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The Oscar-nominated actress the celebrated Diane Ladd passed away aged 89.

This star, whose roles included Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, died at her home in Ojai, California. Her passing was announced through a message from her daughter, Academy Award-winning star Laura Dern, her daughter.

Her daughter, who starred with Diane Ladd in various films like Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, referred to her as “my amazing hero plus my precious gift of a mother”, writing that she was by her side during her final moments.

“She was the greatest grandmother, mother, daughter, star, artist along with caring individual that felt like a dream come true,” she expressed. “We were blessed to have her. Her spirit soars with angels.”

Early Career and Rise to Fame

Ladd’s early career saw small roles in TV shows like Gunsmoke whereas the seventies featured her performing next to actor Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.

That very year, 1974, she appeared with Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s celebrated film the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role earned Ladd her initial Oscar nod as best supporting actress.

Later Decades

During the eighties, she starred in the dramatic film the movie Black Widow as well as funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on the sitcom Alice, a sitcom based on Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

In the following decade, she received a further supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role in David Lynch’s Wild at Heart in which she portrayed the mom of her biological child the character played by Dern. The next year she was awarded a further nomination for her role in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred Dern.

“This movie that the late Princess Diana selected as her very favorite, and she flew Laura and I to England for a premiere and a celebration dedicated to us,” Ladd said about the film Rambling Rose. “She sat with us, taking our hands, with tears, viewing our performance.”

The nineties also saw roles in the comedy The Cemetery Club joining her again with 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. That period also earned her TV award nominations for performances in Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.

Working with Laura Dern

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

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

Writing and Directing

She also authored and helmed the comedy film the movie Mrs Munck featuring herself and ex-husband Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she mentioned. “I’m privileged to have directed him on a project. In fact, I am the sole female in recorded history to direct her ex-husband. I make a joke: ‘I advise females, should you desire retribution, helm a movie with your ex.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Personal Connections

Ladd was also a family member of playwright Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a significant impact on my life”.

During 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with a respiratory illness and informed her life expectancy was six months yet she recovered completely once her daughter moved her to a different hospital.

“Should you harness your suffering and not let it back up like a sore or something, instead use it to discover, to illuminate the way for personal and collective growth, then you are triumphing,” Ladd expressed.