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The award-nominated actor the celebrated Diane Ladd left us aged 89.

The actress, whose credits spanned Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at home at her Ojai, California home. Her passing was announced through a message shared by her offspring, Oscar-winning actor Laura Dern.

Laura Dern, who starred with her mother in several movies like Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, described her as “my incredible hero plus my precious gift of a mother”, noting that she was by her side when she passed.

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

Initial Roles and Major Success

The start of her career saw minor parts in TV shows like Gunsmoke while the 1970s featured her performing alongside Jack Nicholson in the classic 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.

Later Decades

During the eighties, she starred in the dramatic film Black Widow plus humorous film Christmas Vacation and also took part in the sitcom Alice, a television series based on her earlier movie.

In the following decade, she was given an additional Oscar nomination for supporting actress Oscar nomination for her performance in the David Lynch film the movie Wild at Heart in which she portrayed the mom of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. A year later she received an additional nod for her acting in Rambling Rose which also starred Laura Dern.

“This was the picture that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she invited me and Laura to the UK for a special screening and a party dedicated to us,” Ladd said about the film Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, taking our hands, with tears, watching us perform.”

The 1990s also saw roles in comedy Cemetery Club bringing her back with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, with John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed the mother of Dern once more. Those years also earned her Emmy nominations for roles in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire, a sitcom plus Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She continued to star alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, David Lynch’s Inland Empire and White’s satirical show the program Enlightened. She was also seen with Sandra Bullock, a star in 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in that movie and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.

Her more recent television parts consisted of the series Ray Donovan plus Young Sheldon.

Filmmaking Ventures

She also authored and helmed the comedy the movie Mrs Munck featuring Diane Ladd and ex-husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. Indeed, I am the sole female in history to helm a film with her ex. I make a joke: ‘I tell women, if you want revenge, helm a movie with your ex.’ Though I’m just teasing.”

Personal Connections

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

In 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a pulmonary condition and told she only had half a year left but made a full recovery once her daughter shifted her to another medical facility.

“When you use your pain and avoid letting it accumulate like a sore or something, instead use it to investigate, to illuminate the way for you and those around, then you are succeeding,” Ladd said.