Diane Ladd, Famed For Her Performance in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Dies at 89 Years Old.
This award-nominated actress Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran has died aged 89.
This actress, whose credits featured National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, died at her home in Ojai, California. The news was revealed in a statement shared by her daughter, award-winning actress her daughter Laura Dern.
Dern, who starred with her mom in a number of films like Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, called her “my incredible hero and my precious gift as a mother”, stating that she was by her side when she passed.
“She was an exceptional daughter, mother, grandmother, star, artist along with empathetic spirit that seemed almost dreamlike,” she wrote. “We were blessed to have her. She is now with the angels.”
Early Career and Breakthrough
The start of her career featured minor parts in TV shows such as The Fugitive whereas that decade had her appearing next to Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
During that year, 1974, she appeared with Ellen Burstyn in the Martin Scorsese celebrated dramatic comedy Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. Her acting earned Ladd her first Oscar nomination in the supporting actress category.
Later Decades
In the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow plus funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on Alice, a sitcom inspired by her earlier movie.
During the next ten years, she received an additional Oscar nomination for supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her performance in Lynch’s Wild at Heart where she played the parent of her biological child Laura Dern’s role. The following year she was awarded an additional nod for her role in Rambling Rose which also starred Laura Dern.
“This movie that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she invited Laura and I to the UK for a premiere and a celebration dedicated to us,” Ladd said of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, grasping our hands, and crying, viewing our performance.”
That decade also saw roles in the comedy Cemetery Club reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a satirical film, starring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she played the mother of Dern once more. That period also brought her TV award nominations for performances on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.
Working with Laura Dern
She persisted in performing 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 also appeared alongside Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Her more recent television parts consisted of Ray Donovan plus Young Sheldon.
Filmmaking Ventures
She additionally penned and directed the comedy film Mrs Munck which starred herself and previous spouse Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she noted. “It was a privilege to guide him on a project. In fact, I am the sole female ever to helm a film with her ex. I often joke: ‘I advise females, if you seek payback, helm a movie with your ex.’ But I’m only kidding.”
Personal Connections
She happened to be a family member of the great Tennessee Williams, who she called “a major inspiration in my life”.
During 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a respiratory illness and told she had just six months to live yet she recovered completely once her daughter moved her to a new hospital.
“Should you harness your suffering and prevent it from festering like an injury, instead use it to investigate, to make the path clearer for personal and collective growth, then you are triumphing,” Ladd said.
