In a 2009 interview with the estimable Bullz-Eye.com, Wendt shocked the world by acknowledging he did not stuff an actual pool ball into his gob. Sorry to disappoint, but it was a bit of TV trickery. According to Wendt:
“It was rubber. It was a rubber ball that was painted green. I think it was a nine-ball or something like that. I forget what it was. And they just squished it into my mouth and then it popped into normal size once it was in.”
First off, the nine ball is yellow. This was, as you can tell from the above image, the six ball, which is green.
Secondly, and far more importantly, this must’ve been really soft rubber. I’d think a Nerf ball would be much more forgiving, but, hey, Wendt wouldn’t be the first guy to get his trademarked foam spheres confused with his tougher, less elastic polymeric substances. In any event, whatever it was the “M*A*S*H” prop crew lodged in this future Primetime Emmy nominee’s mouth, it couldn’t retroactively win Wilbert Montgomery the 1979 NFL rushing title. And this will forever haunt me.