NATALIE WOOD 2: THE ENDING

When the investigators re-opened the death of Natalie Wood on the Thanksgiving weekend of 1981, two new witnesses came forward. They testified that there was a fight on Friday night as well as on Saturday night, the night that she died. In the Friday night fight the witnesses claim that Natalie was the aggressor and that she fell and hit her knee causing the injury seen on the autopsy report. (48 Hours “Natalie Wood: Death in Dark Water” preview)

After this fight she left in the dinghy with the designated captain Dennis Davern to go to the tourist area of Avalon on Catalina Island. They stayed the night and Natalie told Dennis that she planned on leaving her husband Robert Wagner. Even though Natalie thought of leaving the Island, they returned to the yacht Saturday morning.

Wagner decided to move the yacht to a more secluded part of the island with the excuse of wanting to fish. The yacht was originally Wagner’s fishing boat before it became their boat. However, he possibly had another motivation to move the boat: this was the fight that he felt wasn’t over and that he wanted to be away from tourists and prying eyes.

While Wagner was napping, Natalie and her co-star and guest Christopher Walken took the dinghy to a restaurant in the cove on the island. Wagner and Davern would later join them for dinner and drinks. It was reported to be a tense time with Natalie breaking a bottle. After this they returned to the yacht.

The drinking continued on the yacht as did the fighting, yet it is undetermined who was the initiator. What is known is that the fight between them continued after a heated argument between Wagner and Walken. It was said to be about Natalie’s career. Wagner became so angry that he smashed a bottle on a table while accusing Walken of wanting to f_ _ k his wife.

Walken retreated to his room while Natalie was in her room getting ready to retire. This usually included taking a sedative to sleep as she had insomnia. Wagner continued the fight with Natalie in their room. Davern says that the fight was physical as he could hear noises even though the door was closed. At some point Davern went up to the top to turn on music to drown out the sounds of their fight. The fight continued to the back of the yacht where the dinghy was tied up. Davern claims that his view of the back was obscured and he didn’t see what happened.

Questions remain as to what really happened when Natalie Wood drowned in the dark waters off of Catalina Island on the Thanksgiving weekend of 1981. To this end I have a vision of Natalie Wood in heaven and she says that she just drowned – she wasn’t killed.

I believe that I am told this in response to the current belief that Robert Wagner somehow killed his wife in a moment of jealous rage. This is a powerful delusion that has consumed many to fabricate scenarios that have no basis in reality or evidence to support them. I believe that this was given to me as confirmation that the allegations of foul play are false.

Wagner did not kill her, he just let her go and she slipped away and drowned during rough waters and drizzling rain. She wanted to leave him and did so symbolically by getting into the dinghy with his help. Away from the yacht she passed out and fell overboard. She wrestled to get back into the dinghy but in the end she succumbed to the dark water. She was having an affair with Walken and Wagner came to know this. She had the affair to end their relationship. Wagner was angry about this, they fought and she left him.

Natalie adds that RJ (Wagner) was a good and gentile man unless he was drinking. She wants her sister Lana Wood to know that RJ didn’t kill her, that it was just a terrible, terrible accident. She had been drinking and passed out. She fell out of the dinghy and she couldn’t get back in. The heavy coat that she put on over her nightgown pulled her down when wet and she drowned.

The vision is ending when I see an angel of the Lord standing in heaven as a gatekeeper. I am told to be careful and to not do this on my own even though I am esteemed. This is a warning not to do of one’s own will. Also be aware of lying spirits that will tell you what you want to hear.

The next day a conversation between Natalie and RJ appears in my mind.

Natalie: “You knew that I was terrified of the water, yet you let me get in the boat!”

RJ: “I’m sorry, Natalie, I didn’t know what I was doing.”

I see Natalie as being very angry with RJ. She is accusing him of not stopping her and causing the accident.

RJ: “I should never have let you get on that boat, it is all my fault!”

I see them as having this exchange in real time. Something long overdue. She is dark and angry in this exchange as she blames him for letting her go in the dinghy and not stopping her.

RJ let her go in the dinghy which was a mistake. He did not keep watch of her as he should have. Once overboard she tried to get back in but she wasn’t strong enough to overcome the wet circumstances. She cried out for help but none came. She fell victim to the elements and died. Her body was found floating in the dark water and the dinghy ended up on the shore.

