Acclaimed Actress Diane Ladd, Famed For Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Dies at Age 89.
The Oscar-nominated actress Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran passed away at the age of 89.
This actor, whose credits included Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, died at her home in Ojai, California. The news was shared in a statement from her daughter, award-winning actress her daughter Laura Dern.
Dern, who appeared with Diane Ladd in a number of films like Rambling Rose, called her “my incredible hero as well as my profound gift as a mother”, noting that she was present during her final moments.
“She was an exceptional grandmother, mother, daughter, actress, artist and empathetic spirit that felt like a dream come true,” she expressed. “We were lucky to have her. Her spirit soars with angels.”
Early Career and Breakthrough
Her initial acting years included minor parts on television series such as The Fugitive while the 1970s had her appearing alongside Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.
During that year, 1974, she appeared with Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s acclaimed comedy drama the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role brought Ladd her first Oscar nomination in the supporting actress category.
1980s and Beyond
In the 1980s, she appeared in the dramatic film the movie Black Widow plus funny follow-up National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and also took part in the show Alice, a comedy program based on the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.
In the subsequent decade, she received an additional Oscar nomination for supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her part in David Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she acted as the mother of her real-life daughter Dern’s character. A year later she received a further nomination for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie which included her daughter.
“This was the picture which Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she invited us to England for a special screening and an event in our honor,” Ladd said of Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, holding both our hands, and crying, watching us perform.”
That decade included parts in humorous films Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, with John Travolta and Alexander Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she played Laura Dern’s mom again. The decade also earned her nominations for Emmy Awards for roles on Dr Quinn, the show Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.
Working with Laura Dern
She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, Lynch’s Inland Empire and the series by Mike White satirical show Enlightened, a TV series. She additionally starred with Sandra Bullock, a star in 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in that movie and with Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.
Her later TV roles consisted of Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon, a comedy.
Filmmaking Ventures
She additionally penned and helmed the humorous movie Mrs Munck, a film that included her and previous spouse actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she noted. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Actually, I stand as the only woman ever to helm a film with her ex. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, helm a movie with your ex.’ Though I’m just teasing.”
Family Ties
She was additionally the third cousin of the great Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a significant impact on my life”.
In 2018, doctors misdiagnosed Ladd with a pulmonary condition and informed her life expectancy was six months but she regained full health when her daughter transferred her to a different hospital.
“When you use your pain and prevent it from festering like an injury, instead apply it to discover, to clarify the journey for you and those around, then you are succeeding,” Ladd remarked.
