The woman made famous by the Academy Award-nominated film "The Fighter," not to mention Melissa Leo's Best Supporting Oscar-winning portrayal, has passed away at the age of 79.
Alice Ward, mother of boxers Micky Ward (played by Mark Wahlberg in the film) and Dicky Eklund (played by Christian Bale, who also won an Oscar) was taken off life support at Boston's Spaulding Rehabilitation Center, according to the Lowell Sun.
The 79 year-old suffered a heart attack and stroke in January and was pronounced dead at one point, but recovered and had been on life support since the incident. Eklund told the local Lowell paper about the decision to remove Ward from life support after she lapsed into a coma.
Ward is survived by nine children, 19 grandchildren, and 19 great-grandchildren.
"She was in there when there really weren't any women at all," said Micky Ward. "She was a pioneer of her time."
Selected Reading: People, Lowell Sun, Boston Herald