RJ was negligent in letting her get in the dinghy by herself and then by not watching out for her. He just couldn’t deal with her leaving him for another and he just gave up on her. He didn’t identify her body out of a sense of guilt for letting her go.

There is plenty of blame to go around for this tragedy. Christopher Walken should not have come on the trip to confront the husband of the wife that he was having an affair with. He is guilty of inciting the confrontation that led to her death. And the designated captain Dennis Davern was drinking and using drugs and often not fit for duty. He is guilty of negligence of duty and should share in the blame.

Lana is in a dark mood over this terrible accident. She wants desperately to know what happened. She says: “My sister didn’t have to die!” She is angry with RJ over the loss of her sister. She wants justice and is pressuring the L.A. Police Dept. to do something before it is too late. She is angry that they have not gone after RJ for her possible murder.

A number of ways that he could have killed his wife have been put forth. That there was a terrible fight between the two of them is now accepted as fact. She had bruises on her body that are now believed to have been inflicted prior to her drowning. One premise is that she was knocked out during the fight and was thrown overboard by Wagner. Yet there was no trauma of this nature (strangulation, blow to the head) on the autopsy report.

If he had murdered her it would have been difficult to stage her death in the manner that she was found with her body far from the yacht and the dinghy washed up on shore. The yacht was not that large nor well insulated to expect that nothing would have been heard if foul play took place. There were other boats nearby with people close enough to have possibly seen him staging an accident.

Foul play cannot be completely ruled out but no logical explanation has been put forth. Equally, Wagner’s theory that she went out to tie up the dinghy, slipped and fell into the water and somehow floated away from the boat with no one aware seems farfetched. That Wagner continues to not give a plausible explanation to what happened only fuels speculation.

Also, that he did not tell the police about the nasty fighting between them makes him look suspicious. Why didn’t he just tell the truth about what happened if it was just a terrible accident that took place after a heated argument? Why continue to lie about what he knows took place to this day? His not coming forward at this point in time makes him appear to be guilty of something. For the most part he has been tried and convicted of murder in the court of public opinion. Why would he not want to put an ending to the perception that he is a murderer?

Wagner hopes that Lana can forgive him. However, he makes no excuses for what happened and only hopes to be forgiven. But the hate and anger over something that didn’t have to happen will not let this take place. The push for justice and punishment is too great and will continue to dog him.

A more plausible explanation is that Wagner helped her get into the dinghy as she was determined to get away from him. He could have told her not to start the engine until she was away from the yacht so as not to draw attention to them. He must have implied that she needed to do this discreetly, again he was image conscious. However, she was in no condition to be on that little boat by herself.

I see an image in my mind of the time when Natalie was in the dinghy and RJ was on the back of his yacht. They have a brief spiritual moment between them where they both know that a change is coming. I can see Natalie in the dinghy looking up at RJ on the back of the boat. A lasting memory for both of them. There is an exchange between them as they both have a spiritual light to them. It is brief and then they resume their behavior. There is no more time for them.

I have a vision of Natalie saying: “I told RJ that I was leaving him.”

This was probably the last meaningful thing that was said between them. He let her go because she was leaving him and would no longer be his wife. He was both hurt and angry that it had come to this as this time around they were a family with daughters to raise.

She got in the dinghy to leave him and possibly go back to the restaurant. The other possibility is that she just got on the dinghy to get away from him and believed that someone would come to her aid. However, she was only on it for a brief time before she passed out and fell overboard. She cried out for help as she vainly attempted to reenter the small craft. She struggled for a time until the end.

Her only hope for a rescue other than RJ or Davern was the Wayne family anchored nearby. They heard a woman crying out for help and they in turn called for help but no one answered. Even if someone had answered, they could not have arrived in time.

The reality is that the Harbor Patrol, the Lifeguard nor the Coast Guard could have saved Natalie. Had they been reached as soon as possible they could have found her lifeless body sooner and she would not have floated in a watery grave all night long.

He should not have let her go in the dinghy by herself. He could have asked Davern to go with her as in the previous night. Or he could have just backed down from his anger to let her feel safe on the boat. In the least he should have watched out for her to make sure she got safely to the shore if he believed that was her intent. He did none of these and then lied to protect his image.

Natalie says: “I died because I was drunk. RJ should not have let me go alone on the dinghy. I passed out and fell overboard in the water. It was cold like death. I called out for help but none came to rescue me. I finally couldn’t fight anymore and I died.”

