Iconic actor Gene Hackman, his wife Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found dead inside their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, authorities said Thursday.
Sheriff’s deputies responded to the house to conduct a welfare check on Wednesday, Feb. 26, after a neighbor raised concerns. Inside the mansion, they found the bodies of Hackman, 95, Arakawa, 65, and their dog, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office told the Associated Press.
Hackman and Arakawa, a classical pianist, had been married since 1991.
The sheriff’s department said they did not suspect foul play, but an investigation is underway. No cause of death was disclosed.
Hackman’s daughter Elizabeth Jean Hackman told TMZ on Thursday that the family suspects carbon monoxide poisoning.
Also Read: Gene Hackman Was Probably Dead 9 Days Before Help Arrived, Sheriff Says
Gene Hackman was a two-time Academy Award winner. He took home a best actor Oscar for his role in the 1971 crime drama The French Connection, and picked up a best supporting actor Oscar for his performance in the 1992 Clint Eastwood-directed Western Unforgiven.
Hackman was also known for his acclaimed performances in Bonnie and Clyde, I Never Sang for My Father, Twice in a Lifetime, Mississippi Burning, Get Shorty, Enemy of the State, The Birdcage, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Superman.
In 2003 he received the Cecil B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes for “outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment.”
Hackman was born in San Bernardino, California, in 1930. His family moved often and he was raised in Danville, Illinois. He left home as a teenager to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Hackman served four and a half years and worked as a military field-radio operator while he was enlisted. Following his discharge in 1951, he moved to New York City and worked odd jobs. Under the G.I. bill, he attended the University of Illinois and studied journalism and television production.
In 1956, he began to pursue an acting career and joined the Pasadena Playhouse outside of Los Angeles. He returned to New York and worked as a struggling actor on Broadway.
He would eventually land roles in a string of television shows. Among his first movie roles were parts in the 1960s films A Covenant with Death, Banning, and Bonnie and Clyde.
Hackman retired from Hollywood two decades ago, and wrote three books.
In a 2020 interview with Empire magazine, he said he left acting to reduce stress.
“The straw that broke the camel’s back was actually a stress test that I took in New York,” he told the outlet. “The doctor advised me that my heart wasn’t in the kind of shape that I should be putting it under any stress.”
Hackman had three adult children from a previous marriage. He and Arakawa lived in New Mexico with their dogs.
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