Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Known For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at the Age of 89.
The award-nominated actress the celebrated Diane Ladd passed away at the age of 89.
This star, whose filmography spanned National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, passed away at home in Ojai, California. The news was shared via an announcement shared by her child, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern, her daughter.
Dern, who starred with her mom in a number of films including Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my incredible hero as well as my precious gift being my mom”, stating that she was at her bedside when she passed.
“She was the greatest grandmother, mother, daughter, star, artist as well as compassionate soul that seemed almost dreamlike,” she stated. “We were lucky to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Early Career and Major Success
The start of her career included minor parts in television programs like Perry Mason and the seventies had her appearing alongside the legendary Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
In the same year, 1974, she performed alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. Her acting brought Ladd her first Oscar nomination as best supporting actress.
Subsequent Years
Throughout the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow and comedy sequel National Lampoon’s holiday comedy while also joining Alice, a television series derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
During the next ten years, she was given another supporting actress nomination for her part in Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she acted as the mother of her biological child the character played by Dern. The next year she received another nomination for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred her daughter.
“This movie that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she brought us to the UK for a special screening and an event for us,” Ladd shared about the film Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, and weeping, watching us perform.”
The nineties featured performances in comedy The Cemetery Club bringing her back with Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a satirical film, starring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed the mother of Dern another time. Those years also brought her nominations for Emmy Awards for roles in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Working with Laura Dern
She kept appearing alongside her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, a movie, the David Lynch project Inland Empire, a surreal film and the series by Mike White dark comedy series Enlightened, a TV series. She was also seen next to actress Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Sir Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Her later TV roles featured Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon.
Writing and Directing
She also authored and helmed the humorous movie the movie Mrs Munck featuring her and ex-husband Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is a great actor,” she noted. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. Indeed, I’m the only woman ever to direct her ex-husband. I often joke: ‘I say ladies, if you seek payback, direct your ex-husband.’ However, I’m joking.”
Personal Life
Ladd was also the third cousin of Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a significant impact throughout my life”.
Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a pulmonary condition and informed she only had half a year left but made a full recovery when her daughter transferred her to a different hospital.
“When you use your pain and avoid letting it accumulate like a sore or something, instead use it to discover, to clarify the journey for you and those around, then you are succeeding,” Ladd expressed.
