Gene Hackman was a philanthropist and force of nature who, at 70, floored a man with one punch, went e-biking in his late 80s, dined at a simple roadside grill, piloted airplanes and still rented DVDs long after streaming took over Hollywood.
Hackman, 95, was found dead on his mud room floor Wednesday; his wife Betsy Arakawa, 65, lifeless in a bathroom by the front door, with prescription pills scattered around. One of their three dogs died near her.
Police saw no signs of foul play but are also investigating the deaths as potentially suspicious.
The case is shrouded in the kind of intrigue reserved for Hackman’s detective thriller novels and has garnered international attention – just what the retired actor had been avoiding for the past 35 years.
He eschewed the trappings of glitzy Los Angeles for a quiet ranch life, brushing off his generational fame and fitting right into the high-desert town of Santa Fe, New Mexico, where life is slow and friends are fast.
But by Thursday afternoon, national cable news crews and local reporters had amassed at the entrance of the usually tranquil desert housing estate where he built his Pueblo-style ranch home.
Hackman, 95, was found dead on his mud room floor Wednesday; his wife Betsy Arakawa, 65, lifeless in a bathroom by the front door of their New Mexico home. Neighbors say he embraced the slow life of their community
He eschewed the trappings of glitzy Los Angeles for a quiet ranch life, brushing off his fame and fitting right into the high-desert town of Santa Fe
An officer told DailyMail.com that a law enforcement forensic team was still investigating the deaths at the property
The gated private neighborhood, off a winding canyon road five miles outside of Santa Fe, was blocked by a friendly but firm sheriff’s deputy.
The officer told DailyMail.com that a law enforcement forensic team was still investigating the property.
Hackman famously played Lex Luthor opposite Christopher Reeve’s Superman, but he was known for being a man of steel himself.
As a 16-year-old boy, he lied about his age to join the Marines in 1946.
Filming a heart-pounding car chase for 1971 classic The French Connection, he drove the car himself up to 90mph down busy Brooklyn streets and got in a real-life smash with a student driver who strayed onto the set.
And some time after he moved to Santa Fe in the late 1980s, an unverified local legend tells of students at St. John’s College hopping his gate and getting in his pool, splashing around until they heard a shotgun being cocked and Hackman saying ‘Get out of my goddamn pool, you goddamn Johnnies’.
Both he and Betsy could pilot an airplane – and did so, even into their advanced years.
Some time after the actor and his wife moved to Santa Fe a hometown legend was born that Hackman took out a shotgun to chase off college kids who tried to swim in his pool
Hackman famously played Lex Luthor opposite Christopher Reeve’s Superman, but he was known for being a man of steel himself
Filming a heart-pounding car chase for 1971 classic The French Connection, he drove the car himself up to 90mph down busy Brooklyn streets and got in a real-life smash with a student driver who strayed onto the set
‘I met Betsy in 2000 to set up some flights between Santa Fe and Burbank, California,’ pilot and writer Chris Goldstein told DailyMail.com.
‘We ended up working on numerous flights and travel adventures for the family over 3-4 years,’ he added. ‘Both were licensed pilots at the time with multiple ratings.’
Hackman, then 16, lied about his age to get into the Marines in 1946
Goldstein recalled Hackman’s gristle and his ‘pure love’ for his wife.
‘In 2001 Gene was involved in a fender bender in LA. The other driver made the mistake of taking a swing at the 70-year-old, who still had a boxer’s build. Gene decked the guy and ended up having to talk to the police,’ he said.
‘Betsy called me that day and asked how quickly we could bring him home. Four hours later the Lear 35 was coming in to land at Santa Fe’s mountain airport.
‘I let Betsy drive out onto the ramp in her Range Rover. The jet pulled up fast and cut the engines. Betsy opened the car door and a gaggle of golden retrievers ran towards the plane.
Pilot and writer Chris Goldstein remembers how lovey the couple were with each other and one memory when Arawaka jumped into his arms while their dogs jumped around
The runway where Arawaka and Hackman would fly between Santa Fe and Burbank, California, and where Goldstein met the couple
‘Gene got out and Betsy ran to him. He swept her up in his arms and gave a grand twirl among the jumping dogs. The setting sun made the whole atmosphere perfect.
‘There were no cameras rolling. But it was one of the best scenes in Hollywood history.’
Goldstein shared a photo of the silver-colored Learjet plane on the runway.
‘Betsy was an incredibly cool person to know, sharp, full of joy for life,’ he said. ‘She helped manage Gene’s career, but more importantly, Betsy helped manage the life that was paramount to them both – outside of the film/TV industry.
‘They were both incredibly fun, kind and generous. It was a privilege to witness the pure love they shared.’
Hackman also owned two Pitts Specials, according to a report by Wisconsin ABC affiliate WBAY.
Hackman also owned two Pitts Specials, according to a report by Wisconsin ABC affiliate WBAY
The Video Library where the couple rented their DVDs said ‘they had been wonderful customers’ for over 20 years
The fender-bender fight was not the last altercation the tough-as-nails actor would get into.
In 2012, aged 82, he and Betsy were walking down one of Santa Fe’s narrow downtown streets when a homeless man approached them and shouted profanities at her.
He strode forward to defend Betsy’s honor, slapping the man across the face.
The man, then-63-year-old Bruce Becker, called the police, and Hackman waited to give a statement. The cops concluded the strike was ‘purely out of self-defense’.
And Hackman was still a hard charger even in his later years.
A week before his 88th birthday, Hackman showed up at indie bike shop The Broken Spoke and bought an electric power-assisted bicycle.
