Lana Wood Destroys Robert Wagner

Hardly. She's not the butler.

Why did the boat captain wait years?

I dunno. Lana's a nutcase who's been broke for years. Wagner's too old and decrepit to go after her, and she could certainly use the money from a book deal - but the only way she'd get an advance would be to have something seemingly newer and juicer to tell. She's got a lot of motivation to enhance the story.

R3 Lana has been accusing Robert Wagner for years.

Lana Wood is crazy. She has no credibility at all.

Didn't Natalie complain about Lana mooching off her?

r3 Any news on Robert Wagner health wise? When was he last seen in public?

Let it go, doll. Let it go. You’re at the finish line yourself. Enjoy what time you have left.

The star of "Demon Rage"?

R7 He appeared in the HBO documentary Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind which released year. Unsurprisingly, Natalie’s daughters fully support him.

released last year*

r10 Cheers r10 Did he look good for his age?

I don't know her.

R12 He looked pretty healthy all things considered. It’s kinda crazy both he and Joanne Woodward are still alive. They of course starred together in A Kiss Before Dying.

r14 Thanks. Gosh Joanne Woodward seems to have been in poor health for ages maybe even more than a decade.Pretty much after Paul died. I would be surprised if she is still alive in a couple of years.

I wasn’t alive when Natalie drowned, so can someone explain why so many people think Robert is responsible for her drowning?

Christopher Walken will take what he knows about that night to the grave.

When Robert Wagner and Christopher Walken die, Natalie Wood will trend on Twitter just like when Kirk Douglas died.

Murder doesn't really make sense. Natalie knew what RJ was about.

r18 Unless she dies before one of them?

R19 I agree. Maybe involuntary manslaughter.

I had a friend who used to live in the same apartment building as Lana. She used to come to his place and get drunk, and the evening would always end up in her talking about Robert Wagner being responsible for Natalie's death.

"Mark...hic...that basserd RJ did it...hic!"

r16, basically because Natalie was always known to be deathly afraid of deep water and would never have attempted to get into a dinghy by herself in the middle of the night. The railing on the boat was considered high enough not be a danger.

And she'd been heard having a long loud disturbing fight with Wagner in the middle of the night. Walken and the captain were the only others on the boat and all of them, including Natalie had had a lot to drink that night.

She did, hon r20.

R20 Natalie Wood died before all of them. I guarantee she will trend on Twitter when Wagner and Walken die.

[Quote] Natalie was always known to be deathly afraid of deep water

And yet she got on the family yacht named Splendor.

So fascinating seeing the ravages of time on Lana Wood and imagining what Natalie would look like today had she lived. Perhaps dying before she grew old is a blessing of sorts in Hollywood.

R23 Thanks. So do you think they got into a drunken argument and Wagner pushed her off the boat?

R26 She said in many interviews that she liked being on the yacht, but would never get in the water while she was on it.

R28 I know he did.

You in danger, Jill St. John.

R27 Natalie would've been able to afford many cosmetic procedures, so she wouldn't have ended up with seven chins and eye bags you could store spare change in like her sister.

r20 r21 I meant Lana might die before Walken or Wagner !! I am aware Natalie is long dead!

R27 Unfortunately Natalie didn’t die young enough to receive the icon status of someone like Marilyn Monroe. She was in her 40’s. She was beautiful tho. I always felt her looks were underrated.

I think they were all drunk and trying to calm Natalie down from her fight with RJ and somehow she slipped and fell off the boat and they were all too drunk to have the strength and wherewithal to dive in and rescue her in the pitch black cold night. The 3 men made a pact to stick to their innocence. It's that simple.

What did you think of Natalie's Maggie the Cat?

r33 r20 r21 My mistake i thought the post said Lana will trend on twitter! Apologies!

R37 No worries.

Lana's tits were a lot bigger than Natalie's. Here she is as Plenty O'Toole in the James bond movie, "Diamonds are Forever," which, coincidentally, also starred Jill St. John, Robert Wagner's current wife.

[Quote] The 3 men made a pact to stick to their innocence. It's that simple.

Except the captain changed his tune later. I think this whole business is simple. It's about $$$.

