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Natalie Wood drowning case re-opened after 30 years

By Jordan Baker
Friday, November 18, 2011
Natalie Wood death case re-opened after 30 years
Natalie Wood in a studio shot taken in 1965.

She'd always feared the deep ocean. But in 1981, that's where Hollywood actress Natalie Wood died.

She had been sailing on the yacht Splendour with her husband and a friend. They thought she had gone to bed, but she was later found floating in the water, wearing only her nightgown, a down jacket, and socks.

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Los Angeles police say they are going to re-open one of Hollywood's most famous cases of mysterious death, saying "investigators were contacted by persons who stated they had additional information about the Natalie Wood Wagner drowning".

Natalie, who starred in Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean, was spending the night on her yacht with her husband, Robert Wagner, and a fellow actor, Christopher Walken.

There was a drunken fight on board — the men say they argued about whether Natalie should pursue her art at the expense of her family — and Natalie went to bed. However, she was not there when Wagner retired.

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The official version at the time was that she had gone to tie the dinghy up, and slipped.

Your say: Do you think it's worth re-opening cases after so long?

Video: Natalie Wood's movies

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