Natalie Wood's sister wants case reopened

As far as Hollywood mysteries go, Natalie Wood's drowning death ranks towards the top.

Now the actress' sister, Lana Wood, and the captain of the yacht Wood was on just before she drowned are asking the Los Angeles Coroner's Office to re-open the 28-year-old case.

Wood was sailing with her husband Robert Wagner near Catalina, California in November 1981 when Natalie mysteriously went overboard.

Lana Wood told CNN that she believes an animated argument between her sister and Wagner on the yacht's back deck occurred right before Wood's drowning. The former captain of the yacht, Dennis Davern, believes Wood's death was a direct result of the fight with her husband.

Wood's body was discovered about a mile away from the yacht, floating in the water. An investigator on the case said the official theory is that Wood went to re-tie a dinghy that she heard hitting the side of their yacht and slipped on the boat's swim step, falling into the water. Police reports said Wood was found wearing a long nightgown, socks, and a down jacket.

This didn't sound quite right to Lana Wood, who claims her sister "was not a swimmer and did not know how to swim, and she would never go to another boat or to shore dressed in a nightgown and socks."

Davern and Wagner have varying versions of the story, and coincidentally, both published books on the subject in September 2009.

Which raises the question, is this all one big publicity stunt? Interestingly enough, authorities have not responded to the request to open the case.

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