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This award-nominated performer the celebrated Diane Ladd has died 89 years old.

This actor, whose roles spanned Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, passed away at home in Ojai, California. This announcement was shared via an announcement from her offspring, award-winning actress Laura Dern, her daughter.

Her daughter, who appeared with her mom in a number of films like Wild at Heart, called her “my wonderful hero as well as my precious gift being my mom”, noting that she was by her side as she died.

“She was an exceptional mother, daughter, grandmother, star, artist as well as caring individual that only dreams could have seemingly created,” she expressed. “We were lucky to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”

Early Career and Breakthrough

Ladd’s early career included minor parts in TV shows including The Fugitive and the 1970s featured her performing alongside actor Jack Nicholson in the film Chinatown.

During that year, 1974, she appeared with actress Ellen Burstyn in Scorsese’s acclaimed dramatic comedy the movie Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Her role brought Ladd her initial Oscar nod in the supporting actress category.

Later Decades

During the eighties, she starred in crime thriller Black Widow and funny follow-up National Lampoon’s holiday comedy and also took part in the show Alice, a television series derived from her earlier movie.

In the following decade, she received another best supporting actress Oscar nomination for her role in the David Lynch film Wild at Heart, a cult classic where she acted as the mother of her actual daughter Laura Dern’s role. The following year she was awarded an additional nod for her acting in Rambling Rose, another movie which also starred Dern.

“This was the film that Princess Diana picked as her top choice, and she flew me and Laura to the UK for a special screening and a celebration for us,” Ladd shared of Rambling Rose. “And she sat between us, holding both our hands, and crying, viewing our performance.”

The 1990s included parts in the comedy Cemetery Club, a film reuniting her with Ellen Burstyn, the movie Primary Colors, a comedy about politics, featuring John Travolta and the film by Alexander Payne Citizen Ruth, a dark comedy where she acted as the mother of Dern again. That period also earned her Emmy nominations for work in the series Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman, the show Grace Under Fire and Touched by an Angel, a drama.

Collaborations with Daughter

She continued to star with Laura Dern in films blending humor and drama the film Daddy and Them, the David Lynch project the movie Inland Empire and the series by Mike White satirical show Enlightened. She was also seen alongside Sandra Bullock, a star in the film 28 Days, Anthony Hopkins, a legend in that movie and Jennifer Lawrence in Joy.

Her later TV roles consisted of the series Ray Donovan and Young Sheldon, a comedy.

Writing and Directing

She also authored and helmed the humorous movie Mrs Munck, a film featuring herself and ex-husband actor Bruce Dern. “Bruce is an excellent performer,” she mentioned. “I was honored to direct him in a movie. In fact, I stand as the only woman in history to direct her ex-husband. I humorously say: ‘I advise females, if you want revenge, direct your ex-husband.’ However, I’m joking.”

Family Ties

Ladd was also a relative of the great Tennessee Williams, whom she described as “a great influence throughout my life”.

In 2018, she received an incorrect diagnosis with a pulmonary condition and informed she only had half a year left yet she recovered completely when her daughter moved her to another medical facility.

“If you can take your pain and not let it back up similar to a wound, rather utilize it to investigate, to clarify the journey for personal and collective growth, then you are triumphing,” Ladd remarked.