Ladd, Diane (1932–)

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Ladd, Diane (1932–)

American actress. Born Rose Diane Lanier, Nov 29, 1932, in Meridian, Mississippi; dau. of Mary Lanier (1912–2002, actress); 1st cousin of Tennessee Williams; m. Bruce Dern, 1960 (div. 1969); m. William A. Shea Jr., 1969 (div. 1977); m. Robert Charles Hunter, 1999; children: Laura Dern (b. 1967, actress).

Began career in the chorus at the Copacabana; came to prominence in NY Equity Library production of Orpheus Descending (1959–60); made film debut in Something Wild (1961), followed by The Reivers, WUSA, White Lightning, Chinatown, All Night Long, Something Wicked This Way Comes, A Kiss Before Dying, Shadow of a Doubt, Rambling Rose and Raging Angels, among others. Nominated for Best Supporting Actress for performance as Flo in Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1975) and as Marietta Pace Fortune in Wild at Heart (1990).

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