If Natalie were alive today she’d have to apologize for playing a Puerto Rican woman in West Side Story. I know she’s totally miscast in that role, but I love her in it.

Puerto Ricans can be white.

Yes, r40, the 3 men made a pact. Until, years later, the captain decided he'd had enough with the lies.

But it's unclear to me what he's actually revealed.

R42 I know but Natalie wasn’t a white Latina.

[Quote] the captain decided he'd had enough with the lies.

What prompted the reversal?

I wonder if the timing of Lana's book wasn't especially well-planned to coincide with the opening of the new West Side Story film in December as Natalie Wood's photos will be everywhere as her portrayal of Maria is sure to be re-watched and discussed to death in the coming months.

If Froy can be a white Latina, so can Natalie.

R45 Probably nearly 4 decades of guilt.

A tell tale heart tip, r48?

r45, GUILT on the captain's part - what else? Not that he killed her, of course, but that he covered up the unfortunate accident that they all witnessed without calling for help (not that it would have done any good by the time the EMT arrived).

[Quote] what else?

A depleted bank account? You don't think it's strange that Lana has a book out after all this time? Lana was living in a motel with her grandchildren and their father very recently. Her daughter has (or had) terminal cancer.

R50 What do you make of the bruises on Natalie’s body that suggest she had been pushed into the water?

r45 I recall reading a rumour , perhaps on datalounge that Wagners friend Frank Sinatra was involved either in hush money or using connections to put pressure on the captain to keep quiet and that obviously that whole dynamic was gone within a few years of Frank dying in 1998?

I give Lana props for fighting for her sister.

I am team Lana. I cant stand to look at or listen to Wagner.

Who do you think had the worst death between James Dean, Sal Mineo, and Natalie Wood?

Are you kidding? If they wanted, they could have "disappeared" the captain.

[Quote] Who do you think had the worst death between James Dean, Sal Mineo, and Natalie Wood?

Sharon Tate.

That HBO documentary about Natalie mentioned upthread is quite fabulous. All about her life and career but lots about her death with much interviewing of RJ and her daughters who all love and support each other and don't believe RJ was responsible.

I was actually never that big of a fan of Natalie's films but kind of fell in love with her through all the home movies in the documentary.

I happened to see a 1984 Hart to Hart episode and there was a line about how a woman never has to fear for her life when around Jonathan (Wagner). I thought this line was unfortunate.

r57 It was speculation on here that I was repeating but wouldnt the captain being disappeared have been a bit too obvious and suspicious?

But allowing him to yap to the media isn't? It's not like the mafia no longer exists...

[Quote] I was actually never that big of a fan of Natalie's films

She was not a good actress.

R56 All died horribly but I would have to go with Mineo. Being stabbed in the heart just sounds awful.

R63 She was an inconsistent actress, but I thought she was capable of greatness (like in Splendor in the Grass).

And I thought Splendor was one of her worst performances.

She simply had no depth.

r62 True but perhaps feeling guilty about Natalie another murder or death on his conscience was not Wagners first preference and the Captain seemed ammenable and reliable in terms of keeping quiet long term?

I was too young when she died. Somebody made a joke, "What wood doesn't float? ... Natalie Wood." I didn't get it.

After learning about her, I was bummed that such a huge star died relatively young (43), even if she was washed up making crappy sci-fi thrillers, as it were.

I remember asking my dad about her career prospects had she lived, and he didn't know how to respond.

Why was Natalie unable to transition in the 70’s and play the kinds of roles Jane Fonda did?

R68 Her final film, Brainstorm, was actually pretty good, and she was good in it.

And the subject matter was frighteningly prescient - scientists trying to create a device that can record what goes on in your brain when you die.

[Quote] I remember asking my dad about her career prospects had she lived, and he didn't know how to respond.

"Faggot, please!"

Didn't your father know that she was scheduled to do Anastasia on stage?

poster for anastasia.

r69, Some say Natalie just made a lot of bad late career choices like turning down Bonnie and Clyde.

Others feel she was too tied in producers' minds to old Hollywood style and glamour to be seriously considered for edgy roles in the 70s, unlike Fonda.

And she really wasn't a very interesting actress. Has anyone seen her in PENELOPE, a horrible mid-60s rom-com? That film could have killed anyone's career.

