Yahoo Lifestyle Gene Hackman Once Expressed Fear of Leaving His Wife Behind in Death
Gene Hackman once expressed a fear of leaving his wife, Betsy Arakawa, behind in the event of his death.
In a 2004 interview with CNN's Larry King, while discussing an angioplasty he had to open blocked arteries to his heart, the two-time Academy Award winner said he had a "normal fear of passing away." But, he added, "I want to make sure that my wife and my family are taken care of. Other than that, I don't have a lot of fears."
Now, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported that the actor and his wife, along with their dog, were found dead Wednesday, Feb. 26, in their home in the Santa Fe Summit community.
Per the publication, Mendoza said there was no immediate indication of foul play. A cause of death was not provided. Parade has reached out to Hackman's representative.
Keep reading for everything we know about Hackman and Arakawa's marriage, including when they met and if they shared children.
Who was Gene Hackman's wife Betsy Arakawa?
Although Betsy Arakawa did not live her life in the limelight, she was an artist as well, with a decades-long career as a classical pianist.
Hackman also credited her with helping him develop his writing, which he took up after retiring from acting in the early 2000s not long after his heart surgery. ("I haven't held a press conference to announce retirement, but yes, I'm not going to act any longer," he told Reuters in 2008. "I really don't want to do it any longer.")
Speaking to the podcast "Writer's Bone" in 2014 (via People), he said, "If in fact I have a [writing] style, it came from repeated edits, friends' suggestions, and my wife's unwavering, specific read-throughs.
Related: How Did Gene Hackman and His Wife Betsy Die? What We Know About Their Cause of Death
How did Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy meet?
The pair reportedly met in the mid-80s at a gym in California, where Arakawa was working part-time while pursuing a career as a classical musician.
Although there was some question as to whether Hackman left his first wife, Faye Maltese, to whom he was married from 1956 to 1986, to be with Arakawa, he once shot down that implication when discussing his unfaithful character Harry Mackenzie in 1985's Twice in a Lifetime.
"By the way, I did not leave my real-life wife for a younger woman," he said. "We just drifted apart. We lost sight of each other. When you work in this business, marriage takes a great deal of work and love."
Hackman and Arakawa wed in 1991.
What was the age gap between Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa?
Arakawa was 63 at the time of her death, and Hackman was 95, so there were approximately 32 years between them.
Who was Gene Hackman's first wife?
Hackman was married to Faye Maltese, a bank clerk, from 1956 to 1986. The couple shared three children: Christopher Allen, now 65, Elizabeth Jean, 62, and Leslie Anne, 59.
Did Gene Hackman have children?
The Unforgiven actor leaves behind three adult children from his first marriage: Christopher, Elizabeth and Leslie Anne. He and Arakawa did not have children together.
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