Conspiracy Behind Natalie Wood's Death, Vuong Nguyen

           Even after decades since the strange death of Natalie Wood, the mystery is still call into question on what or who caused it. Natalie Wood was a Russian-American Hollywood actress who died drowning when she was on a trip with her husband and his best friend on a yacht. The death itself is a mystery because of how she died, and of course, who did she get killed by. There are two main conspiracy theories developed on the death of Natalie Wood that night: either Natalie Wood died from accidental drowning or her husband, Robert Wagner, was involved with her death. Let’s delve in this case and examine the possibility that her husband, Robert Wagner, was a murder suspect in the death of his wife.

            When it comes to Natalie Wood, she was not only known for her acting career alone but the beauty that she delineates through her fashion choices. Natalie Wood was a 5’3” tall with dark hair and a fragile body. Natalie was often very subconscious about her height and wears 6” heels to make her taller (“5 Facts About Natalie Wood: Fears, Old Flames & Why Size Mattered” 1). Her style consists of wearing “low-cut dresses, heavy make-up, and flashy jewelry” (1). The way she dresses reflects on the lifestyle she wanted to portray, and often would showcase the world on the height of her beauty through her fashion choice.

How can one define Natalie Wood personality throughout her entire acting career? During her career as an actress, she puts a lot of emotions into her role in movies. In an episode of General Electric Theater, Natalie’s character was shown to display “an emotional depth that so many shallow teenage roles has denied her” (Lambert 174). Because of how much emotional energy she puts into her character on set, she is able to be recognized as an upcoming actress that appeals to demographics that she hasn’t touched before. Even as a child, she was able to impress the executives that was hosting the screening event for potential child star and was surprisingly left them speechless on how talented she was (“Natalie Woods” 1). This, without a doubt, causes her to become one of the most known actor later because of how she pours her emotions into her character. 

            Similarly to how she portrays herself on her characters in movies, she is also a very emotional person off set. It was all due to the fact that her mother was putting so much pressure on Natalie in her acting career. There were times where Natalie “couldn’t escape a confrontation with Maria” who would instill a “strong emotional pressure” on her (Lambert 156). This would shape Natalie and her personality because it causes stress that she has to experience for a long time and eventually lead to her seeking for long-term emotional support. While she is very emotional, she also surrounds herself with circles of friends to that could accept her emotional behavior. She even invited her friends to live in the same apartment building as hers because she wa afraid to live alone (188). Among her group of friends, she is looking for “humor, intelligence, emotional directness, independence of spirit” to what Norma, a friend among the circle, called “the kindness test” (188). She specifically picks these attributes so that it fits her personality, and would able to not only provide support for each other but to temporarily provide herself with emotional relieve.

 Natalie Wood was a very skilled dancer that leads her into the acting industry of the career. Ever since her mother wanted her to become a successful child star, she has pressured Natalie from the beginning to engage in ballet lessons (“Natalie Woods” 1). And although she failed her first attempt to be an extra on a 1943 film Happy Land, she became pressured by her mom and successfully pass the second screen test that “impressed the assembled studio executives with its emotional force” (1). Even though she was really pressured as a child to become an actor, she was still very talented dancer and with that talent comes opportunity for Natalie in the industry on the rise. With her background as a skilled dancer, she was doing exceptionally well when she was on a famed musical, playing a lead role that changed her career (1). On top of that her musical experience lead her to many successful movies of her time, like Splendor in the Grass and a comedy-drama Love with the Proper Stranger (1). Because of her talented background in dancing as a child, she was exposed to many opened doors of opportunity that leads Natalie to become a renowned actress that many knows today.

In the incident of Natalie Wood’s death, there are two main theory that were established. The first being that her death is ruled as an accidental drowning. In November 1982, she invited her co-star friend Christopher Walken to join her, Robert Wagner, and Dennis Davern—a family friend and the captain—on their yacht near the Catalina Island for the weekend (Kashner 1). On Sunday, November 29, she was found facing downward and floating about 200 yards off Blue Cavern Point on Catalina Island (1). Before her death on that day, there were a lot of occurrence that led up to the theory of her accidentally drowned herself. First being that everyone on that yacht was pretty much drunk the entire weekend. They were so drunk that it got to the point where Natalie and Robert were arguing the entire afternoon, and during an interview, Davern said that she asked him to take her ashore because “the tension on the boat was unbearable” (1). Not only that, but when they got ashore, Natalie and Davern spent the night in a room at a hotel, claiming that he and Wood only “drank the wine and went to sleep” (1). On top of that, when the next day comes by, Natalie and Walken decided to go back ashore from the yacht into Dough’s Harbor Reef, and began drinking there (1). Even when Wagner and Davern arrived later to join them, Davern described how drunk Wood and Walken were, how they “were out of it—giggling and laughing. Me and R.J. are pretty sober—we don’t drink around the clock.” (1). This goes to show how their conditions are throughout the whole entire weekend, and how this will affect their choices tremendously due to poor action being made when their mind is not right. This leads to a situation that results in Wood’s death.

