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The award-nominated actress the celebrated Diane Ladd left us 89 years old.

The actor, with credits featured Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, left this world in her residence at her Ojai, California home. Her passing was revealed in a statement from her daughter, award-winning actress Laura Dern.

Laura Dern, who starred with Diane Ladd in various films such as Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my amazing hero plus my profound gift of a mother”, noting that she was present as she died.

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

Early Career and Rise to Fame

The start of her career saw minor parts on television series like The Fugitive and the seventies had her appearing next to the legendary Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.

That very year, 1974, she performed with Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s celebrated film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. The performance landed Ladd her initial Oscar nod in the supporting actress category.

1980s and Beyond

In the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow, a suspense story plus comedy sequel Christmas Vacation while also joining the sitcom Alice, a television series inspired by Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the subsequent decade, she received an additional supporting actress nomination for her part in Lynch’s Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she played the mom of her actual daughter Dern’s character. The next year she was awarded an additional nod for her acting in Rambling Rose which included Laura Dern.

“This movie which Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she brought us to the UK for a premiere and an event for us,” Ladd shared regarding Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, and weeping, seeing us act.”

That decade featured performances in the comedy Cemetery Club reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a political comedy, with John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy in which she portrayed the mother of Dern another time. The decade also brought her nominations for Emmy Awards for performances on Dr Quinn, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Working with Laura Dern

She kept appearing with her daughter in dramatic comedies the film Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project Inland Empire and White’s satirical show Enlightened. She additionally starred next to Sandra Bullock, a star in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.

Subsequent TV appearances consisted of Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon, a comedy.

Filmmaking Ventures

She also authored and directed the comedy Mrs Munck, a film that included Diane Ladd and ex-husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a talented star,” she said. “It was a privilege to guide him on a project. In fact, I am the sole female in recorded history who directed her former husband. I humorously say: ‘I tell women, if you want revenge, direct your ex-husband.’ Though I’m just teasing.”

Family Ties

Ladd was also the third cousin of the great Tennessee Williams, who she referred to as “a great influence on my life”.

Back in 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with lung disease and told her life expectancy was six months yet she recovered completely after her daughter transferred her to a new hospital.

“Should you harness your suffering and avoid letting it accumulate similar to a wound, instead use it to discover, to illuminate the way for yourself and others, then you are winning,” Ladd remarked.