The Late Great Diane Keaton

I think most movie buffs are just a little bit in love with Diane Keaton. I know that I have had a crush on her ever since I first saw her in the movie Sleeper (1973).  And there should be little wonder that people would be crazy about Miss Keaton. She was beautiful. She was intelligent. She was charming. And she had more talent than several other actors combined. Quite simply, she was one of the greatest actors of the late 20th Century. Sadly, Diane Keaton died on October 11, 2025, at the age of  79. 

Diane Keaton was born Diane Hall on January 5, 1946, in Los Angeles, California. Her mother participated in the "Mrs. Los Angeles" pageant, which took place at the Highland Park Theatre. The event inspired young Diane to become an actress. She attended Santa Ana High School, where she took part in the school's acting club. After graduating from high school, she attended Santa Ana College, where she acted in various plays. Among her classmates was comedian Steve Martin. She moved to New York City, where she studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse under Sanford Meisner. There was already an actress registered with the name "Diane Hall" at the Actors' Equity Association, so she used her mother's maiden name "Keaton."

Diane Keaton made her professional acting debut as a replacement in Hair on Broadway in 1968, although reportedly she refused to take off her clothing. She appeared on Broadway in 1969 in Play It Again, Sam. She made her television debut in 1970 in a segment of Love, American Style. The same year she appeared in a segment of Night Gallery. She made her film debut in Lovers and Strangers (1970).

Diane Keaton was a movie star very nearly from the beginning of her career. In the Seventies, she played Kay in The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather II (1974). She reprised her role as Linda in the movie adaptation of Play It Again, Sam (1972). She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Annie Hall (1977). She also appeared in the movies Sleeper (1973), Love and Death (1975), I Will...I Will...For Now (1976), Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977), Interiors (1978), and Manhattan (1979). On television, she guest-starred on the shows The F.B.I. and Mannix. She appeared in the TV movie Men of Crisis: The Harvey Wallinger Story. 

In the Eighties, Diane Keaton appeared in the movies Reds (1981), Shoot the Moon (1982), The Little Drummer Girl (1984), Mrs. Soffel (1984), Crimes of the Heart (1986), Radio Days (1987), Baby Boom (1987), The Good Mother (1988), The Lemon Sisters (1989), and The Godfather Part III (1990). 

In the Nineties, Diane Keaton appeared in the movies Father of the Bride (1991), Manhattan Murder Mystery (1994), Look Who's Talking Now (1993), Father of the Bride Part II (1995), The First Wives Club (1996), Marvin's Room (1996), The Only Thrill (1997), The Other Sister (1999), and Hanging Up (2000). On television, she appeared in the TV movies Amelia Earhart: The Final Flight (1994) and Northern Lights (1997). She provided her own voice for an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm.

In the Naughts, Diane Keaton appeared in the movies Town & Country (2001), Plan B (2001), Something's Gotta Give(2003), The Family Stone (2005), Because I Said So (2007), Mama's Boy (2007), Mad Money (2008), Smother (2008), and Morning Glory (2010). On television, she appeared in the TV movies Sister Mary Explains It All; Crossed Over; On Thin Ice; and Surrender, Dorothy.

In the Teens, she appeared in the movies Tilda (2011), Darling Companion (2012), The Big Wedding (2013), And So It Goes (2014), 5 Flights Up (2015), Love the Coopers (2015), Hampstead (2017), Book Club (2018), Poms (2019), and Love, Weddings & Other Disasters (2020).  She appeared on television in the mini-series The Young Pope. She provided the voice of Michellee in the animated series Green Eggs and Ham. 

In the 2020s, she appeared in the movies Mack & Rita (2022), Maybe I Do (2023), Book Club: The Next Chapter (2023), Arthur's Whisky (2024), and Summer Camp (2024). 

Diane Keaton also had a directorial career as well as her acting career. She made her directorial debut with the short "What Does Dorrie Want?" (1982). She directed the movies Heaven (1987), Unstrung Heroes (1995), and Hanging Up (2000). On television, she directed episodes of the TV show CBS Schoolbreak Special, China Beach, Twin Peaks, and Pasadena, as well as the TV movie Wildflower. She directed music videos for Belinda Carlisle's songs "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" and "I Get Weak." She also produced several films, among them The Lemon Sisters (1989), Elephant (2003), Smother (2008), and Mack & Rita (2022).

Diane Keaton was a remarkable actress from the very beginning of her career. In the Godfather movies, she played Kay Adams, Michael Corleone's girlfriend and later wife. Kay is a total outsider among the Corleones, a Baptist school teacher among Catholic mobsters. Diane Keaton was impressive in the role. She was also impressive in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, playing a young teacher who spends her nights frequenting bars and seeking sexual encounters with men. It was the same year that she played the title character in Annie Hall, a very different character from Theresa Dunn in Looking for Mr. Goodbar. While Annie lacked confidence and could be awkward, she also displayed a good deal of independence and strength. In Reds, she convincingly played historical figure Louise Bryant, the journalist who sympathetically covered the Bolshevik Revolution. Diane Keaton could play nearly any role she chose and play them very well.

Of course, Diane Keaton was more than just a remarkable actor. She was a remarkable woman as well. I know more than one person who met her in person, and they each said they she was "everything you expected and more." She was known for her advocacy for animals, and one fan on Instagram told how Miss Keaton saw them trying to rescue a stray dog on Sunset Boulevard. Miss Keaton spent two and a half hours helping the fan try to get the dog. According to the president of the Helen Woodward Animal Center, it was not unusual for them to get a call from Diane Keaton about a stray animal on the street. 

In addition to advocating for animals, Diane Keaton also fought for the historic architecture of Los Angeles. She served as a board member of the Los Angeles Conservancy and she was a trustee of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She fought to preserve such landmarks as the Century Plaza Hotel and the Ennis House. She fought hard to save the Ambassador Hotel, and was disappointed when it was demolished anyway. Diane Keaton was a remarkable human being who truly cared for her fellow human beings and other living things.