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This award-nominated actress Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran passed away aged 89.

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

Laura Dern, who appeared with Diane Ladd in various films including Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my amazing hero and my precious 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 as well as caring individual that felt like a dream come true,” she wrote. “We were lucky to have her. She is now with the angels.”

Initial Roles and Major Success

Ladd’s early career featured minor parts in television programs such as Perry Mason whereas the 1970s featured her performing with the legendary Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.

That very year, the year 1974, she performed with actress Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s acclaimed dramatic comedy the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her acting earned Ladd an Academy Award nomination as best supporting actress.

Later Decades

In the 1980s, she appeared in the dramatic film Black Widow, a suspense story as well as humorous film National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and also took part in the sitcom Alice, a comedy program based on her earlier movie.

During the next ten years, she received a further best supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her role in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart where she acted as the mother of her actual daughter Dern’s character. The following year she obtained another nomination for her role in the film Rambling Rose which included Dern.

“This movie which Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she invited me and Laura to London for a special screening and a celebration in our honor,” Ladd shared regarding Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, holding both our hands, and crying, viewing our performance.”

The nineties featured performances in humorous films The Cemetery Club reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a satirical film, with John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she played Laura Dern’s mom once more. Those years also saw her score TV award nominations for performances in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She continued to star with Laura Dern in comedy drama the film Daddy and Them, Lynch’s Inland Empire and the series by Mike White dark comedy series Enlightened. She also appeared next to Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Sir Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian plus Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.

Her later TV roles consisted of Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon, a comedy.

Writing and Directing

She also authored and directed the comedy film the movie Mrs Munck featuring herself and former husband Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “It was a privilege to guide him in a movie. Indeed, I am the sole female in recorded history to direct her ex-husband. I often joke: ‘I tell women, should you desire retribution, helm a movie with your ex.’ Though I’m just teasing.”

Personal Life

Ladd was also a family member of Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a major inspiration in my life”.

Back in 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with lung disease and advised she only had half a year left yet she recovered completely once her daughter shifted her to a different hospital.

“If you can take your pain and not let it back up like a sore or something, instead use it to investigate, to make the path clearer for you and those around, then you are succeeding,” Ladd expressed.