One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
What's Walken Got to Do With It? Actor Hires Lawyer as Wood Case Re-Opened
Christopher Walken
Eyebrows are raised anew as the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department re-opens the investigation into the 1981 drowning death of Natalie Wood, and scuttlebutt once again surfaces about the 43-year-old actress' tumultuous marriage to Robert Wagner. Now actor Christopher Walken, who was aboard the yacht with the Wagners the night Wood died, has hired a lawyer. What's Walken got to do with Wood's death?In a press conference held today, Lt. John Corina of the LASD said Wagner is not a suspect, and that Wood's death remains classified as accidental. Walken, as well, is not under suspicion; he was, however, one of the last people to see Wood alive in the early morning hours of November 29, 1981.
The Hollywood Reporter has information about Walken's attorney, Mathew Rosengart:
Sources say Rosengart has come aboard to advise Walken in the inquiry. Though the attorney spent 10 years as a prosecutor with the U.S. Justice Department, his hiring does not mean Walken is expecting an adversarial process. Rosengart is a civil litigator with a strong entertainment litigation practice, and Walken is expected to cooperate fully with investigators during the probe.
An updated edition of a book about the yacht's captain, Dennis Davern, and the Wood case, alleges, however, that Walken--and Wagner--have been untruthful about the events leading up to Wood's drowning. Davern has admitted recently he, too, has lied about what happened the night Natalie Wood died.
In the book, author Marti Rullii describes a tense moment aboard the yacht just hours before Wood's death, as Wood gave Walken "mesmeric attention," that drove Wagner mad. "So what do you want to do to my wife?" Wagner said, according to Rulli. "Do you want to fuck my wife? Is that what you want?" Wagner allegedly then smashed a wine bottle on the table in front of Wood and Walken. Walken reportedly left the room and shut himself in his cabin.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
