MILFORD, PA — Alan Alda, who became an international star in the unforgettable role of Hawkeye Pierce in the mega-hit TV show “M*A*S*H,” is coming to Milford to talk about his new passion: helping people communicate with each other.

The award-winning actor, writer and TV star will appear at the Milford Readers and Writers Festival on Saturday, September 29 in a conversation with writer and editor Suzanne Braun Levine about his new book, “If I Understood You, Would I have This Look on My Face: My Adventures in the Art and Science of Communicating.” 

Also joining the festival will be Mary Badham, who played Scout in the original 1962 movie of Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Badham will be in conversation with local director and performer Michelle Oram, discussing the making of the movie, her friendship with Gregory Peck and how the movie resonates today. It has recently been removed from a high school reading list because it “makes people uncomfortable.”

The festival runs throughout the weekend of Sept. 28 to 30 and will feature a number of panels and discussions with prominent writers and even a New Yorker cartoonist, Bob Eckstein. There will be a combination of ticketed and free, open events.