Natalie Wood At A Party Thrown By Songwriter Jimmy McHughes, 1958.

During my Ophelia stage, I began to watch films starring Natalie Wood that were shot in the 1960s. There was something about her wide eyes and fragility that reminded me of these drowning women, the fair Ophelia. In Splendor in the Grass, Natalie’s character Deanie loses her mind and self-destructs in more and more glamorous ways, eventually wading into a pond decked out in a gorgeous flapper dress for her suicide attempt. Deanie is saved, goes to therapy, and gets set to marry a nice doctor. But I didn’t care about that. I cared about the frantic way she slid into the water, the way she picked her footing as she climbed down. In her beauty and self-destruction, she wielded an ugly power. Why were these fictional beautiful women always losing their minds so extravagantly? Why are they so compelling? I’ve always found wilting orchids more compelling [than girl bosses] - women who burn bright and burn out, undermined by their own desire for love or wholeness or whatever it is that pushes them under water. Some of us choose the self-destructive model and discover power in the tatters. - Patricia Grisafi; Why Are We So intrigued by Beautiful Drowning Women? A Look at Natalie Wood’s Hysterical Glamour

“When Warren Beatty came to the set, “she’d sit on his lap and she’d whisper in his ear and he would reassure her… She just had this power over him. He adored her.”

Dominick, I really owe you an apology, you know? I really do. All this time, I’ve been blaming you for everything. You ruining my life and all that. Well, that’s over now. You know why I’ve never been able to leave home? I just suddenly figured it out. Very complicated. I was scared. And I’m not scared anymore. I’m terrified. Funny?

NATALIE WOOD as Angie Rossini in Love with the Perfect Stranger (1963) dir. Robert Mulligan

Natalie Wood at her Grauman’s Chinese Theatre imprint ceremony, 1961. 

Natalie Wood, James Dean, and Nick Adams review their notes behind the scenes of “Rebel Without a Cause,” 1955.

Natalie Wood photographed by Bill Ray, 1963.

Rebel Without a Cause (1955) Screen Test

Natalie Wood in West Side Story (1961)

Natalie Wood photographed by Earl Leaf, 1955.

Natalie Wood poses for a portrait at home, 1955