The Tragic Life of the Talented Natalie Wood

Throughout her life, she avoided deep or dark water whenever possible. Friends recalled her discomfort near the ocean and her refusal to swim far from shore. Yet, she often joined her husband and friends on boating trips, determined not to let her phobia seem irrational or controlling.

Those who knew her said she masked her fear well, laughing and socializing on deck even as she kept a cautious distance from the edges. The contradiction between her lifelong terror and her attempts at normalcy added an eerie undertone to her later years, especially given how her story would end.