Natalie Wood monkeying around, 1960s
It was certainly better times for Natalie Wood in the 1960s. At the time she was riding high on a successful transition from child star to a legitimately talented adult actor. Many people didn’t believe that she could rise above her roles in West Side Story and Rebel Without a Cause, but after starring in 1969’s Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice she was a force to be reckoned with.
As much momentum as Wood’s career had, her personal life was often up and down. She was married multiple times, and allegedly had a series of affairs while married to British producer Richard Gregson and again when she was hitched to Robert Wagner. Her relationships were always on the back burner, especially after suffering a sexual assault when she was a teenager at the hands of a producer. Her sister later said:
Natalie ‘hated’ her former screen idol afterward, ‘shuddering’ if she heard his name. She would keep the horrible secret, and behave as if nothing happened whenever their paths intersected, too schooled by Mud [her mother] in the politics of Hollywood to cross a powerful movie star.
