Hollywood legend Gene Hackman, wife and dog found dead together at home

Legendary Hollywood actor Gene Hackman has been found dead, along with his wife and their dog.

Aged 95, Oscar-winner Gene was found dead at his Santa Fe Summit home, alongside his wife, classical pianist Betsy Arakawa. The actor and his wife had been living a quiet life, with him seen looking frail and walking with a stick in early 2024.

Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza reportedly confirmed in the early hours of Thursday that the couple and their dog had died. He said there were no immediate signs of foul play, and no causes of death were given.

According to Santa Fe New Mexican, Mendoza said: “All I can say is that we’re in the middle of a preliminary death investigation, waiting on approval of a search warrant. We can confirm that both Gene Hackman and his wife were found deceased Wednesday afternoon at their residence on Sunset Trail. This is an active investigation – however, at this time we do not believe that foul play was a factor.

“I want to assure the community and neighbourhood that there’s no immediate danger to anyone

It’s reported that the sheriff’s deputies arrived at the couple’s home in a gated community on Wednesday afternoon to investigate the deaths of two elderly people and their dog. However it is unclear whether if there had been a report of the deaths, or if they were performing a welfare check.

Mendoza reported the discovery of the bodies of a man in his 90s and a woman in her 60s. Gene and wife Betsy, 63, had lived in Santa Fe since the 1980s.

During his lengthy career, Gene picked up two Oscars. The first was for Best Actor for playing Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection, the second for Best Supporting Actor as “Little” Bill Daggett in Clint Eastwood film Unforgiven.

He was nominated three other times, in 1968 for Bonnie & Clyde, 1971 for I Never Sang For My Father and 1989 for Mississippi Burning. He won two BAFTAs and four Golden Globes.

Gene started acting in 1956, after enlisting in the United States Marine Corps as a teenager. He was voted “least likely to succeed” by classmates, alongside pal and fellow actor Dustin Hoffman.

He went on to move to New York City and picked up various small roles, also working Off-Broadway. His Broadway debut came in 1963 in Children From Their Games.

Gene landed his first film role in Lilith, alongside Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty. Then he picked up his first Oscars nomination in 1967 for Bonnie and Clyde.

His next nomination came in 1970, with his first win in 1971, which became his big break. He would go on to become the most prolific actor in Hollywood for a period of three years, appearing in 10 films after his Oscars win.

During the 1980s, Gene’s career continued to fly, starring in nine films between 1985 and 1988. Moving into the 1990s, the star picked up his second Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in the Western flick, Unforgiven.

He almost didn’t take the part, because he wanted to avoid violent roles, but director Clint Eastwood convinced him. During the ’90s, Gene worked alongside other Hollywood icons including Robin Willia,s Sharon Stone, Leonardo DiCaprio, Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.

Gene’s career continued until 2004, when he announced he had no more plans for acting. Then in 2008, he confirmed his retirement from acting.

Speaking in 2009, he said: “The doctor advised me that my heart wasn’t in the kind of shape that I should be putting it under any stress.” But he suggested he might come out of retirement if he could act “in [his] own house, maybe, without them disturbing anything and just one of two people”.

Gene came out of retirement briefly in 2016 and 2017 to narrate two Marine Corps documentaries.

However he continued working, instead writing historical fiction novels, first starting in 1999. In total, he released three books, with his first solo book, Payback at Morning Peak: A Novel of the American West, being published in 2011. His final book, Pursuit, was published in 2013.

Gene’s marriage to Betsy was his second. He was first married to Faye Maltese from 1956 to 1986. Together they had one son, Christopher, and two daughters, Elizabeth and Leslie. He married pianist Betsy Arakawa in 1991.

Gene had a few health issues which were documented publicly. In 1990, he had an angioplasty operation. Then at 82, in 2012, he was hit by a pickup while cycling in the Florida Keys. His publicist said he suffered “bumps and bruises” after it was claimed he’d been left with serious head trauma.

In his later years, Gene and his wife Betsy lived a quiet life. In his final few years, he was pictured out and about in his local community with his wife.

He was pictured in 2022 on social media after going to see a show in Santa Fe. Seth Rudetsky shared a photo of the actor smiling and looking old but well, writing: “Look who came to our show in Santa Fe! Gene Hackman! Ah! The Poseidon Adventure! My fave!”

Then in a rare outing in March 2024, the couple were seen out in Santa Fe enjoying an early dinner date.

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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk