Comprehensive information and links about Loretta Swit

Loretta Swit (November 4, 1937) was born in Passaic, New Jersey, USA to Polish immigrants. She is an actress.

Loretta studied with Gene Frankel in Manhattan and considered him her acting coach. She regularly returned to his studio to speak with aspiring actors throughout her career.

Starting in 1972, she played the character of Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan in the television series , until its end in 1983. This was the show that made her a household name.

She toured in 1967 with the national touring company "Any Wednesday", starring Gardner McKay. She would continue on as a Pigeon sister opposite Don Rickles and Ernest Borgnine in a LA run of "The Odd Couple". From there, she played Agnes Gooch in the Las Vegas version of "Mame" starring Susan Hayward and later Celeste Holm. In 1991 she won the Sarah Siddons Award for her work in Chicago theatre.

When she arrived in Hollywood in 1970, she performed in certain shows such as "Gunsmoke", "Hawaii-Five O" and "Mannix". Her star-making role, however, is that of Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan , inherited from Sally Kellerman. She, besides Alan Alda, Jamie Farr and William Christopher, stayed for all 11 seasons of the show. She and Alan Alda were the only 2 actors to have been on the Pilot episode and the finale. Among the 251 episodes, she did not appear in 11. She received 2 Emmy Awards for the show. She has also guest starred in shows such as "Hawaii-Five O", "The Love Boat", "Pyramid" and the latest is "Hollywood Squares". In 1981 Swit played the but was precluded by contractual obligations from continuing the role.

She is also believed to be the person who inspired Jim Henson to create Miss Piggy.

She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1989. She married Dennis Holahan in 1983 but divorced him in 1995. She is 5"6 ft (1.68 m) and wears a U.S. size 7 shoe. She has also written a book on needlepoint. She was also the first star to visit Korea when she narrated the documentary, "Korea, the Forgotten War." She also has her own line of jewelry which is sold at stores across the United States.

She is a very strong advocate for animals, donating much of her time to animal related causes. Over the years she has owned horses, dogs and cats. Presently, she owns a cat.