Robert Wagner Posts Tribute to Natalie Wood 44 Years After Her Death

Robert Wagner is paying tribute to late wife Natalie Wood 44 years after her death.

Wagner, 95, took to Instagram on Wednesday, July 16, to share a throwback photo of himself and Wood, who died at 43 years old in 1981, in honor of what would have been their 53rd wedding anniversary. The snap showed a beaming Wagner, wearing a white turtleneck and black jacket, as he stood beside his wife, who flashed a radiant smile as she sported a white dress.

“Always a special place in my heart. Happy Anniversary Nat! More Than Love @ngdubdubs @courtywagz @katewags_511,” he captioned the post.

Fans shared their love for the couple in the comments section.

“One of my favourite photos … it’s all written on your faces. Pure happiness!!!!😍❤️,” one user wrote, while another fan added, “You can feel the love in this photo💕 Thank you for sharing with us! More Than Love 💕⭐️🦋💕.”

“Happy Anniversary! Thank you for sharing this beautiful photo. The chemistry and love you and Natalie shared is legendary . More than love,” a third person commented.

Wood, who was famous for her roles in films like Miracle on 34th Street and West Side Story, died under mysterious circumstances on November 29, 1981, during a weekend boat trip to Santa Catalina Island on board Wagner’s yacht, Splendour. She had been with Wagner and her Brainstorm costar Christopher Walken on the night before her death, but Wagner stated that she was not with him when he went to bed.

Wood’s body was recovered the next morning, one mile from the boat, with a dinghy found nearby. An autopsy revealed that she had bruises on her body and arms, as well as an abrasion on her cheek, but it did not indicate how she obtained the injuries. Her blood alcohol content was also found to be 0.14, and she had traces of a motion-sickness pill and a painkiller in her bloodstream.

Wood’s cause of death was initially ruled accidental drowning and hypothermia, as it was believed that she may have slipped while trying to get into the dinghy. However, in 2012, Los Angeles County Chief Coroner Lakshmanan Sathyavagiswaran amended her cause of death to “drowning and other undetermined factors,” noting that it was “not clearly established” how Wood got into the water. A 2013 addendum also noted that she may have sustained some of the bruising on her body before she fell into the water.

Police named Wagner a “person of interest” in the investigation in 2018 after witnesses claimed that the Two and a Half Men star had been arguing with Wood at the edge of the yacht prior to her drowning. Wagner denied he had any involvement in Wood’s death. He was later cleared in 2022.

“All leads in the Natalie Wood case have been exhausted, and the case remains an open, unsolved case,” Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Hugo Reynaga told Page Six at the time. “If additional leads surface in the future, which have not already been investigated, the case will be reassigned to a detective to investigate the new leads.”

Wagner first married Wood in December 1957, but the two later divorced in April 1962. The pair reunited in 1972 and remained married until Wood’s death. They shared one daughter, Courtney, whom they welcomed in 1974.

Wood was also a mom to daughter Natasha, 54, whom she shared with Richard Gregson. Meanwhile, Wagner is also a dad to daughter Katie, 61, whom he shared with the late Marion Marshall.