Charmian Carr, Actress Best Known For ‘The Sound of Music’, Dies At 73

Charmian Carr passed away Saturday, September 17th, 2016 at the age of 73.

The actress, best known for her role of the oldest Von Trapp child in  Sound of Music, had been suffering from a rare form of dementia, which led to her untimely passing.

Charmian played Liesel Von Trapp alongside the likes of Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. She was 21 when the film debuted 51 years ago.

Her big moment in the musical came when she sang the pivotal song “Sixteen Going On Seventeen”. After The Sound Of Music, her only other big Hollywood credit is from the Stephen Sondheim television musical Evening Primrose.

“It’s always sad when a member of the family passes away — and in the case of the ‘family’ of the movie ‘The Sound of Music,’ it’s especially sad when it is the first of the group to go,” said Ted Chapin, president of the Rogers & Hammerstein organization, in a statement.

Charmian wrote the books Forever Liesl and Letters to Liesl,  about her experiences during and after The Sound of Music. She fully embraced the musical’s popularity and often would attend fan events.

After leaving Hollywood, she became an interior designer in Southern California. One of her clients included the late Michael Jackson.