            When Wood was found near the Catalina Island, investigations were made and the results are quite shocking. According to Thomas Noguchi, the chief medical examiner in Los Angeles at that time, said that there were “superficial skin bruises” all over her legs, arms, and face, and stated that such thing could be the result of her falling into the water (Kashner 1). On top of that Noguchi claimed that after an autopsy on Wood’s body, that she consumed “2 small pills that had not yet dissolved in her small intestine” and that the odor that emits from it was the scent of alcohol (“Natalie Wood's Autopsy Report Reveals New Details About Her Death.” 1). Not only that gives away the fact that she was drunk, they also found that she was extremely intoxicated when they tested the alcohol in her blood, which came out to be a .14, a level that was over the legal limit of .10 (1). This fact alone should make anyone believe that she was not in her right mind at the time and was probably doing something very risky and dangerous that led to death. Noguchi also stated that she was wearing a big down jacket, a sleeping gown, and socks (Kashner 1). While she was drowning, she must’ve tried to climb back on the rubber dinghy that she fell out of, leaving “fingernail scratches on the Valiant’s side” as she struggles to get out of the water (1). Due to her big jacket weighing her down, she could not get up onto the dinghy, and eventually become exhausted and experience hypothermia, which caused to drown (1). Because of how much she drank on that night, her judgement is clouded, and never really thought about taking of the jacket when going so close to the water. This is what most people think that led her to her demised, being too carefree by drinking too much, and accidentally fell into the water where she can’t get back up due to the heavy jacket. 

On the contrary, the second theory of Natalie Wood’s strange drowning may not be an accident, and that Robert Wagner, her husband, was the one responsible in the incident. According to Wood’s sister, Lana Wood, she finds Wood’s death questionable and provide information that counters the first theory. She argued that “my sister was not a swimmer and did not know how to swim, and she would never go to another boat or to shore dressed in a nightgown and socks.” (“Natalie Wood's Sister Campaigned for New Probe into Star's Death.” 1).  On top of that, ever since she was a child, she had a deep fear for dark water when her mom, Maria, informed her that a fortune teller warns her mother to fear dark water (Egan 1). Because of being exposed to the fear that her mother has, Natalie soon picked up on it and developed a fear for it too, and ever since then dark waters became a phobia for Wood. This raises several questions as to why Natalie was hanging out near the waters in the first place, especially when it’s dark. Ever since the case reopened in 2011, there are new questions that emerged. One of them being the bruises on Wood’s body and if it was really the result of the fall into the water. According to Dr. Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran, the chief medical examiner, he stated that “the location of the bruises, the multiplicity of the bruises, lack of head trauma, or facial bruising support bruising having occurred prior to entry in the water” (Duke and Watkins 1). This further prove that maybe Wood’s death is not so accidental, and some event must’ve happened before she was drowned. If Wood was so scared of dark waters, then why would she be near it in the first place? In addition, the bruises on her face doesn’t add up when new evidence showed that she got them before she always engulfed in the waters, which raises suspicions on whether or not she accidentally killed herself in the first place. Now of course, her being drunk is a main factor in this, and the actions and choices being made when being drunk is unpredictable and unclear. But one has to keep any possibilities alive when examining past cases, especially when Wagner’s side of the story doesn’t add up to the first theory.

