Carr was born Charmian Farnon on December 27, 1942, in Chicago, Illinois, the second child of Vaudeville actress Rita Oehmen and musician Brian Farnon.
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Cast as “Liesl Van Trapp” in the Academy Award-winning film when she was 21, Carr died Saturday in Woodland Hills, according to an obituary released by a publicist.
Paying tribute to her, 20th Century Fox tweeted, “The Sound of Music lost a beloved member of the family w/ the passing of Charmian Carr”.
After her performance in The Sound of Music, Carr only starred in one other film, 1966’s Evening Primrose. Fellow actress Kym Karath, who played the youngest Von Trapp daughter, Gretyl, had this to say about Carr on Twitter: “It is with infinite sadness that I share the tragic news that the precious & exquisite Charmian Carr, lovely Leisl, has passed away”. She was unshakably loyal, someone of tireless energy both in her work and in attending to those in her life.
Her family moved to Los Angeles when she was 10.
Her mother had arranged for her to audition for the role, although she had had no singing or acting lessons.
Carr penned two books about her experience in this role, 2000’s “Forever Liesl” and 2001’s “Letters to Liesl”. Carr, the mother of two who would later become an interior designer, died September 17, 2016, at 73, leaving a legacy of handsome memories for fans, friends and family.
After leaving showbiz, Charmian became an interior designer and listed celebrities including Michael Jackson as clients.
“The Sound of Music” seven: Charmian Carr, Nicholas Hammond, Heather Menzies, Duane Chase, Angela Cartwright, Debbie Turner and Kym Karath (with Christopher Plummer as Baron von Trapp) in the film.
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“I tell people that they should consider sing-a-long Sound Of Music like going to a therapist”. Eleanor Parker, who played Baroness in the film, died in 2013.
