Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Celebrated For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Has Died at the Age of 89.
The Academy Award-nominated actress the celebrated Diane Ladd left us aged 89.
The star, with roles spanned National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, died at her home in Ojai, California. Her passing was shared in a statement by her child, award-winning actress Laura Dern.
Laura Dern, who appeared with her mother in various films such as Wild at Heart, referred to her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift as a mother”, writing that she was present during her final moments.
“She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, actress, artist along with caring individual that seemed almost dreamlike,” she stated. “We were lucky to have her. Her spirit soars with angels.”
Initial Roles and Major Success
Her initial acting years included minor parts on television series including Gunsmoke and that decade had her appearing alongside the legendary Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.
In the same year, 1974, she appeared with actress Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her acting earned Ladd an Academy Award nomination in the supporting actress category.
1980s and Beyond
During the eighties, she was seen in the dramatic film Black Widow and funny follow-up National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and appeared on the sitcom Alice, a comedy program based on the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she earned another Oscar nomination for supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her performance in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart where she played the mom of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. The following year she obtained another nomination for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie that also featured Laura Dern.
“This was the picture which Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she invited me and Laura to the UK for a special screening and a party in our honor,” Ladd said regarding Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, grasping our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”
The 1990s included parts in comedy Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with Burstyn, Primary Colors, a satirical film, featuring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed the mother of Dern once more. Those years also earned her nominations for Emmy Awards for performances on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Collaborations with Daughter
She continued to star alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies the film Daddy and Them, Lynch’s Inland Empire, a surreal film and Mike White’s comedy-drama series the program Enlightened. She was also seen alongside Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.
Her more recent television parts featured Ray Donovan, a drama plus Young Sheldon.
Filmmaking Ventures
She additionally penned and directed the comedy film Mrs Munck, a film which starred her and ex-husband Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “I was honored to direct him in a film. Indeed, I stand as the only woman ever who directed her former husband. I make a joke: ‘I advise females, if you seek payback, guide your former spouse.’ However, I’m joking.”
Family Ties
Ladd was also a relative of Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a significant impact throughout my life”.
In 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a pulmonary condition and told she only had half a year left but she regained full health when her daughter shifted her to a different hospital.
“If you can take your pain and avoid letting it accumulate like a sore or something, instead use it to discover, to illuminate the way for personal and collective growth, then you are winning,” Ladd remarked.
