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The Oscar-nominated actress the celebrated Diane Ladd left us aged 89.

The actor, whose credits featured Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at home in California’s Ojai. The news was revealed in a statement from her offspring, Academy Award-winning star her daughter Laura Dern.

Laura Dern, who appeared with her mother in various films like Rambling Rose, called her “my amazing hero and my special gift being my mom”, writing that she was by her side during her final moments.

“She was the most wonderful grandmother, mother, daughter, performer, creative as well as empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she expressed. “We were fortunate to know her. Her spirit soars with angels.”

Beginnings and Major Success

Ladd’s early career featured supporting roles in TV shows such as Perry Mason whereas that decade featured her performing next to the legendary Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.

In the same year, 1974, she appeared with actress Ellen Burstyn in Martin Scorsese’s celebrated film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her acting earned Ladd an Academy Award nomination in the supporting actress category.

Later Decades

In the 1980s, she appeared in crime thriller the movie Black Widow as well as funny follow-up National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and appeared on Alice, a comedy program derived from Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

During the next ten years, she was given another supporting actress nomination for her performance in Lynch’s Wild at Heart where she played the parent of her biological child the character played by Dern. The next year she received a further nomination for her role in Rambling Rose which included Dern.

“This was the film which Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she flew us to the UK for a premiere and a celebration for us,” Ladd recalled regarding Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, grasping our hands, and crying, seeing us act.”

That decade featured performances in comedy Cemetery Club, a film joining her again with Burstyn, Primary Colors, a political story, a satirical film, featuring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth where she played the mother of Dern again. That period also brought her TV award nominations for roles in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She persisted in performing alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies Daddy and Them, a movie, the David Lynch project Inland Empire and White’s satirical show Enlightened, a TV series. She additionally starred next to Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, a movie, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.

Her later TV roles included Ray Donovan, a drama and Young Sheldon.

Writing and Directing

She also authored and helmed the humorous movie Mrs Munck featuring Diane Ladd and former husband Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Indeed, I stand as the only woman ever to helm a film with her ex. I often joke: ‘I say ladies, if you want revenge, guide your former spouse.’ However, I’m joking.”

Family Ties

She was additionally the third cousin of Tennessee Williams, who she called “a great influence on my life”.

Back in 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a respiratory illness and told she only had half a year left yet she recovered completely once her daughter moved her to a new hospital.

“If you can take your pain and prevent it from festering like a sore or something, instead use it to discover, to clarify the journey for you and those around, then you are winning,” Ladd expressed.