🔗 Share this article

This award-nominated actor Diane Ladd has died 89 years old.

The actor, whose roles featured National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, died at her home in California’s Ojai. Her passing was revealed through a message from her daughter, award-winning actress Laura Dern.

Her daughter, who starred with her mother in a number of films such as Wild at Heart and Rambling Rose, called her “my incredible hero as well as my profound gift being my mom”, noting that she was by her side when she passed.

“She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, star, artist as well as compassionate soul that felt like a dream come true,” she stated. “We were lucky to have her. She is now with the angels.”

Beginnings and Major Success

The start of her career saw supporting roles on television series like The Fugitive and that decade saw her starring with actor Jack Nicholson in the classic Chinatown.

During that year, the year 1974, she shared the screen alongside Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s acclaimed film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role earned Ladd an Academy Award nomination as best supporting actress.

1980s and Beyond

During the eighties, she starred in the thriller the movie Black Widow plus humorous film Christmas Vacation and also took part in the show Alice, a sitcom inspired by Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

During the next ten years, she was given a further supporting actress nomination for her performance in Lynch’s Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she acted as the mother of her actual daughter Laura Dern’s role. A year later she received an additional nod for her performance in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred Dern.

“This was the film that the late Princess Diana chose as her absolutely favorite, and she invited me and Laura to England for a royal premiere and an event in our honor,” Ladd shared about the film Rambling Rose. “She positioned herself between us, holding both our hands, and weeping, watching us perform.”

The 1990s featured performances in comedy Cemetery Club bringing her back with her co-star Burstyn, Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, starring John Travolta and Payne’s Citizen Ruth in which she portrayed Laura Dern’s mom once more. The decade also brought her TV award nominations for roles in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Collaborations with Daughter

She kept appearing with Laura Dern in dramatic comedies the film Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project Inland Empire and the series by Mike White satirical show Enlightened. She additionally starred with Sandra Bullock in 28 Days, Sir Anthony Hopkins in The World’s Fastest Indian, a film and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy, a biographical drama.

Subsequent TV appearances consisted of the series Ray Donovan plus Young Sheldon.

Behind the Camera

Ladd also wrote and helmed the humorous movie the movie Mrs Munck that included her and previous spouse Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she said. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. Actually, I’m the only woman in recorded history to helm a film with her ex. I often joke: ‘I tell women, should you desire retribution, direct your ex-husband.’ But I’m only kidding.”

Personal Connections

She happened to be a relative of the great Tennessee Williams, who she called “a significant impact throughout my life”.

During 2018, Ladd was misdiagnosed with lung disease and advised she had just six months to live yet she recovered completely when her daughter moved her to another medical facility.

“Should you harness your suffering and avoid letting it accumulate similar to a wound, rather utilize it to explore, to clarify the journey for yourself and others, then you are winning,” Ladd remarked.