In addition to what have been mentioned so far, Wagner side of the story does not add up to how his ex-wife died. Robert Wagner claimed that the whole situation was an accident, prompting “She probably skidded on one of the steps after untying the ropes. The steps are slick as ice because of the algae and seaweed that's always clinging to them. After slipping on the steps, she hit her head against the boat... I only hope she was unconscious when she hit the water.” (Lusher 1). This was later being questioned when Noguchi wrote that “the untouched algae on the swim step, seemed to indicate that she was trying to board the dinghy, not just adjust its rope, when the accident happened” (Kashner 1). Not only did Noguchi debunked Wagner’s testimony but it also shed light in the info Wagner is giving. The inconsistency that Robert Wagner brings to the table really makes people questioned whether or not he’s telling the truth at all this whole time. Another factor that put a red flag in Wagner’s story is that Davern’s perspective on the whole thing was quite different compared to Wagner. Wagner failed to mention anything that matches Davern’s story when he was first being questioned. According to Davern’s interview, he said that Wagner and Wood got into a very heated argument, to the point where “stuff getting thrown around.” (Zimmerman 1). Davern also recalled that after the fight got into the cockpit area, he heard the dinghy being untied and Wagner returned being “tousled, sweating profusely, as if he had been in a terrible fight, an ordeal of some kind” (1). He also claimed that Wagner is the one responsible for Wood’s death because of how Wagner responded to Natalie being missing (1). Davern stated that Wagner seemed like he didn’t want to put in the effort to look for Natalie, saying that “we didn’t take any steps to see if we could locate her” and how Wagner wants it to be: “We’re not going to look too hard. We’re not going to turn on the searchlight. We’re not going to notify anybody right now.” (1). This further proves that Wagner is a primary suspect for this case. He is protruding his suspicions more and more by not being able to keep a consistent story with the press and investigators, and him not even mentioning anything that Davern was saying in his side of the story. This is why the second theory comes to surface in recent years when the case is reopened; it really questioned whether or not Natalie Wood actually died from accidental drowning or did another factor came in and affect the whole situation. Ever since 2012, the case is changed from “accidental drowning” to “drowning and other undetermined factors.” (1). Of course, we always have to keep any possibility open, even when the case was just recently reopened and that new suspect came into the picture as newer evidence are being presented on the matter.

Ever since the drowning of Natalie Wood, there are two main conspiracy theories that followed the mysterious death:

1.      She accidentally drowned from the alcohol in her body that clouded her awareness

2.      Her husband, Robert Wagner, was involved in the death of Wood

For decades, her death was only ruled as accidental drowning. However, recently, stories of new witnesses are beginning to question Wagner’s action and perspective, leading to him being a prime suspect to his wife’s death. Until more evidence shed light to the situation, the case remains unsolved for now.

Works Cited

“5 Facts About Natalie Wood: Fears, Old Flames & Why Size Mattered.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 7 Sept. 2016, www.biography.com/news/natalie-wood-facts.

Duke, Alan, and Tom Watkins. “Bruises Cited in Amending Natalie Wood's Death Certificate.” CNN, Cable News Network, 15 Jan. 2013, www.cnn.com/2013/01/14/showbiz/natalie-wood-coroner/index.html.

Egan, Barry. “Still Waters Run Deep - the Drowning of Film Star Natalie Wood.” Independent.ie, 6 Aug. 2016, www.independent.ie/style/celebrity/still-waters-run-deep-the-drowning-of-film-star-natalie-wood-34941806.html.

Kashner, Sam. “Natalie Wood's Death, Still Shrouded in Mystery-and the Clues That Remain.” Vanities, Vanity Fair, 15 Sept. 2017, www.vanityfair.com/news/2000/03/natalie-wood-s-fatal-voyage.

Lambert, Gavin. Natalie Wood: a Life. Black Stage Books, 2005.

Lusher, Adam. “Natalie Wood Death: 48 Hours Documentary Reveals Details of Why Robert Wagner Is Now 'Person of Interest'.” The Independent, Independent Digital News and Media, 6 Feb. 2018, www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/natalie-wood-death-robert-wagner-drowning-48-hours-documentary-yacht-person-interest-chistopher-a8196001.html.

"Natalie Wood." Encyclopedia of World Biography, vol. 30, Gale, 2010. Biography In Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1631009502/BIC?u=txshracd2496&sid=BIC&xid=90731c50. Accessed 15 Oct. 2018.

“Natalie Wood's Autopsy Report Reveals New Details About Her Death.” CBS Los Angeles, CBS Los Angeles, 18 Nov. 2011, losangeles.cbslocal.com/2011/11/18/natalie-woods-autopsy-report-reveals-new-details-about-her-death/.

“Natalie Wood's Sister Campaigned for New Probe into Star's Death.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/11/natalie-wood-death-lana-wood.html.

Zimmerman, Amy. “Inside the Mysterious Death of Natalie Wood.” The Daily Beast, The Daily Beast Company, 2 Feb. 2018, www.thedailybeast.com/inside-the-mysterious-death-of-natalie-wood-4?ref=scroll.