Gene Hackman ‘died days after rare virus killed wife’
Actor had advanced Alzheimer’s and may have been unaware his wife was gone, say doctors
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
PUBLISHED : 8 Mar 2025 at 21: 18
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Morgan Freeman speaks about the late Gene Hackman during the Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood on March 2. (Photo: Reuters)
SANTA FE, New Mexico – Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman was in an advanced state of Alzheimer’s and died of heart disease and other factors days after his wife, Betsy Arakawa, died of a rare virus spread by mice, according to autopsy results released on Friday in New Mexico.
The 95-year-old actor, his 64-year-old pianist wife, and one of their dogs were found dead on Feb 26 in separate rooms of their Santa Fe home.
Hackman’s heart disease and the hantavirus pulmonary syndrome that caused Arakawa’s death were announced at a press conference at the Santa Fe Sheriff’s office.
Hackman’s wife died a week before he did, results showed. A reporter asked Sheriff Adan Mendoza if Hackman’s advanced Alzheimer’s had hindered him from perceiving her death.
“I would assume that is the case
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