Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Famed For Her Role in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at Age 89.
The award-nominated actress Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran has died at the age of 89.
The actress, with filmography included Chinatown, left this world in her residence in California’s Ojai. This announcement was shared in a statement by her daughter, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern, her daughter.
Her daughter, who performed alongside her mom in various films such as Rambling Rose, called her “my incredible hero and my special gift as a mother”, stating that she was by her side during her final moments.
“She was the most wonderful grandmother, mother, daughter, star, artist along with compassionate soul that seemed almost dreamlike,” she expressed. “We were lucky to have her. She is now with the angels.”
Beginnings and Rise to Fame
Her initial acting years saw small roles in TV shows such as The Fugitive while that decade had her appearing with Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
During that year, the year 1974, she appeared with Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s acclaimed comedy drama the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role landed Ladd her initial Oscar nod as best supporting actress.
Later Decades
In the 1980s, she was seen in the dramatic film Black Widow, a suspense story plus funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on the show Alice, a television series inspired by Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the following decade, she was given a further best supporting actress nomination for her part in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart where she acted as the mom of her real-life daughter Dern’s character. The next year she was awarded a further nomination for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie that also featured Laura Dern.
“This movie that the late Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she invited Laura and I to England for a special screening and a party dedicated to us,” Ladd said of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, with tears, viewing our performance.”
The 1990s featured performances in comedy Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a political comedy, featuring John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she played Laura Dern’s mom again. That period also brought her TV award nominations for work on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Collaborations with Daughter
She persisted in performing with Laura Dern in films blending humor and drama the film Daddy and Them, Lynch’s Inland Empire and White’s dark comedy series Enlightened. She also appeared next to actress Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in that movie and Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Her more recent television parts featured Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon, a comedy.
Writing and Directing
She additionally penned and directed the comedy film Mrs Munck which starred herself and former husband Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she said. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Indeed, I stand as the only woman in recorded history who directed her former husband. I often joke: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, helm a movie with your ex.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Personal Life
She was additionally a relative of playwright Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a great influence in my life”.
Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a respiratory illness and advised her life expectancy was six months but she regained full health after her daughter transferred her to a different hospital.
“When you use your pain and not let it back up similar to a wound, instead apply it to explore, to make the path clearer for yourself and others, then you are triumphing,” Ladd said.
