Natalie Wood's Death Reopened

Maria in West Side Story

Splendor in the Grass

Not everyone believed Natalie Wood's death was an accident. The explanation given that she was drunk and fell overboard trying to tie up or climb into a dinghy somehow didn't add up. Her husband Robert Wagner who she married twice was the number one suspect.

Now the captain of the yacht, Dennis Davern has decided after all these years to come forward and tell the truth, admitting that he lied to authorities about that tragic night in 1981. He now says that Wood and Wagner fought just before she went missing.

Christopher Walken

Christopher Walken was there that night and they were all drunk. They went to a restaurant, came back to the boat and drank some more. Davern said he heard a heated argument between Wood and Wagner followed by thumping noises. He also alleges Wagner refused to allow him to call the Coastguard when it became obvious that she was not on board.

When a fierce argument broke out between Walken and Wagner, Wood left. Wagner later wrote "There are only two possibilities - either she was trying to get away from the argument or she was trying to tie the dinghy. But the bottom line is that nobody really knows what happened."

So why didn't anyone on the boat hear her cries for help and why was she covered in bruises?

Captain Dennis Davern now alleges that the three people on the boat, Robert Wagner, Christopher Maken and himself concocted a "story" to tell authorities that morning of the 29th November 1981. Davern has since passed a polygraph test that supports his assertion that Wood and Wagner were arguing on the back deck of the yacht when she went missing.

Many years later Wagner admitted smashing a wine bottle an hour before Wood disappeared but there was no follow-up by police and Davern now says they were not interrogated or physically checked for bruises or other signs of a struggle.

Chief Coroner Thomas Noguchi ruled that Natalie Wood died as the result of "accidental drowning" but he wanted further investigation into the case. This cost him a demotion and the case was quickly wound up to avoid media attention. Coroner Noguchi was a celebrity in his own right and was referred to as "coroner to the stars". He was also responsible for determining the cause of death of Marilyn Monroe, John F Kennedy and Sharon Tate.