Lisa Loring remembers being the original Wednesday Addams on TV

By Ron Cerabona
Updated February 26 2017 - 1:13pm, first published 11:44am
In <i>The Addams Family</i>(1964-1966). TV series. [L-R, behind the chair]: Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan); Lurch (Ted Cassidy); Grandmama Addams (Blossom Rock). [L-R, front row]: Gomez Addams (John Astin); Wednesday (Lisa Loring); Morticia Addams (Carolyn Jones); Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax).  Photo: Internet
In <i>The Addams Family</i>(1964-1966). TV series. [L-R, behind the chair]: Uncle Fester (Jackie Coogan); Lurch (Ted Cassidy); Grandmama Addams (Blossom Rock). [L-R, front row]: Gomez Addams (John Astin); Wednesday (Lisa Loring); Morticia Addams (Carolyn Jones); Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax). Photo: Internet

Lisa Loring describes her life as "surreal". Perhaps that's apt for someone who from the ages of six to eight played the grim-visaged young Wednesday Addams in the good-naturedly gloomy 1964-66 sitcom The Addams Family. In her 59 years. Loring has seen and done a lot: her parents were divoced shortly after she was born, her mother died from alcoholism at the age of 34, she's been married four times - the first at 15 - and divorced three times, she's had two children, survived the problems of being a former child star and the ups and downs of a Hollywood career, overcome drug addiction and survived with good humour and resilience. While she's never seen The Addams Family musical - the night she was meant to go an urgent personal matter arose - she betrays no sign of bitterness at all that someone else has taken on "her" role. She also enjoyed the movies, although she notes they were darker in tone than the original series.