Natalie Wood's Daughter Says She Was Not “Tragic or Doomed…She Had a Wonderful Life.”

For four decades, the name Natalie Wood has almost always been associated with the same image: a November night, a yacht off the coast of Santa Catalina Island, and dark waters. It’s an unfair way to remember one of the most versatile actors that classic Hollywood ever produced. Before the tragedy, Wood had an extraordinary career and made her own decisions about her life and work. According to her daughter, her mother “held the reins.”

Born in San Francisco in 1938 as Natalia Zakharenko, the daughter of Russian immigrants, she began working in front of a camera when she was just four years old. At nine, she won over America in You Can’t Live on Dreams Alone (1947). She was one of the few child stars who made the transition to adult acting. At 16, she starred in Rebel Without a Cause (1955) alongside James Dean and earned her first Oscar nomination. Two more nods would follow, for Splendor in the Grass (1961) and Love with a Stranger (1963). That’s three nominations in less than a decade, in an industry that rarely let actresses break free from the “pretty girl” role. These are in addition to other films that have stayed part of cinema’s collective memory, such as West Side Story (1961) and Gypsy (1962).

Her personal life was intertwined with Robert Wagner’s. They married in 1957, when she was 19, and divorced in 1962. She later married British producer Richard Gregson, the father of her daughter Natasha, born in 1970. In 1972, Wood and Wagner remarried, and in 1974 their daughter Courtney was born. It was one of Hollywood’s most celebrated second chances: a home always filled with friends, animals, and children, frequented by the likes of Fred Astaire, Bette Davis, Gene Kelly, and Audrey Hepburn. It’s also where Wagner raised Natasha, as if she were his own daughter.

It all came to an end on November 29, 1981. Wood, at age 43, drowned off the coast of Santa Catalina during a weekend aboard the family yacht, the Splendour. The official investigation concluded it was an accident. But in 2011, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office reopened the case. In 2012, the medical examiner changed the cause of death to “drowning and other undetermined factors,” and in 2018, investigators designated Wagner as a “person of interest.” But he has never been charged with any crime, and none of these reviews have led the justice system to accuse him of anything.

While the courts have not charged Wagner, headlines have debated his involvement for nearly 45 years. Sensationalist books, television specials, true-crime documentaries, podcasts, and talk shows have judged and condemned him without conclusive evidence, without a trial, and without an opportunity to defend himself. Every anniversary, every reopening of the case, and every new statement from a witness from four decades ago has reignited the same insinuation—sold as a revelation—dredging up the family’s pain.

Those who carry the least blame have paid the price. Natasha and Courtney lost their mother when they were 11 and 7 years old, respectively, and they grew up watching her death being written about on magazine covers and seeing the man who raised them—the very same man who supported them through their grief and kept Natalie’s memory alive at home—being singled out. Today Wagner is 96, and Natasha doesn’t want the last thing the world remembers about him to be an accusation that no court ever formally made. “I think it’s reckless and dangerous when people make up lies or assumptions, and then they become the truth that’s passed around,” she says. “It’s just so absurd that somebody as kind and generous and loving as my stepdad has been maligned in this way.”

Natasha Gregson Wagner has chosen another way to tell that story. In 2020, she coproduced the documentary directed by Laurent Bouzereau, Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind, an intimate portrait of her mother as an actor, wife, and mother—not as a victim. And through scent, Natasha has found a more personal way to keep her mother’s memory alive. In 2016, she launched “Natalie,” a perfume inspired by Jungle Gardenia, the fragrance her mother wore. Today, that first creation is at the heart of L’Amour Mère, a perfume line dedicated to the love between grandmothers, mothers, and daughters. It’s complemented by C-Love—inspired by her daughter Clover, Natalie Wood’s granddaughter and one of the faces of the campaign—and Lyublyu, which means “love” in Russian and pays tribute to her grandmother. Gardenia, jasmine, and tuberose: It’s the scent of Natalie Wood, bottled by her daughter.

Vanity Fair España spoke with Natasha about the scent of her childhood home, the stars who visited her, James Dean, and her biological father, as well as her daughter Clover and the letters she’s compiling for a book. Everything except the tragedy.

Vanity Fair España: Your mother was an icon, but you were very young when she died. What is your earliest memory of her?