She confirms the report by the Wayne family that they heard a woman crying out for help by saying: “that was me!” It was a little after 11:00 PM when they heard her cry for help and around 11:20 when they stopped. Natalie: “that is when I died.”

Christopher Walken weighs in on this in an angry way: “She used me to end her marriage to RJ. I never should have gotten on that boat with her. She talked me into it. She wanted to leave RJ and was using me to do it. I wanted to be with her, but not like that. If I could do it all over again I would have stayed off that boat. I didn’t like RJ, but I was there for Natalie. I should have left it alone… I can see that he is clearly hurting over this even to this day… She was the love of my life. That’s all that I am going to say.”

There is a groundswell of support for the belief that Robert Wagner is a murderer and there will always be those that will believe this. The current push is to bring Wagner up on charges of murder. And to bring so much pressure on him that he confesses. This is a last resort for those that want to see him punished for his mistakes, whatever they might be.

Wagner is angry that the pressure is still on him to “confess” to murdering her: “She (Lana) doesn’t have any proof because I didn’t do anything!” I didn’t kill my wife! How many times do I have to say it, that I didn’t murder her?” This is said in a forceful and angry way, as if to put to rest the story of him as a murderer.

To the question of why he waited so long to search for her and the consequence of this inaction he says: “That is what I am afraid of, that I will be judged for this. That is why I lied, so as to let people think that I had no part of it. That she fell in on her own. And I was not aware that she was in danger. When I found out what happened, I had to make up a story that would exonerate me and keep my image intact. I have daughters to raise and I could not have them looking at me for this. I loved her but she was going to leave. That is why I didn’t look at her dead body. She was gone to me. She was with Chris and not me and I was no longer her husband. That is why I sent Dennis to identify her.”

Natalie: “I fell in love with Chris. I was going to leave RJ for Chris.”

Wagner was mad about this and he didn’t try to help her because of anger over their relationship. He didn’t know that she was in the water. He believed that she was in the dinghy headed for the restaurant or possibly a nearby boat. Either way he didn’t care because she left him, again. At first he lied to the police to protect his image and later he continued in the cover-up to protect his daughters.

Wagner: “We argued and then she wanted to leave. I helped her get on the dinghy and then she was gone. I had no idea that that would be the last time that I would see her.”

Truly, Natalie Wood was a beautiful and lovely woman, admired by both men and women alike. She had strong emotions that served her well in her acting career. The audience would respond to her emotionally as well as identify with her because of her sincerity. However, she was not perfect like all of us human beings.

Much has been said in the media about Wagner’s negative side, of his jealous nature and anger to name a few. But Natalie had the knowledge and emotional power to provoke him, or any man for that matter. Add alcohol and drugs to a mix of deep emotions and the situation could get volatile in an instant. This does not excuse Wagner’s behavior on that fateful night but about perspective and balance. To paint a picture of Wagner as the devil and poor Natalie as only a suffering saint is to do disservice to the truth.

I believe that Natalie was having an affair with her co-star Walken as many suspected. To what extent is not known. She had pre-determined to leave her husband for him. It is the only logical conclusion as to why Walken was on the boat. Natalie was determined to have this boating trip take place despite being advised against it. She was determined to have a confrontation that would effectively end the marriage.

She wanted her independence to pursue her career on her terms and for it not to be determined by her husband. This was about her living her life on her terms and not what anyone expected of her. Wagner was of the generation where a man worked to provide for his family while the woman took care of the children. At the time he was successful with his show Hart to Hart. Understandingly, they were an entertainment family and knew of the demands. But he was in a position to be the provider.

Natalie’s career had slowed and needed a jump start to elevate her to star billing. The movie that she was doing with Walken had that potential. This is one of the things that was argued about before the accident. Walken sided with Natalie against whatever position Wagner had. There is no right or wrong to the positions that all three held at the time only the choosing of sides. Walken had thrust himself into the middle of their domestic dispute which made matters worse. There is plenty of blame to go around and I believe that it is wrong to put all of the blame on any one individual.

