Posted on 02/28/2025 6:07:02 AM PST by Red Badger
Actor Gene Hackman, 95, was found dead inside his home today along with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 63, and their dog. The initial report was that the couple perished through carbon monoxide poisoning, but that was quickly updated as something seems off about how the bodies were discovered. Reportedly, Hackman and his wife had been dead for quite some time, their bodies mummified, with pills all over the place, and the front door was open. The couple hadn’t been seen or heard from in about two weeks (via NY Post):
Authorities said the deaths were “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation” after finding the door to the couple’s home was “unsecured and opened” and an open orange prescription pill bottle and pills scattered around the room where Hackman’s wife, classical pianist Betsy Arakawa, and one of their German shepherd dogs were discovered.
Deputies noted that it appeared Arakawa had “obvious signs of death, body decomposition, bloating in her face and mummification in both hands and feet” when she was found on the floor of a bathroom near the home’s entry, according to the report.
The door into the couple’s $3.3 million Santa Fe, New Mexico, home, which sits on six acres and is over 8,000 square feet, was left ajar — but there was no sign of forced entry or theft, according to the report.
Authorities also noted in the report that a black space heater was found near Arakawa’s head. A responding officer said “he suspected the heater could have fallen in the event the female abruptly fell to the ground,” the affidavit said.
The couple’s deceased dog was located about 10 to 15 feet away from Arakawa inside the bathroom’s closet, deputies wrote in the report.
Meanwhile, Hackman’s body was located in what deputies believe was the mudroom near a pair of sunglasses. Officers wrote in the report that it appeared he had “suddenly fallen.”
We’ll know more after the autopsy.
It’s such a blow. Hackman was a Hollywood icon with a storied career. From playing a hard-nosed NYPD detective Popeye Doyle running down French drug smugglers in The French Connectionm for which he won an Oscar, to a former spook helping a DC-area attorney, played by Will Smith, escape rogue agents at the National Security Agency in Enemy of the State, Hackman was able to play them all. He earned his first Oscar nomination for a supporting role in 1967’s Bonnie and Clyde. He helped survivors of the Poseidon reach safety after the luxury liner capsized upon being slammed by a tidal wave, showed off his comedic chops in Young Frankenstein, had a nasty vendetta against the Man of Steel, and led a rural Indiana high school basketball team to a state championship.
Hackman later worked for a law Firm with only one client: the mafia. He soon got into a tussle with his executive officer, played by Denzel Washington, in Crimson Tide, which involved deploying nuclear missiles. Got into drag at The Birdcage, got involved in a nasty sex scandal and murder plot in Absolute Power, and did I forget to mention his role in Unforgiven, also starring and directed by Clint Eastwood? He also did voice-over work in 1998’s Antz, playing the militaristic Gen. Mandible.
Get Shorty, Wyatt Earp, Mississippi Burning, The Conversation, A Bridge Too Far—his resume is one of the greats.
Hackman’s last major film was 2004’s Welcome to Mooseport, where the late actor admitted that project was likely his final role in movies.
I know he was 95, but what a blow.
That’s pretty much it for all of the stars of Young Frankenstein, Teri Garr passed a few months ago, so Gene was the last one.
It’s hard to say anything was the best, but I can’t think of anyone better. He made every movie he was in memorable. He may be the best ever but Nicholson right there too.
I know now what you spake.
The dead dog was in a closet.
The other two were running around free inside and outside as at least one door was open..............
The Oscars are this Sunday. I’d imagine the whole show will be scrapped and re-done as a tribute to him.................
Little bill and the “Duck of Death.”
The Quick and the dead is what I remember him from the best, because it’s the most recent I guess. Oh and Enemy of the state.
There are alarm companies that will call you every single day to see if you’re okay. The cost is reasonable, maybe $40 a month.
Every older or handicapped person (or couple) should seriously consider getting such a service.
We'll have to agree to disagree. I think it was his role in The Firm.
No Way Out is one of my favorites when he played the Secretary of Defense during the Cold War.
No Way Out is one of my favorites when he played the Secretary of Defense during the Cold War.
Apparently there were a couple more running around the premises....outside. The one inside was in some kind of cage.
I agree.
Don’t forget about “The French Connection”.
He also did a killer job in “Unforgiven”.
Building (another) house? That suggests that he was still mentally sharp and engaged.
The open door raises a question. In the picture I’ve seen, the house is large. If it is on a fenced and gated property, or in a gated community with security, people can get careless about locking doors, but leaving one open is odd. If the grounds were fenced, perhaps they let the dogs run free. Or perhaps they were getting ready to go out for a walk.
I wonder whether there were housekeepers, a cook or an assistant (of many possible varieties) who should have been coming regularly.
No signs of traumatic injury, no signs of forcible entry, no signs (at first glance) of robbery. Definitely time for Inspector Clouseau to show up.
Very sad story.
Hoping it wasn’t foul play of some sort, but it’s looking more likely.
Hope I’m wrong.
No way! Buck Barra
I saw a lot of the movies you listed, I hadn’t realized that I had seen so many of his films. He was great in all of them. What a sad end for him and his wife.
I hope they get to the bottom of what happened.
Wide open? Open just a crack? Closed but unlocked?
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