Natalie Wood and James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause, wikimedia commons, photo is in public domain
Thirty years after her death, the actress Natalie Wood is once again in the spotlight. Her name might not be as familiar to the younger generation as to those who grew up with TV shows and movies starring Natalie Wood, but recent speculation (and a re-investigation of her death) has led to renewed interest in Natalie Woods. So who was Natalie Woods – and how did she die?
Natalie Woods starred in a multitude of TV shows and movies and received 3 Oscar nominations; films that Natalie Woods starred in included:
- Happy Land (1943)
- Miracle on 34th Street (1947)
- Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
- Splendor in the Grass (1961)
- West Side Story (1961)
- Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969).
She also starred in several TV shows, although her career declined after the early ’70′s. Natalie Wood’s personal life was pretty wild and she enjoyed several dates, affairs and (rocky) marriages to stars such as Elvis Presley, British producer Richard Gregson (marriage) and Robert Wagner (married twice).
Her untimely death on November 29, 1981, at just 43 years of age, was surrounded with theories of foul play; what was certain was that she drowned and had been drinking heavily the night before. Whether anyone else played a part in her death is open to speculation, particularly as the case has now been re-opened by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Regardless of the outcome of the investigation, interest in Natalie Woods has increased – and opened up her world to a new generation of movie goers.
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