The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization confirmed the news in a statement saying, “Heather was part of ‘the family.’ There is really no other way to describe the members of the cast of the movie of THE SOUND OF MUSIC. And of ‘the kids,’ Heather was a cheerful and positive member of the group, always hoping for the next gathering. We are all lucky to have known her, and she will happily live on in that beautiful movie. We will miss her.”
The star also went on to attain some more notable roles in 1978 film Pirhana and on popular TV shows like The Loveboat.
Speaking to Variety, her son, Ryan Urich, revealed that his mother had recently been diagnosed with brain cancer.
“She was an actress, a ballerina and loved living her life to the fullest,” Urich said. “She was not in any pain but, nearly four weeks after her diagnosis of terminal brain cancer, she had enough and took her last breath on this earth at 7:22 pm.”
The actress passed away on Christmas Eve surrounded by her loved ones.
This article originally appeared on who.com.au
