‘Hart to Hart’ stars Stefanie Powers, Robert Wagner ‘leaned on each other’ after tragic deaths of their lovers
For Stefanie Powers, the show must go on.
On Nov. 12, 1981, the “Hart to Hart” star lost her longtime love, actor William Holden, after he suffered a fall in his home. He was 63.
Then, on Nov. 29, 1981, Powers’ co-star, Robert Wagner, lost his wife, Natalie Wood. The actress was 43 when she drowned near Santa Catalina Island.
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Stefanie Powers and Robert Wagner in “Hart to Hart,” circa 1980. (ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)
After Holden’s death, Powers launched the William Holden Wildlife Foundation (WHWF) in his honor. The nonprofit aims to educate young people on the importance of preserving our environment. It has since educated thousands of students.
On Sept. 26, the 81-year-old was among 25 individuals honored with the 2024 Agents of Change Award at a luncheon held at the United Nations.
Powers told Fox News Digital that as she and Wagner mourned their lovers, they found solace in uplifting each other.
And they also did it for the fans.
Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers played married couple Jonathan and Jennifer Hart on the detective series, which aired from 1979 to 1984. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
“We did — we leaned on each other for support,” she explained. “And we also understood that we had committed to do a television series. It had to go on. The show had to go on, and no one would’ve understood that more than the partners we both lost.”
From left: Natalie Wood, Stefanie Powers and Robert Wagner appear during the 6th Annual People’s Choice Awards at Hollywood Palladium in Hollywood, California, on Jan. 24, 1980. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
“It was a very difficult time,” Powers reflected. “We were held up by a lot of wonderful people and friends, some mutual friends and some on each side of the coin. And RJ [Wagner] had daughters. He also had children to keep supporting… emotionally. So it was a complicated and difficult time.”
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The pair played married couple Jonathan and Jennifer Hart 0n the detective series, which aired from 1979 to 1984. They went on to star in eight “Hart to Hart” TV movies. The last film, “Till Death Do Us Hart,” premiered in 1996.
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“We did — we leaned on each other for support. And we also understood that we had committed to do a television series. It had to go on. The show had to go on, and no one would’ve understood that more than the partners we both lost.”
“Till Death Do Us Hart” premiered in 1996. (ABC Photo Archives/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)
“There are so many wonderful memories,” said Powers. “I saw [Wagner] two days ago. And every time we see each other, we talk about, ‘Do you remember when?’ It crops up all these little memories… ‘Hart to Hart’ was a gift because it played on both of our sensibilities.”
Today, Powers and Wagner, 94, “have a very unusual and wonderful rapport,” she said.
Powers also cherishes the memories she shared with Holden. She had a nearly decade-long relationship with the Oscar winner, who was 24 years her senior.
William Holden and Stefanie Powers in New York City, circa 1980. (Robin Platzer/IMAGES/Getty Images)
“There was an age difference, but it disappeared,” Powers explained. “We had both begun our careers as teenagers during the Hollywood of the old studio system… There were a lot of synchronicities. We were both actors, and we understood some of those challenges, but we also shared tremendous curiosities… We would both read newspapers together and focus on some astonishing things that happened in some very far away, remote places. We would say, ‘Look at this. Maybe we should go here.’ And we did.”
A young William Holden, right, is seen with Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, his co-stars in 1954’s “Sabrina.” (Donaldson Collection/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Holden was a staunch conservationist who co-founded the Mount Kenya Game Ranch, the Los Angeles Times reported. His love for animals wasn’t publicized in his lifetime.
“Bill came from a generation where people didn’t exploit their personal interests as we do today,” said Powers. “He was very sensitive about that. He didn’t want people to think that he was doing this for personal publicity… But he was worried about the natural world and where that would go… So, in 1959, he bought a piece of property to make into the very first game ranch for the preservation of species in the whole of Africa. People were hunting species, but they weren’t preserving them or protecting them. He was a visionary.”
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Stefanie Powers is seen here in Kenya. She launched the William Holden Wildlife Foundation after Holden’s death. (William Campbell/Sygma via Getty Images)
“Our mission statement… is wildlife conservation through education and alternatives to habitat destruction,” Powers shared. “It’s something Bill strongly believed in. Bill had an appreciation of the natural world. He had curiosities about human beings in remote places. It was very much at the top of his list of pursuits. He wanted to build a wildlife education system for local people so that they could learn about the very animals that are part of Africa. He wanted children all over the world to see the animals that were personified in cartoons and stuffed animals. But he didn’t live to accomplish that.”
Stefanie Powers is determined to keep William Holden’s legacy alive. (William Campbell/Sygma via Getty Images)
Powers said that even decades after his passing, Holden is “constantly with me.”
“When certain things happen, I can sort of feel him winking,” she explained. “It’s not something I call upon or could explain… [But] great relationships and those who touch us, change us, never really leave us. Yes, it’s horrible not to have him to discuss things with. But his influence and curiosities, the love for adventure we both had — that will never leave me. I was privileged to have experienced a world at large that, unfortunately, doesn’t exist anymore. We can’t go back to some of the places that Bill and I played in our little backyard of adventures.”
Stefanie Powers and William Holden shared a mutual love of wildlife conservation. (Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
“The world has changed so dramatically in the years that Bill has not been here,” said Powers. “I don’t think he’d be very happy with it, but I think he’d be very happy with how we’ve adapted because the message is still the same. We need to preserve that which affords us life. And if we don’t heed the call, then we suffer the consequences. But it’s the whole planet that suffers the consequences.”
Powers has led a successful decades-long career in television, film and the stage. She befriended many people along the way, including polo pal King Charles.
Stefanie Powers and Prince Charles take part in the Kuoni World Class Charity Polo Match at Hurtwood Park Polo Club in Ewhurst, England, on May 29, 2005. (Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)
“Throughout the ‘80s and some of the ‘90s, I was in the company of a lot of royals because I played a lot of polo,” said Powers. “I was occasionally in his company or playing right opposite him. He was the man I watched, and I was the man he watched in the game of polo. I’ve always had a lot of appreciation for him, his opinions, his concern with the natural world, his esthetics as a human being. Unfortunately, his personal life was very complicated and there are many sides to that story. It’s not for me to say anything. However, I think he’s a very kind person — a very concerned person. He’s very concerned about the things he cares about.”
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Stefanie Powers has led a successful decades-long career in television, film and the stage. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Getty Images)
Today, Powers is determined to keep Holden’s dream alive.
“As far as he was concerned, the world was not only worth preserving, but he also wanted to educate people and help them understand why it’s important for us to co-exist with the natural world,” she said. “I think that’s what we’re doing… And I think he would be happy.”