Gregson Wagner: Well, luckily I have so many memories of my mom, and we were so close that, even though she was only alive for 11 years of my life, I feel like she gave me a lifetime of memories, enough to power me through my own life… One of my first memories was when my mom and my daddy, Gregson, my real father, when they broke up, my mom took me and my Aunt Olga and her best friend, Mark Crowley, on a ship, the SS Rafaelo, to Sardinia.

We were in a hotel, and it was a dark room. My godfather, Mark, was feeding me spaghetti. My mom was resting. I just remember feeling like she was sad and I needed to, like, take care of her in some way. I remember feeling like I had to be a good child for her.

If you close your eyes and try to remember the smell of your home when you were little, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?

I love that question. Two things. My mom burned Rigaud candles, the green Cyprès ones made of wax. So that smell, which is like cypress, and then her gardenia perfume, and then roses. We had lots of roses in the garden, and so she put them in the house a lot. Those are the scents that I remember. And food. My mom wasn't a cook, but the woman that took care of us, Willie Mae, she was an amazing cook. And she was from the South. There was a lot of happiness in my house growing up. There were lots of people. They always had friends staying with us, and we had lots of animals. It was very happy.

The best of Hollywood used to pass through her house: Fred Astaire, Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly. What memories do you have of them?

Oh, my gosh. Well, our house was like a hub. My parents loved to entertain. Gene Kelly lived down the street, and Fred Astaire lived nearby. Sir Lawrence Olivier was also a good friend of theirs. Ruth Gordon was my godmother. So my house was always full of these kinds of people. Betty Davis, Audrey Hepburn. My parents told me that they were extremely famous, but I just experienced them as being very down to earth, and they always smelled really good, whatever cologne or perfume they wore. And they were always dressed extremely beautifully. I remember Fred Astaire dressed exquisitely. David Niven, Ruth Gordon, she always wore the most beautiful dresses and pearls and just exquisite jewelry. A lot of dignity and elegance. And they would give my sister Courtney and I attention. They would talk to us, you know? We weren't banished. We were allowed to be around everybody. It's such a good memory.

Her mother started working when she was just four years old; America watched her grow up. Do you think she had a happy childhood?

I think that there were parts of her childhood that were very happy. My grandma loved my mom so much, but she was overprotective and over-controlling. She really wanted my mom to be an actress. Luckily, my mom liked it, so it worked out. What I’ve read and remember is that my mom didn't feel that she had a normal childhood. And so she really wanted that for my sister and me. She created this very magical childhood for us and really loved being a mom. We were so lucky in that way. I think she had a complicated childhood, but parts of it were really wonderful.

You’ve said that the photos of your mother belong to the world, but that her scent belongs to you. What perfume did she wear?

She wore this perfume called Jungle Gardenia by Tuvaché. It's no longer in production. She found it from Barbara Stanwyck when they did a movie together called The Bride Wore Boots, and she loved it. She was a little girl, but she loved it. That became her signature scent, and she wore it all of her life. It smells a bit like Fracas. It's tuberose, jasmine, and gardenia—that kind of scent.

You’ve created a perfume in her honor, Natalie. What are its main scents?

The main scents in Natalie are gardenia, jasmine, tuberose, vanilla, orange blossom, neroli, and bergamot. It has more citrus notes than the one that she wore because it’s a combination of what I love and what she loved.

What is the biggest misconception about Natalie Wood?

That she was tragic or doomed or overly vulnerable. She had an open heart and was a humanitarian. You felt her heart when you watched her. She was very much in control of her life. She was extremely powerful as a businesswoman, as a wife, a mother, a friend. She ran the show. And she was strong, really, really strong. So I think maybe the misconception that she was tragic or doomed…I didn't experience that with her.

There has been a lot of speculation about the circumstances of her death. How has that affected your family?

I think grief is such a private feeling. It's such a private experience. But coming from a famous family, it was so public. And so I felt extremely protective of my family, especially my stepdad, because he has been such a force of love and protection for me. He raised me like I was his own daughter, and he's loved me like I'm his blood. I know that my dad would've done anything to protect my mom, and I think it's reckless and dangerous when people make up lies or assumptions, and they become the truth that's passed around. My dad is 96 and a half years old, and I don't want his legacy to be tarnished with these mistruths or untruths.

