As Time Goes By was the 255th overall episode of the CBS television series M*A*S*H, and the 15th of Season 11; the episode had the distinction as being the series' final half-hour episode. Written by Dan Wilcox and Thad Mumford and directed by Burt Metcalfe, the episode aired on February 21, 1983. The episode was followed by 3-hour TV film-episode special "Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen", which aired the very next week