Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Celebrated For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Dies at 89 Years Old.
The Academy Award-nominated actor Diane Ladd left us aged 89.
The actor, with roles included National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, left this world in her residence in California’s Ojai. The news was revealed through a message shared by her offspring, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern, her daughter.
Laura Dern, who starred with her mother in several movies such as Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my wonderful hero and my precious gift of a mother”, stating that she was by her side as she died.
“She was the greatest mother, daughter, grandmother, actress, artist along with compassionate soul that felt like a dream come true,” she wrote. “We were fortunate to know her. She is now with the angels.”
Initial Roles and Breakthrough
The start of her career featured supporting roles in television programs including Perry Mason and the 1970s had her appearing next to the legendary Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.
That very year, the year 1974, she performed with Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s praised comedy drama Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. The performance landed Ladd her initial Oscar nod in the supporting actress category.
Subsequent Years
Throughout the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow, a suspense story plus funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation while also joining the sitcom Alice, a comedy program based on the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she earned another supporting actress nomination for her performance in Lynch’s Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she acted as the mother of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. The next year she obtained another nomination for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie that also featured Laura Dern.
“This movie that the late Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she invited Laura and I to London for a special screening and an event for us,” Ladd shared of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, taking our hands, and crying, viewing our performance.”
That decade included parts in the comedy Cemetery Club, a film joining her again with Ellen Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a satirical film, starring John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s Citizen Ruth where she played Laura Dern’s mom once more. Those years also saw her score nominations for Emmy Awards for performances in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel.
Partnerships with Her Daughter
She continued to star alongside her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, David Lynch’s Inland Empire and the series by Mike White satirical show the program Enlightened. She was also seen with Sandra Bullock, a star in 28 Days, a movie, Sir Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.
Her more recent television parts featured Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon, a comedy.
Behind the Camera
Ladd also wrote and oversaw the comedy Mrs Munck, a film that included her and previous spouse actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she noted. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Indeed, I am the sole female in history to direct her ex-husband. I make a joke: ‘I say ladies, if you want revenge, helm a movie with your ex.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Personal Connections
She was additionally the third cousin of Tennessee Williams, who she referred to as “a major inspiration on my life”.
During 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a respiratory illness and informed her life expectancy was six months but made a full recovery once her daughter moved her to a different hospital.
“If you can take your pain and prevent it from festering like a sore or something, rather utilize it to investigate, to make the path clearer for yourself and others, then you are succeeding,” Ladd expressed.