But I think that all the speculation and recklessness of that brought my family closer. We are so protective of each other. And my dad is so proud of the way that I take care of my mom's legacy. He wants me to do that. He allowed her legacy to be alive during my childhood after she died, for my sister and me. He always spoke about her. He gave us gifts he had given to her, pieces of jewelry, and he would tell us why he bought the piece or where he bought it, and he engraved them. And it's just so absurd that somebody as kind and generous and loving as my stepdad has been maligned in this way.

What was your mother’s relationship with James Dean like?

She called him Jimmy. And I remember she spoke very lovingly and almost maternally toward him, you know? That was the first big loss in her life. It really shook and rocked her. I was young, but she did speak to me about him. I think she felt a lot of regret that his life ended so... That he didn't have enough time on this earth to do all the things that he probably would've done.

Do you think your father, Richard Gregson, regretted how his relationship with your mother ended?

Oh, for sure. My daddy Gregson, he had a difficult childhood and didn’t have a very warm mother. I think that when I was born, my mom's attention went so drastically from him to me that he didn't have the words to articulate his feelings of abandonment or loss of her, and so he misbehaved in a way that was extremely devastating and humiliating to my mom. But it was actually my stepdad, my daddy Wagner, who encouraged my mom to let Gregson back into our lives, because Wagner knew how important it was for me to also be connected to my real dad. My memory of my real dad and my mom is that they were friends. He would come to the house before we'd go out for dinner, and they would have a drink at the bar, and talk. They had a nice friendship. And when my mom died, Gregson was so devastated, mostly for me, because he knew how close I was to my mom. But yes, he definitely regretted it. How could he not?

Now you’re a mother. Do you tell your daughter about her grandmother?

Yep. The minute my daughter was born, it was important for me that she felt a connection to her grandma. I know my mom would’ve loved to be a grandma because she loved children. And Clover, my daughter, looks a lot like my mom when she was younger. When my mom was younger, the studio dyed her hair blonde, and my daughter is blonde. She has the same profile. So yeah, I showed her Miracle on 34th Street and West Side Story. She recently watched Slender in the Grass and Rebel Without a Cause. She's very interested in film. I don’t know that she’s interested in acting, but she loves film. She’s taking film classes, and she has jewelry now that was my mom's. I made these T-shirts with my mom’s face on them, and when I was packing Clover’s tennis bag, she gave me a T-shirt to bring with my mom’s picture. She wears it all the time. It’s sort of woven into the fabric of her childhood, and I hope that she feels a connection to her.

Have you ever felt her presence?

Oh, yeah. I feel her so much. In fact, the older I get, the more I feel her because I’m more stable in my life. I’m more peaceful. I’ve been through so much, and now I’m at a place where I feel grounded. In the quiet, we can connect to the other side. So when I’m with my dogs, or with my birds, or on a walk, or when I meditate, I feel her so much.

Have you been back to Santa Catalina Island?

It’s such a beautiful place. My daughter went there on a field trip with her school. I’ve thought about it, but I don’t really see the point in going there again. I spent a lot of amazing years on Catalina Island with my family, and I have so many incredible memories. So I think I’ll keep those and leave the island for other people to enjoy.

If you could talk to her for five minutes, what would you say?

My gosh, that makes me wanna cry. I would say, “I’ve missed you so much.” And I would say, “Thank you for making me feel so loved.” I would say that I have tried to be a good daughter to her and to take care of my dad, my stepdad, and my sister, and that I wish she didn’t die. Yeah.

You are so much more than just the heir to a legacy: you've acted, made a magnificent documentary about your mother. What are your next projects?

Well, I’m continuing to grow my fragrance brand, which I really enjoy. I’m in the middle of working on a new book of letters. When my real father passed away in 2019, he died of Parkinson’s, and my stepmom sent me all the letters that he had kept between him and me, and also him and my mom.

They’re unbelievable. I started going through them while I was working on the documentary, and also this summer, when we put together an exhibition about my mother’s life here in Orange County. She wrote amazing letters, she received amazing letters, and the art of writing letters has sort of gone away. So this is going to be a book about all the letters that she wrote to people, and people wrote to her. Hopefully it will make people want to write letters again—not just emails.

I am completely honored to be her daughter. And, of course, I’m so sad that she died young, but I do feel that she had a wonderful life.

Originally published in Vanity Fair España.