Loretta Swit, Emmy-winner who played Maj. Houlihan on pioneering series ‘M.A.S.H.,’ has died at 87
Loretta Swit, who won two Emmy Awards playing Maj. Margaret Houlihan, the demanding head nurse of a behind-the-lines surgical unit during the Korean War on the pioneering hit TV series “M.A.S.H.,” has died. She was 87.
Publicist Harlan Boll says Swit died Friday at her home in New York City, likely from natural causes. Swit and Alan Alda were the longest-serving cast members on “M.A.S.H.,” which was based on Robert Altman’s 1970 film, which was itself based on a novel by Richard Hooker, the pseudonym of H. Richard Hornberger.
Born as Loretta Jane Szwed in Passaic, New Jersey, on November 4, 1937, to Polish immigrant parents, she found her way through the English language due to her young love for movies. According to the Washington post, aspirations of wanting to become an actress took over conviction by the age of 7. She eventually attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Light comic roles became her specialty while working for repertory companies. Ultimately she founder her breakout roll in the 1960s, as she took on the responsibility to portray Agnes Gooch in a national tour of the musical “Mame.”
Swit played the prominent role of US Army nurse Major Margaret ‘Hot Lips’ Houlihan in MASH, which was aired from 1972 to 1983. She met her ex-husband, Dennis Holahan on the show, where he made guest appearance as Per Johannsen. The show was based on the 1968 book, MASH: A Novel About Three Army Doctors, written by a former Army surgeon. It was one of the most successful series in US television history- with season finale the most watched episode. It won the Impact Award at the 2009 TV Land annual awards. It won a Peabody Award in 1975 “for the depth of its humor and the manner in which comedy is used to lift the spirit and, as well, to offer a profound statement on the nature of war.”
We are shocked and deeply saddened by the sudden passing of our beloved Loretta Swit. We will have more to say in the coming days, but for now, we offer a heartfelt and reluctant Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen to our favorite Major.
As reported by AP, she appeared in nearly every episode of MASH, which explored themes like racism, sexism and PTSD. Apart from MASH, she also appeared in other television shows like The Muppet Show, Mission: Impossible and Murder, She Wrote.
