Diane Ladd, Celebrated For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Dies at the Age of 89.
This award-nominated actor Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran left us at the age of 89.
The star, with filmography included Chinatown, left this world in her residence in Ojai, California. The news was revealed via an announcement by her daughter, Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern, her daughter.
Her daughter, who performed alongside Diane Ladd in various films such as Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift of a mother”, stating that she was present during her final moments.
“She was the greatest mother, daughter, grandmother, performer, creative along with empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she stated. “We were blessed to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Early Career and Breakthrough
Her initial acting years included supporting roles on television series like Perry Mason while the 1970s had her appearing next to Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
During that year, 1974, she shared the screen alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role landed Ladd an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actress.
Subsequent Years
During the eighties, she was seen in crime thriller Black Widow as well as funny follow-up National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and also took part in the show Alice, a comedy program based on her earlier movie.
During the next ten years, she earned another supporting actress Oscar nomination for her performance in David Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she acted as the mom of her actual daughter Dern’s character. The following year she obtained an additional nod for her performance in the film Rambling Rose that also featured Laura Dern.
“This was the film that the late Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she flew us to England for a premiere and a celebration dedicated to us,” Ladd recalled regarding Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, taking our hands, with tears, watching us perform.”
That decade also saw roles in humorous films Cemetery Club, a film joining her again with Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a satirical film, with John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed the mother of Dern again. The decade also brought her nominations for Emmy Awards for performances in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Working with Laura Dern
She kept appearing with her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, a movie, the David Lynch project Inland Empire and the series by Mike White comedy-drama series the program Enlightened. She was also seen alongside actress Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Sir Anthony Hopkins in that movie and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.
Her later TV roles included Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon.
Behind the Camera
She additionally penned and oversaw the comedy the movie Mrs Munck featuring Diane Ladd and former husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she noted. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Actually, I’m the only woman in history who directed her former husband. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, direct your ex-husband.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Personal Connections
Ladd was also a family member of Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a major inspiration on my life”.
In 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a pulmonary condition and advised she had just six months to live but made a full recovery after her daughter shifted her to another medical facility.
“If you can take your pain and not let it back up similar to a wound, instead apply it to investigate, to illuminate the way for yourself and others, then you are winning,” Ladd said.
