Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Famed For Her Performance in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at 89 Years Old.
This Academy Award-nominated actor the celebrated Diane Ladd left us 89 years old.
The star, whose roles featured Chinatown, passed away at home in Ojai, California. This announcement was shared through a message shared by her child, Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern.
Her daughter, who appeared with her mother in a number of films including Wild at Heart, described her as “my wonderful hero as well as my special gift being my mom”, stating that she was present during her final moments.
“She was an exceptional grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative and empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she expressed. “We were blessed to have her. Her spirit soars with angels.”
Early Career and Breakthrough
The start of her career featured minor parts on television series including Perry Mason while that decade featured her performing next to actor Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.
In the same year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s praised dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance brought Ladd her initial Oscar nod in the supporting actress category.
Later Decades
In the 1980s, she starred in the dramatic film Black Widow as well as funny follow-up Christmas Vacation while also joining the show Alice, a sitcom inspired by Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she received an additional best supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her part in the David Lynch film the movie Wild at Heart where she acted as the mom of her actual daughter Dern’s character. The following year she was awarded an additional nod for her acting in the film Rambling Rose that also featured her daughter.
“This was the film that Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she brought us to London for a royal premiere and an event dedicated to us,” Ladd said regarding Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, taking our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”
The 1990s included parts in humorous films The Cemetery Club bringing her back with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, featuring John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s the movie Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed Laura Dern’s mom again. That period also saw her score TV award nominations for performances in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.
Working with Laura Dern
She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, a movie, David Lynch’s Inland Empire and the series by Mike White satirical show the program Enlightened. She also appeared alongside actress Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in that movie and with Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Subsequent TV appearances featured Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon.
Behind the Camera
She also authored and oversaw the comedy the movie Mrs Munck that included Diane Ladd and previous spouse Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she mentioned. “It was a privilege to guide him on a project. Actually, I stand as the only woman in recorded history who directed her former husband. I make a joke: ‘I advise females, should you desire retribution, direct your ex-husband.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Family Ties
She happened to be the third cousin of playwright Tennessee Williams, who she referred to as “a major inspiration on my life”.
During 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a pulmonary condition and advised she had just six months to live but made a full recovery once her daughter moved her to a new hospital.
“Should you harness your suffering and avoid letting it accumulate similar to a wound, instead use it to explore, to clarify the journey for yourself and others, then you are winning,” Ladd expressed.