R74 Thanks. That must explain why she basically retired in the 70’s.

I like Lana yeah, she's Hollywood crazy but so many are. She's always just wanted the truth from RJ and she's seen him controlling and abusive to her sister so she was familiar with RJ's rage especially when drinking

She's probably on to something. A terrible accident exacerbated by booze and poor/malicious judgement.

she wanted to raise her children.

Did she not do any of those disaster movies in the 1970s?

lol R71. Yes! If it wasn't clear I was already gay, it certainly was then.

My poor dad! How the fuck was he supposed to know? She was dead. And I can't imagine he cared.

If she had lived, though, I could have seen her doing guest-stars on Dynasty. She would have then played the Joan Collins role in These Old Broads I imagine.

I could see her Touched by an Angel.

From the OP's pic, it looks like she's destroyed a few Jack Daniels as well.

She could have been Rachel's mom on "Friends."

r79 I wonder who will be the last of the old broads standing in that film? Elizabeth and Debbie both gone but who will be the next one to depart out of Shirley and Joan?

I think Shirl will go before Joanie.

Little Natalie and Liz

r84 Joan still seems so full of zest and energy.

Lana Wood has been accusing Robert Wagner of murder for years. He totally ignores her. Everybody should.

Not sure, R83. The bigger question might be: who will Shirley come back as!

A good mother?

The woman is a certifiable lunatic and has been for years. Move along.. Nothing to see here.

Lana ain't so crazy.

r91 - WOWWWWW!!!!

R16 because he killed her and got away with it. That was the reference to him in once upon a time in hollywood. The actor everyone kept saying he killed her and got away with it.

R93 Tarantino is good friends with Robert Blake so he could’ve been referencing him too.

the bruising that some thought came from Wagner beating her was explained by the coroner as being from her supposed fall into the water and struggling to get into the dinghy. also apparently she had skin that was easier to bruise that most people.

R91 Wow

The account I read years ago included eyewitnesses in the Catalina restaurant who emphasized how incredibly drunk all 3 of them were (Natalie, Bob, Chris) and that they were already fighting then, so you know they went back to the boat and drank more and fought more. Natalie probably said I'm outta here and jumped in the dinghy and missed. Like R95 said, the bruises could be explained by bumping against the boat.

She had such a tragic life, exploited by her mother, raped by that monster Douglas, trying to get her gay husband to love her, you can almost hear the Greek chorus.

r97 Gay husband?

R27, Natalie had aged extremely well . I think she would have continued to.

R98 Bisexual?

I believe Lana.

Once again Gayle King proves how stupid she is when in asking Erin Moriarty about the night Natalie died, she refers to it as “the alleged drowning”.

I don't think she tried to jump into the dinghy in the middle of a cold dark night. That would have been totally out of character but also insane for anyone to do. What would have been the point in the middle of the night? I can't believe even if she was dead drunk she would have tried for that.

But I also don't think she was cruelly pushed out of the boat into the water. It was all a horrible accident in which she somehow fell over the rail. Perhaps she was manhandled but it was not with the intention of pushing her overboard.

Yes i think the contentious thing is that Wagner knew she fell into the water but did not help her. then later claimed he was unaware of where she was on such a small boat.

r100 Thanks. I did wonder if you were referring to her other husband whose name is escaping me?

I think Nat dabbled with women

Wagner seems like a sociopath.

The captain said JR wouldn't let him turn on the search light to locate Natalie. Fairly damning.

The fact that Wood confronted Wagner in the vid at R91 shows she's sincere in wanting to get to the truth. I think she knew about the cameras -- and perhaps wanted to get him to admit something -- but his answers to her questions weren't answers -- just a lot of "how could you do this to me" crap.

Why didn't they just put her death down to heart failure? I mean, that's what the papers were told about Thomas Ince when he was shot to death on Mr. Hearst's yacht.

Is he still with Jill St. James?

R108 I think it was obviously orchestrated by lana wood, I can’t imagine cameras follow her around day to day because she’s the sister of some dead star from the 60s. If the cameras hadn’t been there perhaps Wagner would have stayed around for longer and had a proper conversation with her. It was a bit laughable her attempt to pretend she didn’t know that the cameras were there. I feel sorry for her, she’s really not been able to let go of this and is completely defined by her sister both when Natalie was alive and then later in death.

