Natalie Wood’s career began in childhood, and she remained a popular star into adulthood.
There is no denying her death impacted her children’s lives.
She is also her oldest biological child, born September 29, 1970.
At the time of Natasha’s birth, Wood had been married to Natasha’s father, Richard Gregson.
The entertainment industry always surrounded her, but instead of running from it, she embraced it.
“I started to pursue acting, but very uncertainly and very clumsily,” she toldBackstagein an interview.
“It wasn’t until the last three years that I’ve really understood acting.
Natasha would reflect upon this years later in her memoir, “More Than Love.”
In her interview with Backstage, Gregson Wagner said she hoped her mother was proud of her.
She also revealed how Wood’s memory impacted the woman she would become and how she would treat others.
But how did Natalie Wood raise her daughters?
Natasha Gregson Wagner was lucky to have two dedicated father figures who worked hard to raise her together.
She also grew up not feeling shame about her body, and sex was not taboo.
I was lucky with my parents, because we talked about sex and it was never a dirty thing.
It was always a beautiful, empowering thing.
I want to share that view.”
Not only did they have a close relationship, they even shared a name.
“My mother named me Natasha.
“She was Big Natasha, and I was Little Natasha.
She was Mommie and I was her ‘Natooshie.’
She also called me ‘Natashinka,’ or her pet name for me, her ‘petunia.'”
Growing up, Gregson Wagner could feel her mother’s absence, and she was deeply missed.
“you’re able to be 50 and still miss your mom.”
The exact circumstances surrounding her death have caused much speculation.
She drowned, and her body was found on November 29, 1981.
Theories about what happened to her that fateful night include that she tried to leave the yacht.
Wood’s sister, Lana Wood, believed that Wagner had been responsible.
“I don’t believe it was premeditated,” she toldThe New York Postin a 2021 interview.
“But that doesn’t mean I don’t think he did it: Of course he did!”
But these claims are not something Natalie’s daughters share with their aunt.
And Gregson Wagner’s sister Courtney had expressed similar feelings toPeoplein 2016.
He also played an essential part in raising her with her biological father, Richard Gregson.
“There were no lawyers,” she told theThe New York Timesin a 2016 interview.
She would live with Wagner for most of the year but spend her summer vacation with Gregson.
Natasha Gregson Wagner grew up feeling blessed.
“It was just the unthinkable,” Natasha Gregson Wagner told People.
“I just remember it was the worst thing ever.
My whole world just went to black and white, and I couldn’t hear anything.”
“I can remember feeling the love and happiness in the air.”
They were just 11 and 7 when Natalie died.
I stood by my dad’s side, and we loved them as best we could.”
For Wood, it was love at first sight.
“I turned to my mother and said, ‘I’m going to marry him.'”
When her mother died, she was just 7.
Still, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have interesting things to say.
It made me feel especially angry for all the terrible things said about my father."
This includes her struggles with addiction, which she has bravely chosen to discuss.
“For me, I found ways to numb the rage and heartbreak I experienced throughout my life.
Her father Robert Wagner’s heartache over her pain and addiction also inspired her sobriety.
“She is not ashamed of her struggles.
She has gotten to a place where she has compassion for herself and forgiveness.”
The intention was to end the constant questions, especially those targeting Robert Wagner.
“I feel that the night my mom died was an accident.
That’s the tragedy.”
The documentary also has commentary from Robert Wagner.
“That night has gone through my mind many times.”
Courtney Wagner has also been hurt and angered by the backlash against her father.
She also gave fans a glimpse into their relationship by penning her memoir, “More Than Love.”
She also shared some of the more complex elements of their relationship inTown & Country magazinein 2020.
Wood had “zero patience for messy hair,” and wanted perfection.
“My mom did not want anything to mar her precious daughter.
The scar didn’t bother me in the slightest.
I felt like it gave me an edge.
But my mom insisted on taking me to a well-known dermatologist in Beverly Hills.”
She’s a successful actress but also a loving partner and wife.
She welcomed a child with actor Barry Watson in 2012.
Becoming a mother also made Gregson Wagner reflect on her mother and their relationship.
But it was also another part of her journey to healing from her tragic loss.
“Like an ocean, the ebbs and flows are different,” she told People magazine in 2021.
“The idea of mothering my mom, I feel comfort in that.
Having Clover changed her outlook on Mother’s Day, too.
“Mother’s Day feels like a real day of completion and contentment, a day of gratitude.
I wonder sometimes if it felt like that for her, too,” she toldPeoplein 2017.