Wagner: “Lana wants me dead. She won’t rest until I am either in prison or killed. She is inciting crazies to come after me. I could get killed by anyone of them. I may not live to see another day. I lied to the police to save myself and now I am paying for it. I didn’t kill her, but I was complicit in her death. I was in charge, it was my call. If I had just told the truth instead of trying to control the situation, I would not be in this position. I helped her get into that boat. She was in no condition to be out in the water by herself. I should have stopped her. She wanted to end it with me and I was angry and let her go. It will haunt me until the day that I die. I am a good man who just made a mistake. Unfortunately, it cost someone their life. We all make mistakes and I am going to pay for mine till the day that I die. Hopefully, not before it is my time. Lana wants me to die in prison, to rot in a jail cell. She is unrelenting in her hate for me. I don’t know what I can do to make things right. I can’t go to the police to say that I lied. They will just believe the worst: that I killed her and there will be an investigation.”

Natalie: “He left me out there to die! I was standing up in the dinghy waiting for RJ to help when I passed out and fell overboard. The cold water woke me up and I desperately clung to the dinghy while crying out for help. I tried to climb in but I was weighed down by my jacket. Finally, I just succumbed to the elements and died. He should have looked out for me. He should have rescued me. He just left me to die in the frigid waters of his beloved Catalina. I will never forgive him for this. My sister is right to torment him because he is guilty of letting me die. I will always hate him for this.”

Robert Wagner has indeed behaved as a guilty person would act. He didn’t identify his wife’s body and left the scene of the tragedy as quickly as possible. He lied to the police about his argument with Walken and with his wife. He persuaded Davern to back-up the lie and kept him under wraps until the original investigation concluded. He has since changed his story and admitted to having the arguments and acting out of anger.

I do not believe that Wagner killed his wife but he was negligent as she could have been rescued before her accident had he been diligent. He did not anticipate that she would fall out of the dinghy but he should have known that it was a possibility given her condition. He was aware of how much she had drank and that she had taken drugs. Her fear of water was no secret and this alone should have been a red flag. The weather should have registered to him as he was the de-facto captain of his yacht. He made all of the decisions on his boat and over-rode Davern’s concern for Natalie’s well-being. It could be concluded that he left her to die that night in the frigid dark waters.

This makes him responsible whether or not he had bad intent for Natalie. Accepting that his decisions led to her untimely death he should have come forward and told the truth about what was said and done that night. There are two tragedies here: the unnecessary death of a beloved-by-all person and the consequences of her avoidable death. Lana was left in the lurch about what happened to her older sister. She has been cut-off from her sister’s family no matter who is at fault. Lana would have financial problems and had her sister lived she more than likely would have looked out for her.

In this case, Wagner’s only defense is that he did not intentionally cause her death. But that doesn’t mean that he isn’t culpable. It can be argued that he has suffered enough with the loss of his wife and the mother of his children. He has been forced to endure hate by many both private and public. Yet he has been mostly judged in the court of public opinion as being guilty of her death and deserving of judgment.

He continues to lie and deny about the circumstances of her death. The authorities do not have any evidence of wrong doing to bring him up on charges. They can only speculate about what actually happened. Wagner has acted suspiciously by not coming forward to answer the accusations to clear his name. This gives rise to the belief that he has something to hide, mainly that he is a killer. There are those like Lana Wood and Dennis Davern who are suffering emotionally over this and seek a resolution. This is the reason why they did the podcast “Fatal Voyage: The Mysterious Death of Natalie Wood” that implies that Wagner was of a nature and had the motive to have killed his wife.

In summery Wagner helped her get in the dinghy as she sought to escape the fight. The way that she was dressed implies that she had no real intention of going to shore and expected RJ to rescue her. She shortly passed out on the dinghy and fell overboard. She called out for help but none came and she succumbed to the dark waters that she feared so greatly. On the yacht Wagner cryptically told Davern that she was gone and blocked Davern’s vain attempt to search for her. By the time that he came to his senses and knew something was wrong it was already too late.

Wagner knew that his angry, jealous rage had contributed to her death so he concocted a story to lie away his actions that night. He desperately feared how the public would perceive him and that his Hollywood career would suffer. The lie worked and he continued to have success.

Lana Wood has repeatedly said that her sister was the bigger star and that RJ was jealous of this as a possible motive in her death. However, at the time she was trying to reclaim her star status with help and encouragement by Walken. Wagner was a star in his own right with his hit show “Hart to Hart” and was the reason that he needed to protect his image. He could have been jealous of Walken’s rising star status and of his wife’s infatuation with him and his film success but this does not convict him.

