Acclaimed Actress Diane Ladd, Famed For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at 89 Years Old.
This Oscar-nominated actor the celebrated Diane Ladd left us 89 years old.
This star, whose filmography featured National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, died at her home at her Ojai, California home. The news was revealed in a statement from her daughter, Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern.
Dern, who appeared with her mom in several movies such as Wild at Heart, called her “my incredible hero and my profound gift being my mom”, stating that she was present when she passed.
“She was the greatest mother, daughter, grandmother, actress, artist and empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she stated. “We were lucky to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Early Career and Rise to Fame
The start of her career featured small roles in TV shows including Perry Mason while the 1970s saw her starring next to actor Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.
During that year, the year 1974, she performed with Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s praised dramatic comedy the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance brought Ladd an Academy Award nomination in the supporting actress category.
Subsequent Years
During the eighties, she appeared in crime thriller the movie Black Widow as well as funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and also took part in Alice, a comedy program derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she received a further Oscar nomination for supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role in Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she played the mother of her actual daughter Dern’s character. A year later she obtained another nomination for her role in Rambling Rose that also featured Laura Dern.
“This was the picture which Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she brought Laura and I to the UK for a royal premiere and an event for us,” Ladd recalled of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”
That decade included parts in the comedy Cemetery Club reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a political comedy, with John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s Citizen Ruth where she played Laura Dern’s mom another time. The decade also brought her nominations for Emmy Awards for performances in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.
Partnerships with Her Daughter
She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in comedy drama the film Daddy and Them, David Lynch’s the movie Inland Empire and Mike White’s dark comedy series Enlightened, a TV series. She was also seen alongside actress Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, a movie, Sir Anthony Hopkins in that movie plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.
Her later TV roles included Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon.
Filmmaking Ventures
She additionally penned and oversaw the humorous movie Mrs Munck, a film that included her and ex-husband Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she noted. “It was a privilege to guide him in a movie. In fact, I am the sole female in history who directed her former husband. I often joke: ‘I advise females, if you seek payback, guide your former spouse.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Personal Life
She happened to be a relative of Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a great influence in my life”.
Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with lung disease and informed her life expectancy was six months but she regained full health when her daughter moved her to another medical facility.
“Should you harness your suffering and not let it back up like a sore or something, instead apply it to explore, to illuminate the way for yourself and others, then you are triumphing,” Ladd said.
