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The award-nominated actor the celebrated Diane Ladd passed away 89 years old.

The actor, with credits spanned Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, left this world in her residence in California’s Ojai. The news was shared via an announcement shared by her offspring, award-winning actress Laura Dern.

Dern, who starred with her mother in a number of films including Wild at Heart, described her as “my amazing hero plus my profound gift being my mom”, noting that she was by her side during her final moments.

“She was the most wonderful daughter, mother, grandmother, performer, creative along with empathetic spirit that seemed almost dreamlike,” she expressed. “We were fortunate to know her. Her spirit soars with angels.”

Early Career and Breakthrough

The start of her career included minor parts in television programs including The Fugitive while that decade featured her performing next to the legendary Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.

That very year, 1974, she performed with Ellen Burstyn in the Martin Scorsese praised film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, a classic. Her acting landed Ladd her first Oscar nomination in the supporting actress category.

Later Decades

In the 1980s, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow plus funny follow-up Christmas Vacation while also joining the show Alice, a sitcom derived from her earlier movie.

In the subsequent decade, she received a further Oscar nomination for supporting actress Academy Award nomination for her part in David Lynch’s the movie Wild at Heart where she played the mom of her real-life daughter Dern’s character. The following year she was awarded an additional nod for her performance in the film Rambling Rose that also featured Dern.

“This was the picture that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she invited us to the UK for a premiere and an event in our honor,” Ladd recalled about the film Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, and weeping, watching us perform.”

The nineties featured performances in the comedy Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with her co-star Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a satirical film, featuring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy in which she portrayed Laura Dern’s mom again. The decade also earned her TV award nominations for work in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire plus Touched by an Angel.

Partnerships with Her Daughter

She kept appearing alongside her daughter in dramatic comedies the film Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project the movie Inland Empire and the series by Mike White dark comedy series Enlightened. She was also seen with Sandra Bullock in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film and with Jennifer Lawrence in the film Joy.

Her later TV roles included the series Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon.

Writing and Directing

Ladd also wrote and helmed the comedy film Mrs Munck, a film that included Diane Ladd and former husband Bruce Dern, an actor. “Bruce is a great actor,” she said. “I’m privileged to have directed him in a movie. In fact, I am the sole female in history to helm a film with her ex. I often joke: ‘I advise females, if you want revenge, helm a movie with your ex.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Family Ties

Ladd was also a family member of the great Tennessee Williams, who she referred to as “a great influence in my life”.

During 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with lung disease and informed her life expectancy was six months but she regained full health once her daughter shifted her to another medical facility.

“If you can take your pain and not let it back up like an injury, instead use it to investigate, to make the path clearer for personal and collective growth, then you are winning,” Ladd remarked.