Oscar-Nominated Star Diane Ladd, Celebrated For Her Performance in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Passes Away at 89 Years Old.

The Academy Award-nominated performer the celebrated Diane Ladd left us at the age of 89.

This actress, with roles included National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, passed away at home in Ojai, California. Her passing was shared via an announcement shared by her daughter, Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern, her daughter.

Her daughter, who performed alongside Diane Ladd in a number of films such as Wild at Heart, described her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift of a mother”, noting that she was at her bedside during her final moments.

“She was the most wonderful daughter, mother, grandmother, star, artist and compassionate soul that felt like a dream come true,” she wrote. “We were lucky to have her. She is now with the angels.”

Initial Roles and Rise to Fame

Ladd’s early career included small roles in television programs such as Gunsmoke whereas the seventies featured her performing with Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.

That very year, 1974, she appeared alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s praised comedy drama Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance landed Ladd an Academy Award nomination as best supporting actress.

1980s and Beyond

Throughout the 1980s, she appeared in the dramatic film Black Widow plus humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and also took part in Alice, a comedy program derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the subsequent decade, she was given another supporting actress nomination for her part in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart where she acted as the mother of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. A year later she was awarded an additional nod for her performance in the film Rambling Rose that also featured her daughter.

“This was the picture that the late Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she brought Laura and I to England for a royal premiere and a party in our honor,” Ladd shared regarding Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, with tears, watching us perform.”

The nineties included parts in humorous films Cemetery Club bringing her back with her co-star Burstyn, Primary Colors, a satirical film, starring John Travolta and Payne’s the movie Citizen Ruth where she acted as the mother of Dern another time. That period also brought her Emmy nominations for work in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She persisted in performing with her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, Lynch’s Inland Empire and the series by Mike White comedy-drama series Enlightened. She also appeared alongside Sandra Bullock, a star in the film 28 Days, Sir Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film and Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.

Her more recent television parts included Ray Donovan, a drama plus Young Sheldon.

Filmmaking Ventures

She additionally penned and oversaw the comedy the movie Mrs Munck that included Diane Ladd and former husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she said. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. Actually, I am the sole female in history who directed her former husband. I humorously say: ‘I advise females, should you desire retribution, direct your ex-husband.’ Though I’m just teasing.”

Personal Life

She happened to be a relative of Tennessee Williams, who she called “a major inspiration in my life”.

Back in 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a pulmonary condition and told she only had half a year left but she regained full health when her daughter moved her to a different hospital.

“When you use your pain and not let it back up like an injury, instead use it to investigate, to make the path clearer for personal and collective growth, then you are triumphing,” Ladd expressed.