Loretta Swit, "Hot Lips" Houlihan

 By Bruce Shawkey

I had an encountered with Loretta Swit at an International Gem and Jewelry Show outside Chicago in the 1990s. For several years, I took my wife Gwen there to pick out something for her Christmas present. Loretta, retired from MASH, was one of the "star" vendors of the show, selling her fashion jewelry.

Anyway, Gwen and I were getting ready to leave the show, and I ran our luggage out to the car, which was parked in a ramp. Who should I encounter but Loretta Swit in the parking garage? She and a helper were waiting for the elevator. It was taking too long, and I finally offered to take her suitcase up to her car, a couple of levels up. I told her it would be my pleasure, because then I would have a good story to tell my friends.

I carried her suitcase up to the floor her car was on, and then she took it from there. The encounter probably lasted all of 10 minutes, but it is a memory that has stuck with me through the years. She gave up the jewelry business and devoted herself animal welfare. She was born November 4, 1937. Her given name is Loretta Jane Szwed (of Polish descent), but she took the stage name Loretta Swit. One of her last TV appearances was on the gameshow Hollywood Squares in 2004.

Loretta Swit died May 30, 2025 at age 87.

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