Swit wanted to pursue new ground.
M*A*S*H was on air for a whopping eleven years, and in its revolutionary run, it managed to make stars out of nearly every cast member who had worked on it. By the time the series ended, much of the main cast had their pick of which direction they wanted to take their career next. Some pursued other potential television series. Some, like Alan Alda, diversified their career in the entertainment industry by taking on the role of director. To the cast of M*A*S*H, the world was their oyster.
However, Loretta Swit— known for her role as Maj. Margaret Houlihan— had a pretty good idea of what she didn’t want to do with her career: Do another television series.
It was a decision she made as M*A*S*H entered into its later seasons. According to an interview with the Associated Press, Swit stated her desire to exit the series. She said, “It’s up to CBS and Fox whether the series will continue, but I’ll be leaving.”
She also said, “I could have left at the end of the 1975-1976 season, but I was seduced by the material and seduced by the people.” Swit maintained that the decision wasn’t made because of a decline in the series’ quality. The actor said, “It’s very seductive to stay on after ten years of marvelous scripts and the most congenial of people. But my word, it’s time to move on.”
During her time on M*A*S*H, Swit also starred in the CBS movie Cagney and Lacey, a police program that seemed to have the potential to be developed into a series. Still, Swit wasn’t interested, citing that off of television, she was allowed more flexibility and variety in her roles.
She said, “I want to start playing different characters, not the same one week after week.”
