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This award-nominated actress Diane Ladd passed away 89 years old.

The actor, with credits included Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, died at her home at her Ojai, California home. The news was announced through a message shared by her offspring, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern.

Laura Dern, who starred with Diane Ladd in various films including Wild at Heart, called her “my amazing hero plus my special gift as a mother”, stating that she was by her side during her final moments.

“She was the most wonderful grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative along with empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she wrote. “We were lucky to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”

Early Career and Major Success

The start of her career saw supporting roles in television programs like The Fugitive and the seventies had her appearing alongside actor Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.

During that year, the year 1974, she performed with actress Ellen Burstyn in the Martin Scorsese acclaimed film the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance landed Ladd an Academy Award nomination as best supporting actress.

Later Decades

During the eighties, she was seen in the thriller the movie Black Widow as well as humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on the sitcom Alice, a television series derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

During the next ten years, she received another Oscar nomination for supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her performance in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart, a cult classic in which she portrayed the mom of her biological child Dern’s character. A year later she was awarded an additional nod for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred Dern.

“This movie that Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she invited me and Laura to London for a special screening and an event dedicated to us,” Ladd said of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, and crying, viewing our performance.”

The nineties featured performances in humorous films The Cemetery Club joining her again with Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a political comedy, starring John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she acted as Laura Dern’s mom another time. Those years also saw her score TV award nominations for performances on Dr Quinn, the show Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in comedy drama Daddy and Them, a movie, Lynch’s Inland Empire and White’s satirical show Enlightened. She was also seen alongside Sandra Bullock, a star in 28 Days, a movie, Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.

Subsequent TV appearances included Ray Donovan, a drama plus Young Sheldon.

Behind the Camera

Ladd also wrote and helmed the comedy Mrs Munck which starred herself and former husband Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she said. “It was a privilege to guide him on a project. In fact, I stand as the only woman ever to helm a film with her ex. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, guide your former spouse.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Personal Connections

She happened to be the third cousin of playwright Tennessee Williams, who she called “a major inspiration on my life”.

Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a pulmonary condition and advised she only had half a year left but made a full recovery after her daughter transferred her to a new hospital.

“If you can take your pain and avoid letting it accumulate similar to a wound, rather utilize it to explore, to illuminate the way for yourself and others, then you are winning,” Ladd said.