In the wake of Diane Keaton’s death, her history as a trailblazer professionally and socially has come back into focus as friends, colleagues, and the public remember the beloved actress.
Keaton was an Oscar-winner who starred in such film classics as the The Godfather and Annie Hall, the latter of which earned her wins for Best Actress at the Academy Awards, BAFTAs, and Golden Globes.
Keaton, holding lead roles for five decades and securing four Oscar nominations, was also known as a trailblazer for women in Hollywood who brought a mix of vulnerability and authenticity to her roles.
What To Know
Keaton passed away on Saturday at the age of 79, her family had confirmed first to PEOPLE before other outlets confirmed.
A family spokesperson said they are asking for privacy at this time. Keaton’s cause of death was not immediately available.
She leaves behind her two children, daughter Dexter and son Duke who she adopted when she was in her 50s, according to PEOPLE.
A Unique Fashion Icon
Keaton did not intend to set trends, but she brought a distinctive style to her characters across her career, often reflecting her off-screen personality in them.
Notorious for sticking with more eccentric trends rather than ride the wave of what is popular, especially her preference to use neutral tones or monochrome coloring and textured fabrics, according to a blog post by Anne Fontaine.
Most notably, Keaton embraced menswear, sporting neck ties, blazers, and slacks, and wearing wide-brimmed hats: “Classic, yet edgy. Minimal, but bold,” according to Anne Fontaine. “Keaton’s dedication to all things neutral and classic has made her a perennial style icon.”
She was inspired by her time during the filming of The Godfather Part II in 1974 when she saw women around SoHo in New York City and started copying what she found “cool” about them, according to the actress’ memoir.
“I stole the hat from Aurore Clément, Dean Tavoularis’s future wife, who showed up on the set of The Godfather Part II one day wearing a man’s slouchy bolero pulled down low over her forehead. Aurore’s hat put the finishing touch on the so-called Annie Hall look,” she wrote.
A famous joke from the TV show Friends saw Rachel say that Chandler’s tuxedo for his wedding had been previously worn by Keaton.
And her penchant for layering her clothes and statement pieces prompted the quip from her co-star and friend Meryl Streep that Keaton was “arguably the most covered up person in the history of clothes.”
Her relationship to clothes and fashion also extended to her acting. During her time in the Broadway production Hair, Keaton was the only actor who refused to strip nude in the final scene, even though the directors offered extra pay to anyone who did it.
Speaking with the New York Times in 1972, she claimed she did not do so for “any sort of philosophical reason. It was just that I was too scared.”
However, her decision remained one that stuck with her. Keaton rarely did nude scenes, with her first one in 1978 and her second in 2003 at the age of 57. Amada Peet, Keaton’s co-star in the latter film, Something’s Gotta Give, told the Huffington Post at the time that the scene had proven “difficult” for the veteran actress, but that she thought Keaton had a “great body.”
“If I were Diane Keaton, I’d take my clothes off all the time!” Peet said.
A Single Mom by Choice
More daring than her fashion choices was Keaton’s decision to remain single throughout her life. She dated throughout her time in Hollywood, striking up relationships first with her Godfather co-star Al Pacino and then with Warren Beatty, whom she ended up co-starring with in Reds in 1981.
Keaton also dated and even briefly lived with Woody Allen, starting when she appeared in his Broadway show Play It Again, Sam in 1969, but essentially ended just a few years later even though the pair would work on eight films over the next two decades.
One of the reasons for her single lifestyle was to remain free to pursue her “dream” of moving out to California where she would “have a house on the ocean in California—not a big one, just a little house with about three or four dogs. And a little old car,” as she told the Times in her ’70s interview.
Even as she chose to remain single, she also chose to adopt two children in her 50s, her daughter Dexter in 1996 and her son Duke in 2001.
She told Ladis’ Home Journal in 2008 that she didn’t think she would “ever” be prepared to be a mother, as it was “not an urge I couldn’t resist, it was more like a thought I’d been thinking for a very long time, so I plunged in.”
Keaton largely kept her private life to herself, which extended to her children, who made a rare appearance with her in 2022 to support her at the Hand & Footprint Ceremony for Keaton at the Chinese Theater.
According to PEOPLE, Dexter is 29, born December 15, 1995, and is married to Jordan White. The couple got married in 2021, but they remain out of the public eye
Duke is 25, born February 8, 2000, but has seemingly pursued photography as a hobby. Little else is known about him, as he has also remained a relatively private person.
