Robert Wagner was able to dodge questions after the 1981 death of his wife Natalie Wood — thanks to powerful Hollywood pals who tricked President Ronald Reagan into pulling strings that scuttled the investigation into the tragedy! At the time of Natalie’s mysterious death, both Wagner and his future wife Jill St. John moved in California’s conservative Republican circles. Showbiz insiders would later come forward with shocking claims about the shameful secret maneuvering that kept California cops off the case…
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Wagner was close pals with
Frank Sinatra — and both of the showbiz stars had socialized with Reagan when the former film star was governor of California. Jill St. John had once dated
former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and still “had very powerful connections in Washington” said author Marti Rulli, author of
Goodbye Natalie, Goodbye Splendour.
Photo credit: Getty Images
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“People looking to protect Wagner played on the president’s well-known sense of fair play by suggesting he was an innocent man at a very real risk of being railroaded,” said a Hollywood insider. “Reagan was tricked into making calls to California law enforcement and federal investigators under the guise of insuring justice for everyone involved.”
Photo credit: Mega
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“After the president made the calls,” continued the source, “Hollywood heavyweights poured on the heat with cops, using the power and prestige of the Oval Office to save Wagner’s bacon. Reagan had no idea what they were doing in his name!”
Photo credit: NatENQ/MEGA
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Photo credit: NatENQ/Files
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Wagner maintains he didn’t hear anything on the night of Nov. 29 — and says he last saw his wife as she left their stateroom following a booze-fueled argument.
Christopher Walken, Natalie’s co-star in "Brainstorm" and a guest on the
Splendour, was in his cabin. Wagner insists that Natalie drowned after falling in the water while getting into the yacht’s dinghy in the middle of the night.
Photo credit: NatENQ/Files
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But the yacht’s skipper,
Dennis Davern, told cops that jealous Wagner had a showdown with Natalie over Walken. He's also claimed that Wagner refused to let him radio for help after Natalie disappeared from the boat. California authorities would later declare Natalie’s death to be an “accidental drowning.”
Photo credit: NatENQ
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Wagner was close pals with
Frank Sinatra — and both of the showbiz stars had socialized with Reagan when the former film star was governor of California. Jill St. John had once dated
former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and still “had very powerful connections in Washington” said author Marti Rulli, author of
Goodbye Natalie, Goodbye Splendour.
Photo credit: Getty Images
“People looking to protect Wagner played on the president’s well-known sense of fair play by suggesting he was an innocent man at a very real risk of being railroaded,” said a Hollywood insider. “Reagan was tricked into making calls to California law enforcement and federal investigators under the guise of insuring justice for everyone involved.”
“After the president made the calls,” continued the source, “Hollywood heavyweights poured on the heat with cops, using the power and prestige of the Oval Office to save Wagner’s bacon. Reagan had no idea what they were doing in his name!”
Photo credit: NatENQ/MEGA
Photo credit: NatENQ/Files
Wagner maintains he didn’t hear anything on the night of Nov. 29 — and says he last saw his wife as she left their stateroom following a booze-fueled argument.
Christopher Walken, Natalie’s co-star in "Brainstorm" and a guest on the
Splendour, was in his cabin. Wagner insists that Natalie drowned after falling in the water while getting into the yacht’s dinghy in the middle of the night.
Photo credit: NatENQ/Files
But the yacht’s skipper,
Dennis Davern, told cops that jealous Wagner had a showdown with Natalie over Walken. He's also claimed that Wagner refused to let him radio for help after Natalie disappeared from the boat. California authorities would later declare Natalie’s death to be an “accidental drowning.”
