Lana Wood
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lana Wood | |
|---|---|
| Born | Svetlana Nikolaevna Zakharenko March 1, 1946 Santa Monica, California |
| Spouse(s) | Allan Balter (div.) Jack Wrather, Jr. (1962-1962) Karl Brent (1965-1966) Steve Oliver (1967-1967) Richard Smedley (m.1973) |
Svetlana Nikolaevna Gurdin (born March 1, 1946), better known as Lana Wood, is an American actress and producer born to Russian emigré parents, Nikolai and Maria Zakharenko.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Lana Wood's parents were Russian, but they grew up far from their homeland: her father lived in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, while her mother grew up in a Chinese province. After her parents were married, they settled in Santa Monica, California, where Lana was born. By this time her parents had legally changed their surname to Gurdin.
Her sister, Natalie Wood, was named after director Sam Wood when Natalie first launched her child acting career. When Lana made her film debut, with sister Natalie in The Searchers (1956), their mother was asked under what last name should Lana be credited, and Maria agreed it would be best if she could be credited as "Wood", like her famous sister.
[edit] Career
In 1970, Lana Glyde was approached to pose for Playboy by Hugh Hefner and agreed. The Playboy pictures appeared in the April 1971 issue, along with Wood's poetry. Even though her sister strongly disapproved of Wood's move to pose nude, the publicity was a major reason for her being cast as bond girl Plenty O'Toole in the 1971 James Bond film, Diamonds Are Forever.
Wood had participated in more than 20 other films or television shows through her career, including Peyton Place. She retired from acting in 1982, concentrating on her career as a producer.
Wood wrote a best-selling memoir, Natalie, A Memoir by Her Sister, about her famous sister shortly after her death. The book, ultimately, was also an autobiography. Among the tidbits she revealed in the book was an off-the-set affair with Sean Connery during the filming of Diamonds Are Forever.
[edit] Family
She has a third sister named Olga. Wood has one child, Evan, a daughter with Richard Smedley. She has one granddaughter, Daphne, and two grandsons, Nicholas and Max.
Lana Wood has been married five times:
- Jack Wrather - (1962) annulled
- Karl Brent - (1965-1966) divorced
- Stephen Oliver - (1967) divorced
- Allan Balter - (?-?)
- Richard Smedley - (1973-?) divorced
[edit] Bibliography
- Natalie, A Memoir by Her Sister. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1984. ISBN 0399129030
[edit] Filmography
- The Searchers - (1956), Debbie Edwards (younger)
- Five Finger Exercise - (1962), Mary
- The Fool Killer - (1965), Alice
- The Girls on the Beach - (1965), Bonnie
- The Long, Hot Summer - (TV) (1965-1966), Eula Harker
- Peyton Place - (TV) (1966-1967), Sandy Webber - unknown episodes
- For Singles Only - (1968), Helen Todd
- Scream Free! - (1969), Karen
- Black Water Gold - (TV) (1970), Eagan Ryan
- The Over-the-Hill Gang Rides Again - (TV) (1970), Katie Flavin
- O'Hara, U.S. Treasury - (TV) (1971), Fran Harper
- Diamonds Are Forever - (1971), Plenty O'Toole
- Justin Morgan Had a Horse - (1972), Kathleen
- A Place Called Today - (1972), Carolyn Schneider
- QB VII - (TV miniseries) (1974), Sue Scanlon
- Who Is the Black Dahlia? - (TV) (1975), Boarder
- Nightmare in Badham County - (TV) (1976), Smitty
- Corey: For the People - (TV) (1977), Janet Hanley
- Speedtrap - (1977) New Blossom
- Greyeagle - (1977) Beth Colter
- A Question of Guilt - (TV) (1978), Elizabeth Carson
- Captain America - (TV) (1979), Yolanda
- Captain America II: Death Too Soon - (TV) (1979), Yolanda
- Born to Be Sold - (1981) (TV) (assistant to executive producer)
- Satan's Mistress - (1982), Lisa
- Murder Me, Murder You - (TV) (1983) - associate producer
- Capitol - (TV series) (1983), Fran Burke - unknown episodes
- The Mystery of Natalie Wood - (TV) (2004) - co-producer
- Wild Michigan - (2008), Opal
[edit] External links
- Lana Wood at the Internet Movie Database
[edit] Bibliography
- Paul, Louis (2008). "Lana Wood", Tales From the Cult Film Trenches; Interviews with 36 Actors from Horror, Science Fiction and Exploitation Cinema. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, p.300-306. ISBN 978-0-7864-2994-3.
