is autistic.
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