make-kpkg fails with "as86: Command not found"

[simonst@WellsFargo.COM]

My 2.2.14 kernel build (on my new Potato system) fails at the end with
error: "make[2]: as86: Command not found".
Can anyone point me in the right direction to fix this?  Where can I get
"as86" (& what is it - an assembler?).
I entered the following sequence of commands:

  cd /tmp/linux
  make mrproper
  make config
     <hoping to configure IP masquerading here>
  $fakeroot make-kpkg --revision=tws.1 kernel_image

The last screen of output messages:

  nm vmlinux | grep -v '\(compiled\)\|\(\.o$\)\|\( [aU]
\)\|\(\.\.ng$\)\|\(LASH[RL]DI\)' | sort > System.map
  make[2]: Entering directory `/tmp/linux/arch/i386/boot'
  gcc -D__KERNEL__ -I/tmp/linux/include -E -D__BIG_KERNEL__ -traditional
-DSVGA_MODE=NORMAL_VGA  bootsect.S -o bbootsect.s
  as86 -0 -a -o bbootsect.o bbootsect.s
  make[2]: as86: Command not found
  make[2]: *** [bbootsect.o] Error 127
  make[2]: Leaving directory `/tmp/linux/arch/i386/boot'
  make[1]: *** [bzImage] Error 2
  make[1]: Leaving directory `/tmp/linux'
  make: *** [stamp-build] Error 2
  simonst@pc-10-26-47-74:/tmp/linux$