Loretta Swit — ‘Hot Lips’ of `M*A*S*H’ fame — dies at 87

Loretta Swit, who won a pair of Emmy Awards for her portrayal of tough-talking yet big-hearted Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan on the long-running “M*A*S*H” television series, died Friday in New York at age 87.

Her publicist, B. Harlan Boll, said the actress died just after midnight Friday at her home in New York of what appeared to be natural causes.

Swit appeared on all but 11 episodes of the iconic television series and was nominated for Emmy Awards for best supporting actress in 10 of the show’s 11 seasons, winning in 1980 and 1982. She was nominated for four Golden Globe Awards but never won.

Born in New Jersey, Swit began her entertainment career as a singer and appearing in stage productions, most notably sharing the stage with Ernest Borgnine and Don Rickles in a production of “The Odd Couple.”

She eventually landed roles on shows including “Gunsmoke,” “Hawaii Five-O,” and “Mission: Impossible.”

But her major break came with her casting in “M*A*S*H,” taking on the role of Margaret Houlihan, a character who was portrayed in the original movie by Sally Kellerman. Houlihan — along with Maj. Frank Burns, with whom Houlihan maintained an affair during the show’s early seasons — was often a main target of ribbing and practical jokes by Alan Alda’s “Hawkeye” Pierce, Wayne Rogers’ Trapper John McIntyre and Mike Farrell’s B.J. Hunnicut.

Her character — along with most others in the ensemble — evolved over the course of the series as they began to show the emotional impacts of war. Despite their seemingly endless rivalry throughout the run of the show, the series’ finale featured a more-than-30-second kiss between Swit’s Houlihan and Alda’s Hawkeye.

Once the show ended, Swit appeared in films such “S.O.B,” “Beer,” “Forest Warrior” and “Beach Movie,” and in television films such as “Miracle at Moreaux,” “Dreams of Gold: The Mel Fisher Story” and “Hell Hath No Fury.”

Although mostly retired from the entertainment business, Swit was an outspoken supporter of animal-advocacy causes, including serving as a spokeswoman for the U.S. Humane Society.

–City News Service