Natalie Wood 1938 – 1981

Biography

Natalie Wood was an American actress who grew from a child star into one of Hollywood’s most celebrated leading ladies. Born Natalia Zakharenko in San Francisco in 1938 to Russian immigrant parents, she made her film debut at four and won fame as the sceptical child in Miracle on 34th Street. She matured into acclaimed adult roles in Rebel Without a Cause, for which she earned her first Academy Award nomination, and went on to star in Splendor in the Grass, West Side Story, and Gypsy, earning two more nominations. Twice married to Robert Wagner, she remained a major star into the 1970s. She died in 1981, drowning off Santa Catalina Island during a weekend yachting trip, in circumstances that remain the subject of debate. Her films remain classics of American cinema, and her performances continue to win new admirers more than four decades after her death.