Natalie Wooden was a toddler star who went on to have a really profitable grownup profession. Sadly, the attractive actress was additionally the sufferer of a horrible sexual assault. When she was fifteen years outdated Natalie was raped by an older actor. Though she by no means went to the police she informed a number of individuals, together with her sister Lana Wooden, that her rapist was actor Kirk Douglas.
The assault lasted a number of hours with Natalie begging him to cease. When it was over, he informed her “If you happen to inform anybody, it will likely be the very last thing you do.”. The rape was so violent that she began bleeding and needed to go to the hospital. Her mom discouraged her from submitting a criticism as a result of she feared it might harm her movie profession. On the time Kirk Douglas was one of the vital highly effective stars in Hollywood. He later admitted that he was a flirt and an alcoholic however he by no means confessed to rape. Natalie was traumatized by the assault and spent years in remedy. Pals stated she would “shudder” each time she heard Douglas’ identify. In 1955 she starred within the drama Insurgent With out A Trigger with James Dean. Throughout filming she fell head over heels in love with forty-four-year-old director Nicholas Ray. The movie was a field workplace success and she or he was nominated for an Academy Award. She had short-lived romances with Elvis Presley, Dennis Hopper, and bisexual Raymond Burr.
Natalie and Kirk Douglas
Natalie married actor Robert Wagner in December of 1957. They grew to become one of the vital celebrated {couples} in Hollywood and co-starred in All The High quality Younger Cannibals. Their marriage resulted in 1961 when she caught him in mattress with one other man. Then she had a extremely publicized romance with actor Warren Beatty. Her success continued with starring roles in West Aspect Story, Splendor In The Grass, and Gypsy. She was nominated for her third Oscar in 1964 for her efficiency in Love With The Correct Stranger. Sadly, she suffered from extreme bouts of despair and tried suicide a number of occasions. Natalie married British producer Richard Gregson in 1969. The next yr that they had a daughter named Natasha. She divorced Richard in 1971 when she found he had been dishonest on her. Then she rekindled her romance with ex-husband Robert Wagner. They remarried in 1972 and their daughter, Courtney, was born two years later. Natalie started working much less so she might spend extra time elevating her kids.
Natalie and Robert Wagner
Though she had a lifelong worry of darkish water she and Robert owned a yacht known as “The Splendor”. Throughout Thanksgiving weekend in 1981 Natalie, Robert, and actor Christopher Walken went crusing on the yacht. In the course of the evening of November 29, she fell overboard and drowned. In accordance with sources she was ingesting and had a struggle with Robert. Police dominated her loss of life an accident. Nevertheless, many individuals imagine that she was really murdered. Natalie was solely forty-three years outdated. She was buried in Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles, California. Her daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner, additionally grew to become a profitable actress. In 2012 the investigation into Natalie’s drowning was reopened and her official reason for loss of life was modified from an accident to “drowning and different undetermined elements”. In the meantime, Kirk Douglas has by no means been charged with against the law and has by no means spoken publicly concerning the “rumors” that he raped Natalie. He died in 2020 on the age of 103.
Robert Wagner with Natalie’s coffin
