Claim: When Natalie Woods was a child, she worked in film.

Natalie Wood -LRB- born Natalia Nikolaevna Zakharenko ; July 20 , 1938 -- November 28 or 29 , 1981 -RRB- was an American film and television actress . She was known for her screen roles in Miracle on 34th Street , Splendor in the Grass , Rebel Without a Cause , The Searchers , and West Side Story . She first worked in films as a child , then became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult , receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old .   Wood began acting in movies at the age of four and , at age eight , was given a co-starring role with Maureen O'Hara in the classic Christmas film Miracle on 34th Street . As a teenager , her performance in Rebel Without a Cause -LRB- 1955 -RRB- earned her a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress . She starred in the musical films West Side Story -LRB- 1961 -RRB- and Gypsy -LRB- 1962 -RRB- , and received Academy Award for Best Actress nominations for her performances in Splendor in the Grass -LRB- 1961 -RRB- and Love with the Proper Stranger -LRB- 1963 -RRB- . Her career continued with films such as Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice -LRB- 1969 -RRB- .   After this , she took a break from acting and had two children with different husbands , appearing in only three theatrical films during the 1970s . She was married to actor Robert Wagner twice , and to producer Richard Gregson . She had one daughter with Gregson , actress Natasha Gregson Wagner . Wood gave birth to Courtney Wagner during her second marriage to Wagner . Her younger sister Lana Wood is also an actress .   Wood starred in several television productions , including a remake of the film From Here to Eternity -LRB- 1979 -RRB- for which she won a Golden Globe Award . During her career , her films represented a `` coming of age '' for both her and Hollywood films in general .