Lisa Loring, known around the world for playing Wednesday in the 1964 Addams Family television series, has passed away at the age of 64. Laurie Jacobson, who was friends with the actress, reported the news through a Facebook post. Loring had suffered a massive stroke around four days prior to her death and had been connected to life support for the next three days until her family made the difficult decision of removing it. The actress’ daughter, Vanessa Foumberg, confirmed to Variety that Loring passed away on Saturday, “peacefully, with both her daughters holding her hands.”

Loring was born on Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, on February 16, 1958. After moving to Los Angeles with her mother, the young actress began modeling when she was three years old, while also appearing in an episode of the 1961 series Doctor Kildare. The same year she appeared in the show, led by Richard Chamberlain, Loring was cast as Wednesday in The Addams Family, where she would play the character over the course of two seasons until the program’s cancelation. Besides playing the iconic Addams character during her childhood, Loring also appeared in programs such as As The World Turns, The Pruitts of Southampton, and the 1987 film Blood Frenzy. The actress was married four times during her life, and she is survived by her two daughters.

Loring‘s cultural impact could be seen more recently in the Netflix series Wednesday, which recently got renewed for a second season. In this new iteration of the Addams Family, Jenna Ortega plays a teenage version of the iconic character. Ortega‘s adaptation of Loring‘s dance, known as The Drew, gained massive popularity on social media when the show was released in November of last year. While there isn’t much of information currently available regarding the second season of the show, some of the main cast is expected to return in order to continue the story.

While there are many different interpretations of the Wednesday Addams character across different television shows, films and a couple of Broadway musicals, Loring‘s performance set the tone for every other incarnation to come after her. The famous hairstyle, signature humor, and terrific charm of the character all come from the actress’ performance in the 1964 original series. It is wonderful to see Loring‘s impact bring joy to so many people, as the world mourns a talented entertainer and a pop culture icon. Our thoughts are with her loved ones.

via Collider