Entertainment Swindon

Actor Gene Hackman and his wife have been found dead at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, police have said.

The actor was found dead alongside his wife, Betsy Arakawa, in their Santa Fe home, according to Santa Fe Sheriffs Office.

Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office announced: “We do not believe foul play was a factor in their deaths however, exact cause of death has not been determined at this time.”

Local reports also said the couple died along with their dog.

Big screen legend, Gene Hackman, a two-time Oscar-winning actor whose compelling screen presence made gave him a career that spanned for 40 years, before retiring back in 2004.

My first memories of Gene Hackman was probably as Lex Luthor in the Superman films alongside Christopher Reeves, which for many was the film that they will remember the legend of the big screen for, but his career was so much more than just one film!

Movies I will remember Gene Hackman for are The French Connection (1971) for which he received his first Oscar for his leading role and Unforgiven where he won the Oscar for supporting actor in (1992), as well as Mississippi Burning, The Firm alongside Tom Cruise, Enemy of the State, Behind Enemy Lines, Crimson Tide, A Bridge Too Far and the Quick and the Dead that will always stick in my mind.

After a career that included 80 films, Gene Hackman retired from acting, along with his wife, the couple moved to New Mexico, retreating from the lime light where he took to writing novels and painting.

Gene Hackman was born on 30th January 1930, born Eugene Allen Hackman in San Bernardino, California to parents Eugene Ezra Hackman and Anna Lyda Elizabeth, and had a brother called Richard Hackman.

He left home at 16yrs old and joined the US Marines after lying about his age to enlist into the US Marine Corps where he serve for four and a half years as a field radio operator.

His career as an actor started in 1956 where he joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California where he became friends with Dustin Hoffman where the pair were voted as “Least Likely to Succeed” by their classmates, and then in 1967, he played Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde for which he was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor.

The actor was found dead along with his wife Betsy Arkawa (68) who was a classical pianist on 26th February, according to Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza. No cause of death was given, however authorities confirmed there was no indication of foul play. Hackman and Arakawa had been married for 34 years.

A screen legend that will be sadly missed.