Burghoff was born in Bristol, Connecticut, moved to Clinton, Connecticut, and then later moved to Delavan, Wisconsin. He studied tap dance and became a drummer, despite being born with brachydactyly caused by Poland syndrome, which made three fingers on his left hand significantly smaller than those on his right hand.

What was wrong with radars hand in MASH?

'M*A*S*H': 'Radar' Actor Gary Burghoff Went to Great Lengths to Hide His Hand on the Show. ... Gary Burghoff was born with brachydactyly, better known as short digits. The disease causes short fingers and toes, forming through bone dysostosis. In the actor's case, his bone dysmorphia was caused because of Poland syndrome.

Does radar have a bad hand?

TIL Gary Burghoff, who played Radar O'Reilly on MASH, has a visibly deformed left hand, which ironically would have made him unfit for military service. They tried to hide it throughout the series' run by having Radar hold a clipboard or other hand-obscuring prop in virtually all his scenes.