Swit was born in Passaic, New Jersey, U.S., to Polish-Catholic immigrants. She 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. Swit is also a talented singer who trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts before entering the theater.

In 1967, Swit toured with the national company of Any Wednesday, starring Gardner McKay. She would continue on as one of the Pigeon sisters opposite Don Rickles and Ernest Borgnine in a Los Angeles run of The Odd Couple.

In 1975, Swit played in Same Time, Next Year on Broadway opposite Ted Bessell. She also performed on Broadway in The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

From there, she played Agnes Read more...

When Swit arrived in Hollywood in 1970, she performed in television shows including Gunsmoke, Mission: Impossible, Hawaii Five-O and Mannix.

Starting in 1972, Swit played the character of Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan in the television series M*A*S*H. She inherited the star-making role from the similarly large-mouthed actress Sally Kellerman, who portrayed the character in the feature Read more...