William Christopher, who played Father Francis Mulcahy on the hit television series M*A*S*H, has died. He was 84.

His character, a gentle Catholic priest who loved boxing, spent his days trying to save souls in the chaotic surroundings of a U.S. army medical unit near the front lines of the Korean war.

In 1983’s final episode of the iconic series, Father Mulcahy says, “On the bright side, when we’re told we have to do time in purgatory, we can all say, no thanks I’ve done mine.”

Christopher appeared on stage at Mississauga’s Stage West Dinner Theatre which closed in 2013. A number of M*A*S*H stars appeared in various productions at the venue.

One of them, Loretta Swit, who played nurse Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on M*A*S*H, says everyone loved Christopher, and that he was TV’s quintessential padre. She says it was “the most perfect casting ever known.

John Christoper says his father was diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer over a year ago, and died Saturday morning at his home in Pasadena, California.

He’s survived by his wife Barbara and two sons.