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Betsy Arakawa

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Betsy Arakawa
Arakawa with her husband, Gene Hackman
Background information
Birth nameBetsy Machiko Arakawa
Born(1959-12-15)December 15, 1959
Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Diedc. February 11, 2025(2025-02-11) (aged 65)
Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.
GenresClassical
InstrumentPiano
Spouse
​
(m. 1991)​

Betsy Machiko Arakawa Hackman (December 15, 1959 – c. February 11, 2025) was an American classical pianist. She was the second wife of actor Gene Hackman.[1]

Life and career

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Betsy Machiko Arakawa was born on December 15, 1959, in Honolulu, Hawaii, and was of Japanese descent.[2][3] As a musical prodigy, she studied piano at Kahala Elementary School and performed at the Honolulu International Center Concert Hall at age eleven. According to the Honolulu Star Bulletin, she performed the final movement of Joseph Haydn's Keyboard Concerto in G major with the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra.[4] Arakawa studied at the University of Southern California from 1981 to 1983.[2] During a summer break, she served as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Aztecs, a professional soccer team, and worked as a production assistant on the television game show Card Sharks.[5]

In 1989, Arakawa performed at the Altenheim Geriatric Center in Forest Park, Illinois, which was used as a German nursing home in The Package, a film starring her future husband, Gene Hackman.[6][7] She met Hackman in the 1980s while working part-time at a Los Angeles fitness center.[1] They dated for seven years and married on December 1, 1991.[8] After they married, she stopped performing in concert.[1] There had been speculation that Hackman left his former wife, Faye Maltese, for Arakawa; however he said in a 1985 interview that this was not the case.[7]

In 2001, Arakawa co-founded Pandora's, a linens and home furnishings store in Santa Fe, with Barbara Lenihan.[1]

Death

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Further information: Gene Hackman § Death

Arakawa, Hackman, and one of their three dogs were found dead at their home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on February 26, 2025, after a maintenance worker grew concerned the couple did not answer the door.[9] Arakawa was found in the bathroom near a portable heater, along with a prescription bottle and scattered pills on the bathroom countertop close to her body.[10] Authorities initially ruled out foul play, but investigators quickly reversed that statement, calling their deaths "suspicious" and stated that an investigation was being conducted.[11]

At a press conference on March 7, 2025, investigators announced her cause of death as hantavirus pulmonary syndrome and that she had died about a week before her husband. It is thought that due to his advanced Alzheimer's disease, Hackman may not have realized that she had died.[12]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Wolfe, Jonathan (February 27, 2025). "Betsy Arakawa, a Classical Musician and the Wife of Gene Hackman, Dies at 65". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 28, 2025. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Bedayn, Jesse; Billeaud, Jacques (February 28, 2025). "What to know about Hollywood icon Gene Hackman's and his wife's deaths". AP News. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  3. ^ Hayes, Kelly (February 27, 2025). "Gene Hackman, wife Betsy Arakawa found dead in Santa Fe home: What we know". Fox TV Stations. Retrieved March 2, 2025.
  4. ^ "Concert Star". Honolulu Star Bulletin. April 3, 1971. p. B-5. Retrieved February 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ^ Chapman, Don (August 24, 1981). "Hawaii Report". Honolulu Advertiser. p. A-3. Retrieved February 27, 2025 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ "Getting Savaged: Black community leaders involved with saving..." Chicago Tribune. March 6, 1989. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  7. ^ a b Yam, Kimmy (February 27, 2025). "Betsy Arakawa, Gene Hackman's wife, was a businesswoman, former pianist and decades-long companion". NBC News. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
  8. ^ Shelley, Peter (2018). Gene Hackman: The Life and Work. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. p. 122. ISBN 978-1-4766-7047-8.
  9. ^ Moreau, Jordan (February 27, 2025). "Gene Hackman and Wife's Death Ruled 'Suspicious' in Search Warrant: 'No Obvious Signs of a Gas Leak' and 'Thorough Investigation' Required". Variety. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  10. ^ "Death of Hackman and wife 'suspicious enough' for investigation, police say". BBC. February 27, 2025. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  11. ^ Rahman, Abid; Strause, Jackie; Dolan, Kevin (February 27, 2025). "Gene Hackman and Wife Betsy Arakawa's Initial Autopsy Reports Show No Signs of External Trauma". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  12. ^ Hammond, Tori B. Powell, Elise (March 7, 2025). "Live updates: Gene Hackman death investigation". CNN. Retrieved March 7, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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