Loretta Swit and the Evolution of ‘Hotlips Houlihan’

Margaret ‘Hotlips’ Houlihan was first seen on the screen in Robert Altman’s classic anti-war comedy MASH. Played by Sally Kellerman, ‘Hotlips’ was a very ditzy nurse in the Korean conflict, obsessed with two things:

1. Kanoodling with Frank Burns (Robert Duvall) 
2. Following all the rules, and tattling on those who didn’t—particularly rebellious doctors Hawkeye Pierce (Donald Sutherland) and Trapper John (Elliott Gould)

Of the Best Picture nominees’ five nods, Kellerman was the only actor to be recognized in a performance category. 

It’s an unusual thing for the television version of a film to take hold with audiences in a way that is greater than its big screen compatriot, but that’s just what happened over the series version’s eleven seasons. ‘Hotlips’ was brought to the small screen by writer Larry Gelbart and played by Loretta Swit. The character was much like its big-screen counterpart in that it evolved considerably over time. At first, the show was treated by the network in a standard sitcom fashion despite its satirical origins, and often dark storylines about life in a MASH unit for the doctors and nurses who treated wounded soldiers. There was a laugh track and a thirty-minute run time (with commercials). 

However, as the series became a huge hit, the show’s creators and runners began to move away from the standard sitcom format. The laugh track was reduced until it was taken entirely out of the operating room, and in its final season (1983), it was removed completely. As the show changed, so did Swit’s portrayal of ‘Hotlips.’ At the beginning of the series’ fabled run, Swit was practically doing an impersonation of Kellerman’s performance. The shallowness of the character was amusing for a two-hour movie, but playing that character in that way for eleven years in a series would have resulted in deeply diminishing returns. 

Seemingly aware of this, the writers made ‘Hotlips’ continually more complex and weighty. Swit was well up to the challenge, and from 1974 to 1983, you could save a space for Swit in the category of Best Supporting Actress for nine of those years. Somewhere around the midpoint of that era, you could see ‘Hotlips’ become Margaret. Sure, her “stickler for the rules” nature was always in play, but the ditziness would disappear altogether. The character so desperate to get Hawkeye (Alan Alda), Trapper (Wayne Rogers), and later, BJ Honeycutt (Mike Farrell) into trouble, became a far more sensitive and thoughtful soul. As the openly feminist Alan Alda took increasing control of the show, so did Margaret develop as a character. 

Gone was the woman tattling on those who bent (or broke) the rules. Gone was the woman who couldn’t wait to kiss the thin lips of Frank Burns (Larry Linville). And gone would be that simplistic version of Margaret Houlihan. It is to Swit’s great credit that she was able to switch the tone of the character in such a fulsome manner. The fact that the show was barely a sitcom at all by its legendary final episode speaks to the growth of the series and the growth of Margaret Houlihan. 

Swit would win two Emmys out of those ten times she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. Her two victories came in 1980 and 1982, when the character was almost unrecognizable from its origins. Swit and Houlihan completed a nearly 180-degree turn over those eleven years—a stupendous feat. She was so successful that when people think of ‘Hotlips’ now, I doubt they think of Kellerman. I bet they think of Swit. She stole the ownership of the part from Kellerman. 

While Swit never latched onto such a significant part before or after MASH, she almost did in 1981 as Detective Christine Cagney in the TV film Cagney & Lacey. Swit was on the precipice of leaving MASH when the film was picked up as a full series the following year. Twentieth Century Fox (the Studio behind MASH) would not allow her departure, forcing Swit to stay under contract for the series’ final two seasons. Cagney & Lacey ran for six full seasons from 1982 to 1988, and Gless earned six Emmy nominations (winning once). I can only imagine that Swit would have liked to have scored another signature role. 

Instead, she’ll have to settle for Margaret Houlihan, a character who went from being a punchline to a very human character. It’s one of the greatest transformations of a character in TV history. Now that I’ve said that, I just realized that doesn’t sound much like settling at all. 

Loretta Swit died on May 30, 2025. She was 87 years old.