Six Celebrities that Drowned

Probably the most famous celebrity to ever meet their death by drowning was the movie star Natalie Wood, but she is by no means the only one. A budding National Football League star, a television news anchor, an iconic business mogul, an actress famous for playing dim-witted blondes, and an actor that ironically portrayed a naval officer in his most celebrated role all wound up drowning. Here is a look at six celebrities that drowned.

Natalie Wood was 43 when she drowned off of Catalina Island in California waters on November 29th, 1981. Wood, who had first come to prominence as an actress in Miracle on 34th Street in 1947, would also go on to become an Academy Award nominated star, headlining in movies like Rebel Without A Cause and Love With the Proper Stranger. There will always be some confusion as to what actually happened to Natalie that night, but apparently she was on board a yacht with husband Robert Wagner and actor Christopher Walken, with whom she was making the movie Brainstorm at the time. Wood likely slipped and then fell off the yacht or off of the dingy that was attached to it. Wearing a heavy down coat that soon became saturated and kept her from being able to climb onto the dinghy, Wood eventually succumbed to the icy chill and drowned; she was legally intoxicated at the time of her drowning, which became one of those Hollywood mysteries that will never be fully resolved.

Joe Delaney was a thousand yard rusher for the Kansas City Chiefs in his rookie year of 1981, a player that broke four KC running records. He played sparingly the next season with injuries being the reason why, but there was nothing to suggest that he would not bounce right back in 1983. He never got that chance though as he drowned on June 29th in Monroe, Louisiana at a swimming hole while attempting to rescue three boys that had gotten in over their heads. Although Delaney himself could not swim, he went in anyway. One of the kids made it back to shore, but the other two youngsters, along with Delaney, drowned. Delaney left a wife and three young daughters behind and he was posthumously given the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Reagan for his ultimate sacrifice.

Jessica Savitch was the NBC weekend news anchor for The Nightly News in 1983. Savitch, who had a rapid rise to fame in the media industry, also had a stormy personal life that included accusations of drug use. On October 23rd, 1983, Savitch was a back-seat passenger in a car driven by a friend as they returned from a dinner in New Hope, Pennsylvania. The man driving may have been unfamiliar with the roads and he drove into a canal that ran parallel to it. The car landed on its roof in the muddy canal, trapping Savitch and her friend inside where they both drowned. Jessica was just 36 years old at the time of her death.

Orville Redenbacher made his millions in popcorn, becoming famous for appearing in dozens of commercials for his Orville Redenbacher popcorn. He first burst on the national scene in the early 1970s, promoting his product. People actually wondered if he was an actor playing a role, which prompted Redenbacher to go on a plethora of talk shows to set them straight. Orville was 88 years old on September 19th, 1995, when his body was found submerged in his jacuzzi at his condo in Coronado, California. He had suffered a heart attack and then drowned. Many people still think Orville is alive today, as in early 2007 some commercials featuring his digital recreation were made.

Anyone who ever watched The Tonight Show recalls buxom blonde Carol Wayne, who often played Johnny Carson's assistant in some of his spoofs. Wayne was found drowned in calm waters around Manzanillo, Mexico, where she was vacationing with a companion in January of 1985. The death of the 42 year old Wayne, a frequent panelist on game shows, has never been fully explained and falls under the heading of suspicious, especially when one considers that Wayne was fully clothed and never liked going near the water since she too could not swim. There were no cuts on her hands or abrasions to suggest a fall from rocks that stood over the bay where her body was found.

If you were a fan of the hit 1960s comedy McHale's Navy, then you have no trouble remembering Joe Flynn, who played the daffy Capt. Binghamton, the man in command of Ernest Borgnine's outfit. Flynn also starred in many Walt Disney movies such as The Love Bug and The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. It wouldn't be a Hollywood mystery unless there was some controversy surrounding Flynn's drowning death in his pool at his Beverly Hills home in July of 1974. Joe, who was 49, had gone into the pool with a cast on a leg he had recently broken and wound up dead on the bottom of it. Investigators found no sign of foul play, and some surmised he had a heart attack while swimming.