If Wagner killed her intentionally , he will be facing the next world music very soon .

how would you feel if your sister died in mysterious circumstances and her husband refused to talk to you about it? no wonder she is pissed.

If he didn't see her go overboard, what is there to talk to Lana about? Some of you just like a potboiler.

R97 Agree with you. If you are fucked-up drunk you can make terrible decisions. There certainly was a time when I did. My take is all three got fucked up. RJ passed out/went to bed. Wood was so drunk-angry she decided to go to shore. A fear of dark water is not Kryptonite. Alcohol makes you lose inhibitions and believe situations are less risky than they actually are. Then it all went to hell when she lost her balance. The real question is what happened when they realized she was unaccounted for. Ultimately, Natalie was more valuable alive than dead. If she could have wrapped her head around it, she easily could have transitioned to a night time soap. She had certainly already been doing a lot of television.

Lana was barely coherent in that video and her life sounds chaotic. She's been homeless, her daughter died in her 40s from heart disease leaving 3 young kids (apparently the dad was homeless too) and they were all living in one hotel room with a GoFundMe page. She's written another book about Natalie which is clearly motivated in part by her dire finances. If not totally unhinged she sounds medicated and muddled in articles and interviews. Terribly sad life.

This is not to defend Wagner. I think he left Natalie to drown.

R115 Right? Once I was so drunk I thought it would be a great idea to do a swan dive off a rocky point into the ocean ala Acapulco. I don't know how to dive into a pool properly.

[Quote] I think he left Natalie to drown.

For what reason? Men love to raise children alone, lol.

Rumor was that Natalie caught RJ and Walkin in bed and she became irate and RJ panicked over outing

I'm Finstad's book, she spoke with a family who were also on their boat nearby that night. They said they heard Wagner laughing at and mocking somebody, accompanied by splashing sounds and cries for help. They told police the next day, but it was never followed up on.

I think they were both hammered and fought, Natalie fell in either on her own or with help from him, and he thought it was funny and rather than saving her, let her drown. I think he did that because he was totally out of his mind drunk, likely in a blackout. If he was blackout drunk, he actually doesn't remember what happened.

R118 Natalie and Wagner had one child together who was 7 when Wood drowned. Hardly a burden when you have money. (Wagner and Wood had one child each from previous marriages.)

[R42] PR's can be white but they normally don't speak in a bad imitation of a Mexican accent making them sound like a braying donkey.

R69, Natalie Wood had a nervous breakdown in the early 1960s and was an emotional basket case throughout the decade. In '66 she bought out her WB contract, fired her entire staff of agents, managers, publicists, and went on hiatus. She returned for "Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice," but after the birth of her child in 1970 she went into semi-retirement to heal and be devoted wife and mother. When she was ready to resume her movie career, she was no longer a bankable star.

Natalie had a damn good run in showbiz. Very few child stars from her era transitioned successfully to adult roles (I'm looking at you, Shirley Temple).

Her career may have eventually stalled, but there's no denying she was a big success.

R120 I agree with this. When I saw how small the boat Splendour is it's hard to conceive how someone can quietly go missing unless you are either passed out drunk or so wasted you don't give a shit.

Alcohol was a huge factor in this, although I have always thought Wagner was a serious creep after I read some leering comments he made about his daughter's attractiveness.

[Quote] Rumor was that Natalie caught RJ and Walkin in bed and she became irate and RJ panicked over outing

Caught them in bed on a yacht after they'd dined together on land?

[Quote] I have always thought Wagner was a serious creep after I read some leering comments he made about his daughter's attractiveness.

Didn't Papa Joe Simpson make similar comments?

Robert Wagner was one of Henry Willson's boys, so you know he sucked some dick on his way to stardom.

I have no doubt he continued to fuck around with guys when he was married to Natalie.

Do you think Jeff let him?

They both look guilty.

R129 Probably.

Natalie didn't know how to start the engine in the dingy according to the captain.

@r117, " Once I was so drunk I thought it would be a great idea to do a swan dive off a rocky point into the ocean ala Acapulco. I don't know how to dive into a pool properly. "

Did you survive?

