Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Jenna Ortega’s name.
(NEXSTAR) – Lisa Loring, the actress best known for portraying Wednesday Addams in “The Addams Family,” has died, her family confirmed to Variety on Sunday night.
She died following a stroke, Variety reported. She was 64 years old.
Loring starred in the original version of the series starting in 1964, when she was only 6 years old. She stayed on for both seasons before the show went off the air.
Her iconic character Wednesday, known for her moody demeanor and long pigtails, has had a resurgence in popularity in recent months since the release of Netflix’s “Wednesday.” In the new series, Jenna Ortega plays a teenage Wednesday Addams. One scene of her dancing in the show has gone viral.
To choreograph the dance, Ortega said she drew inspiration from Loring’s portrayal of Wednesday, who had her own signature dance moves.
“I knew there were certain things that I wanted to do. I paid homage to Lisa Loring, the first Wednesday Addams. I did a little bit of a shuffle that she does,” Ortega told Jimmy Fallon in an interview on “The Tonight Show.” “And, of course, they cut out of camera when I did do it. But it’s there, I know it is.”
“(Loring) is embedded in the tapestry that is pop culture and in our hearts always as Wednesday Addams,” wrote friend Laurie Jacobson on Facebook. “Beautiful, kind, a loving mother, Lisa’s legacy in the world of entertainment is huge. And the legacy for her family and friends — a wealth of humor, affection and love will long play in our memories.”
Loring also appeared in “As the World Turns” in the 1980s, alongside Frank Stallone in the movie “Savage Harbor,” and more recently in the experimental indie flick “Way Down in Chinatown” in 2014, according to her IMDb page.
