Diane Ladd, Famed For Her Role in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Dies at Age 89.
The award-nominated actor Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran left us aged 89.
This actress, with filmography spanned National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, left this world in her residence at her Ojai, California home. This announcement was shared in a statement from her daughter, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern.
Her daughter, who performed alongside her mother in various films like Rambling Rose, described her as “my incredible hero as well as my precious gift as a mother”, noting that she was at her bedside during her final moments.
“She was the greatest mother, daughter, grandmother, star, artist and compassionate soul that seemed almost dreamlike,” she expressed. “We were fortunate to know her. She is now with the angels.”
Beginnings and Breakthrough
The start of her career featured small roles on television series including Perry Mason whereas that decade saw her starring next to Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.
During that year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s praised film the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance brought Ladd her initial Oscar nod for best supporting actress.
Subsequent Years
During the eighties, she was seen in the thriller the movie Black Widow plus humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation while also joining the sitcom Alice, a comedy program derived from her earlier movie.
In the following decade, she was given an additional supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her role in Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she played the parent of her real-life daughter the character played by Dern. A year later she was awarded another nomination for her role in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred her daughter.
“This movie which Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she brought me and Laura to the UK for a royal premiere and an event in our honor,” Ladd recalled of Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”
The 1990s featured performances in comedy Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, with John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s the movie Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed the mother of Dern once more. The decade also saw her score nominations for Emmy Awards for work on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel.
Collaborations with Daughter
She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project the movie Inland Empire and Mike White’s comedy-drama series Enlightened. She also appeared alongside Sandra Bullock, a star in 28 Days, a movie, Anthony Hopkins in that movie and with Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.
Her later TV roles consisted of Ray Donovan, a drama plus Young Sheldon.
Behind the Camera
She also authored and helmed the humorous movie Mrs Munck featuring her and former husband Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she said. “I was honored to direct him in a film. Indeed, I am the sole female in recorded history to direct her ex-husband. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you want revenge, helm a movie with your ex.’ But I’m only kidding.”
Personal Life
Ladd was also the third cousin of playwright Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a great influence on my life”.
Back in 2018, doctors misdiagnosed Ladd with lung disease and advised she had just six months to live but made a full recovery when her daughter shifted her to another medical facility.
“When you use your pain and not let it back up like a sore or something, rather utilize it to discover, to illuminate the way for you and those around, then you are succeeding,” Ladd remarked.
