In the scene, Hot Lips is supposed to do whatever she can to cover herself up after realizing that she’s been exposed, but because of Kellerman’s nerves, she kept dropping down to cover herself as soon as the tent flaps opened. That didn’t exactly work for the shot because audiences wouldn’t be able to figure out what was going on, so Altman decided to distract Kellerman, as she recalled:
“When I looked up, there was Gary Burghoff stark naked standing in front of me. The next take, [Altman] had Tamara Horrocks, she was the more amply endowed nurse, without her shirt on … So I attribute my Academy Award nomination to the people who made my mouth hang open when I hit the deck.”
While this entire situation sounds like a lawsuit these days, at the time everyone apparently thought it was pretty funny and it all worked out in the end. There’s something about the lack of sexism in having both a male and female co-star flash Kellerman that makes it feel less predatory than if it had just been a bunch of guys, and Kellerman seemed to have a good sense of humor about the whole ordeal. For those who think the scene is unnecessary, however, the best defense comes from co-star René Auberjonois, who played the film version of Father Mulcahy.