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The award-nominated actress Diane Ladd, a Hollywood veteran left us aged 89.

This star, with filmography included Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at home in Ojai, California. Her passing was revealed through a message from her child, award-winning actress Laura Dern.

Dern, who starred with Diane Ladd in a number of films like Wild at Heart, referred to her as “my wonderful hero as well as my precious gift being my mom”, stating that she was at her bedside as she died.

“She was an exceptional grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative as well as compassionate soul that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she expressed. “We were lucky to have her. Her spirit soars with angels.”

Early Career and Rise to Fame

Her initial acting years included minor parts in TV shows including The Fugitive whereas the 1970s featured her performing with the legendary Jack Nicholson in Chinatown.

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

Subsequent Years

In the 1980s, she was seen in crime thriller Black Widow and humorous film National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and appeared on the show Alice, a television series based on the film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the following decade, she was given an additional best supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her part in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart, a cult classic in which she portrayed the mother of her actual daughter the character played by Dern. A year later she was awarded a further nomination for her role in the film Rambling Rose which included Dern.

“This movie that the late Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she brought us to the UK for a royal premiere and an event for us,” Ladd said about the film Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, taking our hands, with tears, viewing our performance.”

The 1990s included parts in comedy Cemetery Club bringing her back with Ellen Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a political comedy, starring John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne the movie Citizen Ruth where she acted as the mother of Dern again. The decade also saw her score TV award nominations for performances in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, the show Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She persisted in performing with her daughter in films blending humor and drama Daddy and Them, David Lynch’s the movie Inland Empire and White’s dark comedy series Enlightened, a TV series. She was also seen next to Sandra Bullock, a star in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in that movie plus Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.

Her later TV roles featured Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon.

Writing and Directing

She also authored and oversaw the comedy Mrs Munck which starred her and former husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “It was a privilege to guide him in a movie. In fact, I am the sole female ever to helm a film with her ex. I often joke: ‘I tell women, if you seek payback, helm a movie with your ex.’ However, I’m joking.”

Family Ties

She happened to be the third cousin of the great Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a major inspiration throughout my life”.

Back in 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a respiratory illness and told she had just six months to live but made a full recovery when her daughter shifted her to another medical facility.

“When you use your pain and prevent it from festering similar to a wound, instead use it to discover, to make the path clearer for yourself and others, then you are triumphing,” Ladd remarked.