Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Famed For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at the Age of 89.
The Academy Award-nominated actress Diane Ladd passed away at the age of 89.
The actress, whose credits spanned Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, left this world in her residence at her Ojai, California home. This announcement was revealed through a message from her daughter, award-winning actress her daughter Laura Dern.
Laura Dern, who starred with her mother in various films like Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, described her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift as a mother”, noting that she was present during her final moments.
“She was the most wonderful grandmother, mother, daughter, actress, artist as well as empathetic spirit that felt like a dream come true,” she expressed. “We were blessed to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Early Career and Rise to Fame
Ladd’s early career featured supporting roles in TV shows like Perry Mason while the seventies saw her starring alongside Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
During that year, 1974, she shared the screen with Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated comedy drama Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. Her role brought Ladd her first Oscar nomination as best supporting actress.
Later Decades
In the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow, a suspense story plus humorous film Christmas Vacation and appeared on the show Alice, a television series based on Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she received an additional best supporting actress Oscar nomination for her part in the David Lynch film the movie Wild at Heart where she acted as the parent of her biological child Laura Dern’s role. The following year she obtained an additional nod for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie which included Dern.
“This was the picture that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she flew us to London for a royal premiere and an event dedicated to us,” Ladd said regarding Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, and weeping, watching us perform.”
The 1990s included parts in comedy Cemetery Club reuniting her with her co-star Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political comedy, starring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she acted as the mother of Dern another time. Those years also brought her Emmy nominations for work on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Collaborations with Daughter
She kept appearing with her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, a movie, David Lynch’s Inland Empire, a surreal film and Mike White’s comedy-drama series Enlightened. She additionally starred alongside actress Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in that movie plus Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Her later TV roles featured Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon.
Writing and Directing
She also authored and oversaw the humorous movie the movie Mrs Munck that included Diane Ladd and ex-husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she said. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. Actually, I’m the only woman ever to helm a film with her ex. I make a joke: ‘I say ladies, should you desire retribution, direct your ex-husband.’ But I’m only kidding.”
Family Ties
Ladd was also the third cousin of the great Tennessee Williams, who she called “a great influence on my life”.
In 2018, doctors misdiagnosed Ladd with lung disease and informed she had just six months to live but she regained full health when her daughter transferred her to a new hospital.
“If you can take your pain and prevent it from festering like an injury, rather utilize it to explore, to make the path clearer for you and those around, then you are triumphing,” Ladd remarked.