[Quote] can someone explain why so many people think Robert is responsible for her drowning?

Because people want intrigue.

R133 Nope. Crushed and battered to death on the rocks. Fortunately, since I was drunk, I didn't feel a thing.

That means DL is Hell?

Surely you meant "Heaven"?

"[R133] Nope. Crushed and battered to death on the rocks. Fortunately, since I was drunk, I didn't feel a thing. "

How lucky you were, that's the way I want to go... Drunk

Natalie could hold her liquor. A famous actor said she “ could drink a man under the table and still maintain her lady likeness.”

I believe RJ mentioned having “three beautiful daughters” when asked on a talk show why so many brat pack stars were hanging around his house.

Lana has been jealous and competitive with Natalie all of her life. Like she wanted to BE Natalie. That really came thru in her first book. Anything she could one up on her sister she mentioned, like having bigger boobs. I don’t doubt she would hit on Natalie’s boyfriends/husbands, while living off her. She probably made a pass at RJ during their first marriage when she was living with them and that’s one of the reasons he dislikes her. I like RJ. He seems like a very decent person. And he has a respect and regard for old Hollywood like Robert Osborne did. It was an awful thing that happened but I think they were all just blackout drunk and didn’t notice Natalie being in trouble. I don’t think she was pushed or ignored deliberately.

Didn't RJ put out a book not long ago about the careers of six Golden Age actresses?

r142 Didnt he claim to have had sex with Barbara Stanwyck and Bette Davis?

No, but the ladies both claimed to have sex with him.

Wagner was drunk. Natalie was drunk. Walken was drunk.

Wagner and she had a fight. Wagner was/is a control freak with a horrible temper. She went off on Wagner about "having something going on or wanting to" with the famously flexible and vague Walken. She brought up catching Wagner years many years before with a man. Wagner lost it. She ended up in the water. That was that.

She NEVER would have taken the craft out herself. She NEVER would have gone near the water. Walken had fled to his quarters by then. Walker always was a chicken-shit coward and manipulator. He worked out his story and, as said, that was that.

Anything that bothers his miserable last few months is fine with me. Let Lana get under his crusty old skin.

[quote] Wagner and she had a fight. Wagner was/is a control freak with a horrible temper. She went off on Wagner about "having something going on or wanting to" with the famously flexible and vague Walken. She brought up catching Wagner years many years before with a man. Wagner lost it. She ended up in the water. That was that.

I suppose you were right there with them that night and saw everything they did and heard everything they said. You're an idiot. You know nothing. You're just some poor fool who will believe anything.

Yes, Wagner claimed to have had an affair with Stanwyck.

Never would have? You can't say that about a drunk.

[Quote] Wagner was/is a control freak with a horrible temper.

Any stories on this?

He said in his book that he stalked Beatty and wanted him dead or something like that.

That's an example?

Yes!

Actors sexing up stories for publicity doesn't really count. Wagner had multiple long running series. If he was a pain in the ass, it would be attached to his name.

Wagner himself said he broke a wine glass during an argument with Walken.

So this murderer is telling on himself? Is that your take?

R140 That's not what I'm talking about. It was about his daughter Katie who was having a moment.

I don't know the guy and I don't have much interest in defending or attacking him but I think it's entirely possible he was a nasty drunk. He strikes me as fake and cold.

Is this Jill btw? She likes abusive men.

Lana’s book is out today.

I hope it does well for her. I loved her as Fran on Capitol.

Just saw Natalie in a cameo as herself in "The Candidate" from 1972.

I think she was at her peak beauty around that time. She looked gorgeous.

She was already reduced to cameos by 1972? Hollywood is a cruel mistress.

If she'd lived Natalie Wood would have continued to work, if not in film than in television. She was beautiful and talented. She would have still gotten roles.

Better to be dead than old in Hollywood, R27. Got it. Gosh, what a snake pit of looney tunes.

R139, Just the opposite. One drink was enough to impair her.

How many drinks until she was under the host?

She'sh shtill alive??!!!??

R162, you dumb liar

I'd like to know r71 in the real world, LMFAO!

R162 = Jill St. John