Diane Ladd, the esteemed actress renowned for her Oscar-nominated performance as the waitress Flo in the 1974 film “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” has passed away at the age of 89. She died peacefully at her home in Ojai, California.
Her daughter, actress Laura Dern, shared the somber news through a heartfelt statement to The Hollywood Reporter. “My amazing hero and my profound gift of a mother, Diane Ladd, passed with me beside her this morning, at her home in Ojai, Calif.,” Dern expressed, capturing the depth of her loss and the influence her mother had on her life.
Reflecting on her mother’s legacy, Dern continued, “She was the greatest daughter, mother, grandmother, actress, artist and empathetic spirit that only dreams could have seemingly created. We were blessed to have her. She is flying with her angels now.”
Throughout her illustrious career, Ladd garnered three Oscar nominations, a testament to her remarkable talent. She received acclaim for her roles in Martin Scorsese’s “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore” (1974), as well as “Wild at Heart” (1990) and “Rambling Rose” (1991).
Beyond these celebrated performances, Ladd’s versatile acting skills shone in films such as “Something Wicked This Way Comes” (1983), “Ghosts of Mississippi” (1996), “28 Days” (2000), “Charlie’s War” (2003), “Joy” (2015), and most recently “Gigi & Nate” (2022).
Ladd’s other biggest credits include Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983), Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), 28 Days (2000), Charlie’s War (2003), Joy (2015) and Gigi & Nate (2022).
Oscar-nominated actress Diane Ladd has died at age 89; seen in 2023
Additionally, she appeared on TV shows like Kingdom Hospital and Chesapeake Shores.
In 2018, Dern admitted to People her mom tried to dissuade her from pursuing acting.
‘I think the quote of my mother’s was, “Be a lawyer, be a doctor, be a leper missionary, but don’t be an actress!”‘ she mused.
Dern and Ladd famously made history as the first mom and daughter to earn acting Oscar nominations in the same year for their performances in Rambling Rose.
In 2018, Ladd was given only six months to live after she was misdiagnosed with pneumonia after inhaling poison spray from a farm neighboring her home.
That ended up constricting her esophagus.
Dern, unsatisfied with the diagnosis or prognosis transferred her to another hospital where she made a full recovery.
Along the way to Ladd’s recovery, however, Dern was determined to help her mother rebuild her lung capacity after the doctors told her long walks might help repair the damage that had been done.
Her daughter Laura Dern confirmed the news in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter on Monday (seen in 2010)
‘My amazing hero and my profound gift of a mother, Diane Ladd, passed with me beside her this morning, at her home in Ojai, Calif.,’ Dern, 58, wrote
Dern was inspired to creatively challenge her mother during their walks so she recorded their conversations.
Those conversations turned into their 2023 joint memoir Honey, Baby, Mine: A Mother and Daughter Talk Life, Death, Love (and Banana Pudding).
The Telegraph’s review of the book called it ‘the best, truest, most shockingly entertaining Hollywood memoir… it is also one of the most loving.’
At one point in the book, the mother-daughter duo reminisce about Dern’s difficult teenage years.
Ladd earned three Oscar nominations over her lifetime for her roles in Martin Scorsese ‘s Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), Wild at Heart (1990) and Rambling Rose (1991); seen in 1988
Ladd and Dern pictured at the First Annual Actors Studio Awards Dinner at the Waldorf Hotel in New York
‘Do you feel like I screwed you up?’ Ladd asks Dern. ‘Absolutely,’ Dern replies.
‘I bet you’re thinking of the time I slapped you,’ Ladd says. ‘You mouthed off to me, and I’d had a horrible day. You were only 10, and you said something really teenage-smart at the refrigerator… I thought, What am I doing wrong as a parent?’
Dern, noting that she’s frustrated that Ladd didn’t apologize for that, pointed out that she was 14 at the time and reminded her mom that she was ‘really unhappy at work and wanted to come home and blame someone else.’
Dern was the second daughter of Ladd and her ex-husband, actor Bruce Dern, 89.
Ladd’s other biggest credits include Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983), Ghosts of Mississippi (1996), 28 Days (2000), Charlie’s War (2003), Joy (2015) and Gigi & Nate (2022)
Their first child, a daughter also named Diane died at 18 months old when she fell into a pool and hit her head. Laura was born five years later.
Ladd also penned the books, Spiraling Through the School of Life: A Mental, Physical and Spiritual Discovery, and A Bad Afternoon for a Piece of Cake, both released in 2016.
In addition to Dern, Ladd is survived by her two grandchildren, Ellery Walker Harper, 24 and Jaya Harper, 20.
