Acting legend Gene Hackman, his pianist wife Betsy Arakawa, and their dog were found dead in their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico on Wednesday. Gene was 95, and Betsy was 63. CNN reports:
Their cause of death has not been confirmed but it is not believed to be foul play, Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Denise Womack-Avila told CNN on Thursday morning.
Deputies responded to a welfare check request at the home around 1:45 p.m. Wednesday and found Hackman, Arakawa and a dog deceased, Womack-Avila said. An investigation is ongoing, police said.
UPDATE: A new affidavit, released by New Mexico authorities, rules the deaths “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation because the reporting party found the front door of the residence unsecured and opened, deputies observed a healthy dog running loose on the property, another healthy dog near the deceased female, a deceased dog laying 10-15 feet from the deceased female in a closet of the bathroom, the heater being moved, the pill bottle being opened and pills scattered next to the female, the male decedent being located in a separate room of the residence, and no obvious signs of a gas leak.”
Gene rose to fame thanks to his roles in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), The French Connection (1971), The Conversation (1974), Hoosiers (1986), Unforgiven (1992), The Firm (1993), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), and other films, and he won Oscars for his roles as New York City Detective Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle in The French Connection and sheriff “Little Bill” Daggett in the Clint Eastwood-directed Unforgiven.
This story is still developing. Rest in peace, Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa.