srm@pyuxnn.UUCP (10/25/83)
The writer of the MASH theme (a.k.a. "Suicide is Painless") is Johnny Mandel. (Why anyone would say that Loudon Wainwright III was the writer, just because he was seen on the show - and is a songwriter - is beyond me.) I am a fan of LWIII and was so certain that he didn't write the theme that I spent some time tracking down the *real* writer of the song, only to find that (at least) early episodes of MASH list Mandel in the closing credits (check it out - they're currently showing early episodes in the NYC area at 7PM).