Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Known For Her Role in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at 89 Years Old.
This award-nominated actor Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran passed away aged 89.
The star, whose roles included Chinatown, passed away at home at her Ojai, California home. This announcement was revealed through a message by her offspring, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern.
Her daughter, who starred with her mom in several movies including Wild at Heart, referred to her as “my incredible hero and my precious gift as a mother”, stating that she was at her bedside when she passed.
“She was the greatest grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative and compassionate soul that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she wrote. “We were blessed to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Early Career and Major Success
Her initial acting years featured supporting roles in TV shows such as The Fugitive whereas the seventies saw her starring alongside Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.
In the same year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s praised film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance landed Ladd her initial Oscar nod for best supporting actress.
Later Decades
In the 1980s, she was seen in the thriller the movie Black Widow as well as comedy sequel National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation while also joining Alice, a comedy program inspired by her earlier movie.
In the following decade, she earned a further Oscar nomination for supporting actress Oscar nomination for her performance in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart where she played the mother of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. A year later she obtained a further nomination for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie that also featured Dern.
“This was the picture which Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she flew Laura and I to the UK for a special screening and an event dedicated to us,” Ladd shared regarding Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, taking our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”
The 1990s featured performances in the comedy Cemetery Club, a film bringing her back with Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, starring John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth where she played Dern’s mother another time. That period also brought her nominations for Emmy Awards for work in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Working with Laura Dern
She kept appearing alongside her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, Lynch’s the movie Inland Empire and White’s satirical show the program Enlightened. She additionally starred with actress Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.
Subsequent TV appearances included Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon.
Behind the Camera
She also authored and oversaw the humorous movie Mrs Munck featuring her and ex-husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she said. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. Actually, I am the sole female in recorded history to direct her ex-husband. I make a joke: ‘I advise females, if you want revenge, direct your ex-husband.’ But I’m only kidding.”
Family Ties
She was additionally a family member of playwright Tennessee Williams, who she referred to as “a great influence on my life”.
Back in 2018, doctors misdiagnosed Ladd with a pulmonary condition and advised her life expectancy was six months yet she recovered completely when her daughter moved her to a new hospital.
“If you can take your pain and not let it back up similar to a wound, instead use it to investigate, to illuminate the way for personal and collective growth, then you are succeeding,” Ladd remarked.
