ACTOR
Jamie Farr
- Known for
- M*A*S*H (1972), Cannonball Run II (1984)
29 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
Jamie Farr is an actor best known for M*A*S*H and Cannonball Run II.
All facts (29)
- #001
Jamie Farr was one of two actors on the original M*A*S*H (1972) television cast who had served in the armed forces in Korea; Farr's tour of duty took place in the years after the war. Alan Alda served a six-month tour in Korea as an artillery officer. In addition, the dog tags Farr wore on the M*A*S*H (1972) set were actually the set he was issued while in the army. He was drafted in 1957 and received basic training at Fort Ord in California as part of the 6th Infantry Division. After basic training he was sent to Queens, N.Y. to make training films.
- #002
Jamie Farr graduated from Woodward High School with honors and was named the most outstanding student. He wrote for and acted in two variety shows, was a member of the Drama Society, served three years as class president, was feature editor of the school newspaper, was president of the radio class, managed the football and basketball teams, and was a member of the varsity tennis team.
- #003
Jamie Farr initially thought the women's wardrobe in his dressing room meant he would be sharing the room with a woman, but was surprised to learn otherwise. Because he did not want to play a woman who dressed like a typical girl, he suggested to the producers that his character be masculine but crazy, believing his clothes and other quirks to be normal. The unusual twist worked.
- #004
Jamie Farr's M*A*S*H (1972) character was originally meant to appear in only one episode, but he proved so popular that he returned as a day player and was eventually given a contract in the third season.
- #005
Jamie Farr is the only son of Samuel, a Lebanese butcher and grocer, and Jamelia Farah, a tailor.
- #006
As of 2005, Jamie Farr served on the Vocational Advisory Board of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
- #007
Jamie Farr has struggled with severe rheumatoid arthritis in his hands since the early 1990s.
- #008
With the death of William Christopher on December 31, 2016, Jamie Farr became the oldest living regular cast member of M*A*S*H (1972).
- #009
Jamie Farr was a stand-in for Danny Thomas and Harry Morgan.
- #010
Danny Thomas was said to be Jamie Farr's mentor, and the two were said to have much in common with each other's families.
- #011
Jamie Farr worked as a delivery boy at a lithography company, a postal clerk, a clerk at an army surplus store, an airline reservation clerk, and a worker on a chinchilla farm.
- #012
Jamie Farr is best remembered by the public for his role as Corporal (later Sergeant) Maxwell Q. Klinger on the sitcom M*A*S*H (1972).
- #013
In the early 1980s, Jamie Farr endorsed the Mars candy bar.
- #014
With Danny Thomas's encouragement, Jamie Farr chose to become an actor.
- #015
An LPGA tournament is named in Jamie Farr's honor: the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic (formerly the Jamie Farr Kroger Classic).
- #016
Two of the dresses Jamie Farr wore as Klinger had previously been worn by Ginger Rogers and Betty Grable, and they now belong to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.
- #017
Jamie Farr is the father of son Jonas Farr and daughter Yvonne Farr.
- #018
In the late 1970s, Jamie Farr made television commercials for Nabisco Triscuits, shouting "oooo hot, hot, hot!" after taking them out of the oven.
- #019
Jamie Farr made his film debut alongside the likes of Vic Morrow, Rafael Campos and James Drury in Blackboard Jungle (1955).
- #020
Jamie Farr attended the Pasadena Playhouse in Pasadena, California.
- #021
Jamie Farr's father, Samuel Farah, was an immigrant who owned a grocery store from Lebanon's Beqaa Valley. His mother, Jamelia, a tailor, was a first-generation Lebanese American raised in Iowa.
- #022
Jamie Farr has an older sister named Yvonne Farah.
- #023
Sir Michael Caine, Clint Eastwood, Leonard Nimoy and Jamie Farr all served in the Korean War.
- #024
At his school, Woodward High School, Jamie Farr was class president, as well as the school newspaper's editorial editor, president of the radio club, manager of the football and basketball teams, and a member of the drama society.
- #025
On April 10, 1985, Jamie Farr was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television at 1547 North Vine Street in Hollywood, California.
- #026
In 1977, Jamie Farr was honored with a version of the City Keys, Toledo's ceremonial goblet. That same year, Scott High School named its new performing arts wing after him, and the University of Toledo awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1983.
- #027
Jamie Farr's acting career began at age 11, when he won $2 in a local talent contest.
- #028
Jamie Farr was considered for the role of Bert in Mary Poppins (1964).
- #029
Jamie Farr bears a striking resemblance to Al Nesor.
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