There are few TV shows that leave a mark on viewers as much as “M*A*S*H” did.

First airing in 1972, the show followed a Korean War medical unit for 11 seasons. And as much as the show mattered to the people watching it, according to the show’s main star, it was his outfit that made him the main character.

The simple black combat boots and dog tags worn by Alan Alda on the show were recently put on auction to raise money for the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science. The goal of the center, Alda said, is to help scientists and doctors communicate better.

Something the actor knows a little bit about. Alda, now 87, said the boots and dog tags “made an impression on me every day that we shot the show.”

Alan Alda dressed as his character, Hawkeye Pierce. Photo by 20th Century Fox

They made an impression on the anonymous buyer, as well, who shelled out $125,000 to own a bit of television history.

Alda, who was allowed to keep the items worn by his character Hawkeye Pierce, said he felt like this was the right time to auction the items off.

I saw this as a chance to put them to work again,” he said.

Alda said that the items were gifted to him following the series’ end by the costume department.

“There’s an old belief among actors that when you put the shoes of the character on, it’s easier to believe you’re the character and I think the boots had that effect on me,” he said. 

When he first put the dog tags on, he said, he noticed that alongside where they said Hawkeye, were names of two men who he learned had been actual soldiers.

The boots and dog tags worn by actor Alan Alda. Photo by Associated Press

“I saw those names every day,” he continued.

They were on my mind because I was literally in their shoes and wearing the metal tags stamped with the minimal words and numbers that served as their identity.”

According to the Associated Press, the two soldiers, Hersie Davenport and Morriss D. Levine, were later discharged from service in 1945. 

“Thinking about these men wasn’t some kind of acting exercise,” Alda wrote in a letter auctioned off with the items. “They were on my mind because I was literally in their shoes and wearing the metal tags stamped with the minimal words and numbers that served as their identity.”

When filming wrapped up, Alda chose to keep these two items because they were the “things that meant the most to me,” he said. 

The show, said Ryan Patrick, co-host of the “M*A*S*H Matters” podcast, remains relevant today, even with a younger audience. Its main themes of “finding humor and finding ways to cope in the midst of madness” will always be important to hear.

“The series has never really dated,” he said. “The themes of the show are universal, and they stand the test of time.”

Watch below for a look at what Alda had to say about the show, the items auctioned and what they mean to the beloved actor.

Sources: Smithsonian Magazine | People | Associated Press