Diane Keaton, film legend, fashion trendsetter and champion of L.A.'s past, dead at 79

Diane Keaton, whose effortless naturalism made her a cleanable foil to truthful galore live-wire actors of the 1970s successful movies specified arsenic “The Godfather,” “The Godfather Part II” and “Annie Hall,” has died. She was 79.

Her decease was archetypal reported by People and confirmed by the New York Times.

In an bonzer tally during the epoch erstwhile she was dominant, Keaton’s vocation spanned the precocious points of American cinema: Francis Ford Coppola’s Mafia saga and respective of Woody Allen’s urbane comedies, climaxing successful an Oscar triumph for her culture-changing crook arsenic the rubric quality successful 1977’s “Annie Hall.” Her catchphrase, “Oh well, la-di-da, la-di-da,” became iconic.

Over her career, she received 4 Oscar nominations for pb actress, winning for “Annie Hall.”

Born successful Los Angeles successful 1946, Keaton came to prominence aft her late-1960s New York signifier career, coupled with nightclub singing and acting survey astatine the ensemble-focused Neighborhood Playhouse, led her to audition for Allen’s 1969 theatrical accumulation of “Play It Again, Sam,” which brought her a Tony information earlier the property of 25.

But the existent prize would beryllium her extended collaboration with Allen, which resulted successful 8 movies — including galore of the “earlier, funnier ones,” per Allen’s ain self-deprecating operation successful “Stardust Memories” — specified arsenic the movie mentation of “Play It Again, Sam” (1972), “Sleeper” (1973) and “Love and Death” (1975).

Regarding her astir lasting creation, Keaton lent “Annie Hall” her existent sanction (she was calved Diane Hall and often went by Annie), on with respective of her idiosyncratic quirks, mined by a doting Allen, who was astatine 1 clip her romanticist partner. Apart from the captious raves and awards, though, the movie made her a manner icon via Annie’s fedora hats, vests, ties and baggy pants. The Times erstwhile called her look “fluttery, vulnerable, astir unbearably adorable.”

“Annie’s benignant was Diane’s benignant — precise eclectic,” decorator Ralph Lauren said successful a 1978 communicative successful Vogue, soon aft the movie came out. “She had a benignant that was each her own. Annie Hall was axenic Diane Keaton.”

She was often asked if she got bushed of the notoriety “Annie Hall” brought her, including the mag covers, deliberation pieces and manner homages.

“No, I’m not. Everything is due to the fact that of ‘Annie Hall’ with Woody. He has a large receptor for women’s voices. I’m truthful grateful to him; helium truly gave maine an accidental that changed my life,” she told The Times successful 2012. “I’m ne'er disappointed astir radical talking to maine astir ‘Annie Hall.’ But I volition say, a batch of radical don’t cognize ‘Annie Hall’ exists, and that’s conscionable the mode it goes — goodbye! It’s bittersweet.”

In counterpoint to her ’70s comic work, Keaton made a melodramatic interaction arsenic Michael Corleone’s woman and woman Kay successful 3 “Godfather” movies. Initially naive to the transgression broadside of the clan (“That’s not me, Kay, that’s my family,” Al Pacino’s Michael tells her successful the archetypal film’s opening wedding sequence), Keaton’s quality becomes our surrogate, yet pushing backmost and leaning into her powerfulness successful the 1974 sequel. Kay is notable for adding magnitude and pathos to the compromises of a mob wife, years earlier “Goodfellas” oregon “The Sopranos.”

Keaton managed to seizure the taste zeitgeist successful her aboriginal films, particularly successful 4 impeccably styled collaborations with the writer-director-producer Nancy Meyers, for whom she became a muse. First came 1987’s “Baby Boom,” successful which she played a palmy businesswoman who upends her beingness to attraction for a relative’s infant. After 2 “Father of the Bride” films, Keaton won acclaim and a 4th Oscar information successful Meyers’ “Something’s Gotta Give” other Jack Nicholson arsenic a palmy writer navigating romance successful her 50s.

Keaton besides received Oscar nominations for Warren Beatty’s “Reds” (1981) and the play “Marvin’s Room” (1996).

Nancy Sinatra, vocalist and girl of Frank Sinatra, posted astir Keaton’s death.

“Diane Keaton has near america and I can’t archer you however profoundly bittersweet that makes me. I adored her — idolized her,” Sinatra wrote connected X. “She was a precise peculiar idiosyncratic and an incredibly talented actor, who made each of her roles unforgettable. Her airy volition proceed to radiance done the creation she leaves behind. Godspeed, Diane. My bosom goes retired to her household and to each of america grieving this heartbreaking loss.”

Posting connected Instagram, Keaton’s “The First Wives Club” co-star Bette Midler wrote, “The brilliant, beautiful, bonzer Diane Keaton has died. I cannot archer you however unbearably bittersweet this makes me. She was hilarious, a implicit original, and wholly without guile, oregon immoderate of the competitiveness 1 would person expected from specified a star. What you saw was who she was…oh, la, lala!”

Keaton was a patron of the L.A. arts country and besides gained enactment arsenic a champion of architecture preservation, remaking expansive homes crossed the region. In collaboration with the Los Angeles Public Library, she edited a publication of tabloid photos called “Local News” that ran successful the Los Angeles Herald-Express.

In a 2018 interrogation with The Times, she said she felt privileged to inactive beryllium working.

“I cognize what I americium by now,” she said. “I cognize however aged I am. I cognize what my limitations are and what I tin and can’t do. So if thing appeals to me, I’m decidedly going to spell for it.”

She grew up successful Santa Ana during the post-World War II lodging roar successful the 1950s and told The Times successful an interrogation that she loved going to unfastened houses with her father.

“My begetter took maine to spot exemplary homes, which I thought were palaces,” Keaton said.

She began buying and fixing up landmark homes astir L.A., particularly those of the Spanish Colonial style.

“You person to get to cognize a location and effort to support its integrity. I effort to grant the architect,” she said. “I emotion to spell into an bare house. You look astatine the location and commencement to consciousness what it mightiness need.”

“There are truthful galore location treasures, unsung gems, each implicit Los Angeles,” she said.

Explaining however she came to edit the publication of L.A. tabloid photos, Keaton told The Times an L.A. metropolis librarian came up to her astatine a swap meet.

The librarian said, “‘There’s these files successful the basement of the Central Library’ — the astir beauteous building. I took a look. There are books and books to beryllium made retired of those images. This is simply a superb archive.”

In caller years, Keaton had go a deed connected Instagram, posting photos of architecture, manner and more. In an interrogation successful 2019, she said she was inactive precise active, anxious to enactment and effort caller things, but was besides reasoning much astir her mortality.

“Of course, you deliberation astir it. How tin you not?” she said. “I mean, I’m 73. How agelong bash you live? It’s truly important what those years are like.”

Keaton’s idiosyncratic beingness was sometimes fodder for the gossip pages, with her being linked romantically to Beatty and Pacino.

She ne'er joined and successful a 2013 interrogation with The Times said she didn’t spot nuptials successful her aboriginal — and was good with that. She is survived by 2 adopted children, Duke and Dexter Keaton.

Times unit writers Shelby Grad, Summer Lin and Cary Schneider contributed to this report.