A week before his 88th birthday, Hackman showed up at indie bike shop The Broken Spoke and bought an electric power-assisted bicycle.
Broken Spoke staffer Clint Holt told DailyMail.com that Hackman was generous, down-to-earth and liked to do things himself
Hackman walking around Sante Fe after grabbing a bite to eat with his wife at Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen
‘Our first E-Bike sale!! And it couldn’t have been to a cooler guy…’ the caption said on the January 24, 2018, photo.
Dressed in jeans in the picture, with sunglasses perched on his baseball cap, Hackman flashed a youthful grin alongside store worker Owen Conley and dangled his new keys for the camera.
On Thursday, Broken Spoke staffer Clint Holt told DailyMail.com that Hackman was generous, down-to-earth and liked to do things himself.
‘Years ago, I worked at another bike shop here in town. He brought in two of his old bikes, and he paid to get them tuned up, new tires and new tubes. He came and picked them up and took them to Goodwill. That’s the kind of guy he was,’ Holt said.
‘Most normal people would just take an old bike and drop it off. But he got it fixed.
‘And we’ve had other movie stars whose assistants bring their bike in to get worked on. He came himself.’
Holt also had a job working at the Video Library, an old-school movie rental store in Santa Fe’s historic downtown, where he would often see Betsy picking up movies for her and her Hollywood legend husband.
Gustavo Flores, 32, started busing tables at Hackman’s Asian restaurant Jinja at 16 years old and frequently served the couple
Flores said he remembers where the 6’2 Hollywood hero would enter the restaurant with a cigar between his teeth and how ‘joyful’ he was
‘I knew Betsy as well. She was a customer at a video store here in town. She came in almost every week and rented movies,’ he said.
‘He was a pretty private guy. But he was a really good guy. We’re all a little sad now.’
Gustavo Flores started busing tables at Hackman’s Asian restaurant Jinja the same age the Bonnie and Clyde actor joined the Marines: 16.
Now general manager, 32-year-old Flores said he looked forward to the moments at the 6’2′ Hollywood hero would enter, always with a cigar between his teeth.
‘I just remember him as a big, happy guy with a cigar. His wife was lovely. He didn’t act his age, whatever that means. He was always joyful.
‘Every story I hear about him is that he’s this great person. He was a big part of our city.’
Hackman and Arakawa at the Golden Globe Awards in 2003
Hackman would frequent many of the breakfast joints and restaurants in the Santa Fe area. He’s sat with his longtime friend Daniel Lenihan (left) at the Cloud Clift Café
Flores said he worked a party at the restaurant co-owner’s house which Hackman and Arakawa attended.
‘It might have been a fundraiser because he did so many. I remember him there with his wife, and he was a charming guy. He was everything that I’d heard about him.
‘He would do paintings and give those for charity.’
Flores spoke to DailyMail.com surrounded by the actor’s art. Jinja’s walls are adorned with paintings by Hackman, including a 20ft mural depicting a tropical coastal scene with a dark-skinned topless woman looking out over the turquoise waves.
The painting straddles three booths, which on Thursday night were filled with families tucking into Vietnamese, Japanese and other Asian dishes.
For years Hackman and his wife were co-owners of the restaurant with current boss Doug Lanham. Staff said Jinja still uses Betsy’s recipe for green and red curry.
Gustavo Flores, general manager of Jinja, showed off Hackman’s art including thi topless woman on the beach, that hangs in the restaurant
Flores said Hackman would create paintings and donate them for charity – some of his paintings adorn the walls of Jinja
A smaller art-deco-style painting in an oval frame shows a woman resembling Betsy with long black hair pouring a martini
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A smaller art-deco-style painting in an oval frame shows a woman resembling Betsy with long black hair pouring a martini.
‘Everyone in Santa Fe just kind of loved him, and he loved Santa Fe because of the art and the culture. People would recognize him for that,’ said Flores.
One of Hackman’s favorite Santa Fe eateries was a humble highway grill called Harry’s Roadhouse.
The restaurant is known for its Catfish PoBoy and Turkey Meatloaf, served under the motto ‘A Square Meal Every Time’.
‘He was beloved, absolutely beloved, and a really good guy,’ staffer Sharon Grambo, 60, told DailyMail.com. ‘He used to be a regular here. This was one of his favorite places to come to.
‘He was really hardy for a long time. But in his last pictures, he looked frail. The last few years, since Covid, we hadn’t seen a lot of him.’
One of the last times Gene and Betsy were photographed in public was an outing in late March last year when they headed to Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen in Albuquerque
One of the last times Gene and Betsy were photographed in public was an outing in late March last year.
He was seen leaning on his black cane with his right hand, and gripping his wife’s arm with his left, as he took her on a date to Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen in Albuquerque.
Their last big public outing had been 21 years earlier, at the 2003 Golden Globe Awards where he won the Cecil B. DeMille award.
He officially retired from movies in 2004 but kept busy writing novels.
Staff at Ten Thousand Waves Spa, a retreat nestled in the canyon about a mile from Hackman and Arakawa’s home, said they had also seen less of the couple in recent years.
One staffer, Gregory, told DailyMail.com that Gene and classical pianist Betsy would frequent the spa in the 2000s, but added that ‘no one here has seen him for years.’
‘It’s a real active community here for old folks. I’m glad he was able to do that for so long,’ Gregory said.
‘He was one of the best actors I ever knew. He was fantastic. It’s tragic news.
‘I hope it was carbon monoxide,’ he added, referring to the police’s original suspicion that a leak of the odorless, soporific poison gas was to blame for their deaths. ‘That’s the best-case scenario, the easiest way to go.’