Natalie Wood’s Life Chronicled In ‘Portrait’

Katie Wagner knew from the start that getting her family to talk about her stepmother, the deceased Natalie Wood, would be difficult.

However, after talking with them about being asked to host Lifetime’s “Intimate Portrait,” a documentary about Wood that airs Sunday at 9 p.m., Wagner realized it was she who was the most apprehensive about cooperating with the program.

So it was that after discussing her possible participation in the biofilm, the family encouraged her to take the role.

“You should do it,” they told her.

Wood, of course, was one of Hollywood’s leading lights.

She debuted as the child star of “Miracle on 34th Street” and then, with a long string of roles (including “Rebel Without a Cause,” “West Side Story” and “Splendor in the Grass”), turned into a Tinseltown legend. In 1981, at age 43, she fell off a boat and drowned.

“She had it (star quality),” Wagner said. “Look at her eyes in ‘Miracle’ - she had it. She had a real drive. She was always special. She was special in every single role she played.”

Producer Gay Rosenthal approached Wagner, daughter of Wood’s husband, actor Robert Wagner (they divorced, then rewed), with the idea for the film.

Katie Wagner took the idea to her family, seeking approval.

“In the past, my dad and my sisters really had no desire to talk about Natalie publicly,” Wagner said.

“I told them, ‘I’m going to interview you guys and ask questions that are not entirely comfortable.”’

This time, because of her involvement, they agreed to be interviewed.

Wood’s life had its share of emotional turmoil, including an attempted suicide, a number of affairs and, as with most stars, a strong dose of scandalous Hollywood stories.

“My sisters helped us a lot with the pictures and the tangible memories,” Wagner said. “We talked about her a lot. When we started looking back, it became much more difficult. It made the loss much greater.”

Sometimes, Wagner said, a topic or specific memory became almost too difficult to discuss, especially for her father, who is on camera extensively throughout the 90-minute program.

“There are areas that are painful for him,” Wagner said. “I didn’t ask him to discuss his feelings when he lost her. I didn’t want to hurt him or upset him.”

Wagner hopes that the Lifetime biography sets the record straight on Wood’s life.

It’s not a puff piece, she stressed, noting that because so much has been publicly documented, it only seemed right to include the bad as well as the good.