The question of jealousy gives rise to speculation about what took place that night. Had Wagner planned all along to end her life so that she could not show him up? Or did he just kill her in a fit of jealous rage and throw her body in the water? The answer is neither. Natalie had planned on leaving him and sprung it on him that weekend. She had already set it in motion with her affair with Walken. She had probably planned to tell him at some point but things got too heated for it to be done in an amicable way.

She had told Davern when they spent the night together after the Friday fight that she was going to leave RJ. Davern may have assumed that this was just said in anger at the moment but she was actually telling him of her intended plan. At some point in the Saturday night fight she told him that it was over and that she was leaving him. She got in the dinghy to do this: to leave him in a theatrical way. She probably didn’t ask for Davern’s help to allay any suspicion by Wagner that he was somehow involved.

She was probably relieved that it was over and didn’t realize the condition that she was in. She thought that RJ would accept that it was over and allow her to get back on the yacht. Unfortunately, she misread his hurt and anger over this and that he would leave her out there to teach her a lesson. She also didn’t realize how little time she had to wait. She soon passed out and fell overboard.

After Wagner realized the she was missing, that she hadn’t returned to the yacht or gone to the restaurant he knew that something was wrong. When he finally came to his senses it was too late. He knew that he had made a mistake to let her go in the dinghy by herself and worse to have left her out in the water where she had no business being. He let her die by accident, that he was complicit in her death. Something that family, friends and the public would not excuse.

He was now in danger of losing everything that he had worked his whole life for. So he determined to come up with a story that would have the accident take place in a way that does not include him. That it was Natalie’s actions alone. She somehow fell of the yacht while attempting to tie up the dinghy that was banging against the boat and not allowing her to sleep.

Lana Wood did an interview for TMZ on November 18, 2001 where I believe she comes to the right conclusion when asked about what she believes happened. To paraphrase, she said that based on what is known that it was an accident, that RJ didn’t mean it to happen. That she was in the water and she died before anyone could help. She goes on to say that she doesn’t believe that RJ would do anything purposefully to hurt her. She believes that RJ has been punished for having to live with what happened. She still seeks the truth and wants him to come forward.

Wagner: “I am guilty of negligence but I do not want to tarnish my public image. I chose to lay low in the hope that it will all blow over. But it hasn’t and now I fear that the hate will go on forever. There is no way out for me now and I will just have to endure until the end.”

I see sharks circling Wagner and he is sore afraid for himself. He is now in dark waters himself and faces what could be an ugly end.

Lana: “Justice needs to take place. I know my sister and she would want this. He needs to pay for what he did. I will not stop until it does. He should be rotting in jail for letting my sister lie in a watery grave.”

Wagner: “I am guilty of causing Natalie’s death but I will never admit to it.”

I see a darkness to Wagner in admitting to his role in his wife’s death. He didn’t murder her but he did play a role in her death and then in covering it up. Lana still suspects foul play.

Wagner: “I did it, I know it. I left her to die out there. I should have done something to save her but I didn’t. It is all my fault and I accept this.”

Natalie: “I didn’t deserve to die.”

Walken: “I did it, I killed her. I never should have gotten on that boat. If I hadn’t she would still be alive today.”

For Walken Natalie was just to good to be true. She is in Heaven now yet the agony of what took place goes on. My hope is that there will be peace for all concerned at some point in time.

To answer the question of guilt: all parties on the yacht could be considered as guilty of criminal negligence or willful blindness. It could rise to the level of recklessness due to the excessive drinking and use of drugs. Criminal negligence is described as a failure to foresee and so allow otherwise avoidable dangers to manifest. In some cases this failure can rise to the level of willful blindness where the individual intentionally avoids adverting to the reality of a situation. The degree of culpability is determined by applying a reasonable-person standard. Recklessness is usually described as a “malfeasance” where the defendant knowingly exposes another to the risk of injury. The fault lies in being willing to run the risk. (Wikipedia)

Natalie Wood found dead in the frigid waters off of Catalina Island: Robert Wagner and Natalie Wood had made a Public Service Announcement a few years before the tragedy. The message was about the dangers of drinking and driving while boating. This was shown at the time of breaking news about her death. (YouTube: Natalie Wood Death/Original News Report 1981)

It is ironic that the couple had made a statement about intoxication on a boat prior to the excessive drinking that led to Natalie’s death.