Lana Wood

Lana Wood (born Svetlana Lisa Gurdin on March 1, 1946) is an American actress and producer. She made her film debut as a child actress in The Searchers (1956) and later gained notable recognition for her television work and film roles. Among her most prominent parts are Sandy Webber on the drama series Peyton Place and the Bond girl Plenty O'Toole in the 1971 James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever.

Wood was born in Santa Monica, California, to Russian émigré parents, Marusia Zoudilova (also known as Mary Tatuloff or Maria Gurdin) and Nicholas Zacharenko. Both parents had fled Russia as child refugees following the Russian Civil War. Her father's family moved to Vancouver before settling in San Francisco, while her mother's family relocated to Harbin, China, where her mother first married and had a daughter, Olga. After her parents married in 1938 and settled in California, they adopted the surname Gurdin. Her elder sister was actress Natalie Wood, whose professional last name was later adopted for Lana upon her debut in The Searchers.

In the early stages of her career, Wood frequently appeared in films featuring her sister. Her individual career expanded in the 1960s, beginning with an appearance on the short-lived drama series The Long, Hot Summer. She subsequently joined the cast of the soap series Peyton Place, playing Sandy Webber from 1966 to 1967. During this era, she turned down a role in Easy Rider (1969). In 1970, she was approached to pose for Playboy, and her photos and poetry appeared in the magazine's April 1971 issue.

Over the course of her career, Wood accumulated credits in more than 20 films and over 300 television episodes. Her television appearances include shows such as The Fugitive, Bonanza, Mission: Impossible, Wild Wild West, Police Story, Starsky & Hutch, Nero Wolfe, Fantasy Island, and Capitol. Following her role in the 1982 horror film Satan's Mistress, she retired from acting to focus on producing.

Wood returned to acting in 2008, appearing in a variety of low-budget films. She is also an author, having written two autobiographies focusing on her sister: Natalie: A Memoir by Her Sister (1984) and Little Sister: My Investigation Into the Mysterious Death of Natalie Wood (2021). Additionally, she is featured as a character in the 2009 Steve Alten book Meg: Hell's Aquarium.