Photo: CBS Television / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
What strikes me most about Loretta Swit is how she refused to let Margaret Houlihan remain a punchline. The character began as broad caricature, and over eleven seasons Swit quietly argued her into full personhood, ambitious and lonely and principled, until the writers had no choice but to follow. Two Emmys feel almost like an undercount for that kind of sustained authorship inside someone else's show. I also admire that she never seemed bitter about being tied to one role; she carried it with grace and a long stage career. Her passing in 2025 closed a chapter of television history I genuinely treasure.
Overview
Loretta Swit (born Loretta Jane Szwed; November 4, 1937 – May 30, 2025) was an American stage and television actress. She was widely known for her character roles, especially her role as Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan on M*A*S*H, for which she was nominated for Emmy Awards in each season of the long-running show, and won two, in 1980 and 1982.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Loretta Swit
- Name (Japanese)
- ロレッタ・スウィット
- Reading
- ろれった・すうぃっと
- Born
- November 4, 1937 (age 88)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Scorpio / Ox
- Origin
- Passaic, New Jersey, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- actor / television actor / stage actor / film actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 1980 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- 1982 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Actor — see all → · Television actor — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.