Sad news during the holiday season this year, as we’ve learned that actress Heather Menzies-Urich passed away on Christmas Eve at 68, succumbing to brain cancer.

Born December 3, 1949 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Heather Menzies-Urich got her start in Hollywood as Louisa in 1965’s The Sound of Music, subsequently becoming a star in the world of horror with both Sssssss and Joe Dante’s Piranha in the ’70s.

Dante remembered Menzies in a touching tribute on Twitter.

“A lovely person who was immensely helpful and supportive as the star of PIRANHA, my first solo directing job,” Dante tweeted. “She and Brad Dillman made an amusing mismatched couple and carried the John Sayles script to a level of success that surprised even me.”

Menzies, who married Robert Urich in 1975, also starred in “The Farmer’s Daughter,” “Logan’s Run,” and “The Love Boat.” She played Dr. Wendy Day in 1979’s Captain America.