After training at Northwestern's famed Drama Department, Swenson made a splash on Broadway in "The First Gentleman" (1959), earning strong reviews and being lured to Hollywood, where she had strong featured roles in Advise & Consent (1962) and The Miracle Worker (1962). She later returned to Broadway, where she earned Tony nominations as Best Actress in a Musical for her work in "110 In The Shade" (1964) and "Baker Street" (1965).
Is a lyric soprano.
Is perhaps best-known to a later generation in the atypical role of tart-tongued, German-accented executive housekeeper Gretchen Kraus on the popular 1980s TV series "Benson" (1979) (ABC: 1979-86). The thick accent required of the character led many fans at the time to mistakenly believe Swenson was actually German, when in real life she speaks perfect English.
Son James Harris died in a motorcycle crash at age 26 in 1987. Son Mark Harris is a film editor.