How did Gene Hackman die? So far, there are more questions than answers
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Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Sunday. I’m your host, Andrew J. Campa. Here’s what you need to know to start your weekend:
- Authorities investigate the final days of an Oscar-winning actor.
- Oscars 2025: Here are our final predictions for all 23 categories.
- There was a measles exposure at Los Angeles International Airport amid a growing number cases across the U.S. Here’s how you can protect yourself.
- And here’s today’s e-newspaper.
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Unraveling Gene Hackman’s final act
Days after the grim discovery at their Santa Fe, N.M., home, the circumstances surrounding the death of Gene Hackman, his wife and one of their dogs remain a mystery.
The Oscar-winning actor and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, were found dead by maintenance workers Wednesday. While Hackman’s age, 95, doesn’t make his death all that surprising, the precise cause has so far eluded authorities — despite there being no obvious signs of foul play.
My colleagues Nathan Solis, Clara Harter and Richard Winton have the latest on the investigation, including local law enforcement sharing that they believe Hackman may have died on Feb. 17, the last day activity was registered on his pacemaker.
Actor Gene Hackman got his break in ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ and rose to stardom in ‘The French Connection.’ He was 95.
There were also pills found at the scene.
“We’ll be analyzing cellphone data, phone calls, text messages, events, photos in the cellphone, to try to piece a timeline together,” Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said at a news conference Friday.
Here’s what we know:
Couple was found in separate rooms
Maintenance workers found Hackman and Arakawa just before 2 p.m on Wednesday.
Eventually a community caretaker called 911.
Hackman’s body was discovered on the floor near the kitchen with a walking cane and sunglasses nearby, according to a court affidavit.
Arakawa’s body was located in a bathroom near the home’s entrance. Prescription pills were on a nearby countertop.
Police investigators recovered two green cellular devices, blood pressure and thyroid medications, Tylenol, medical records, and a 2025 monthly planner from the home, according to a search warrant summary.
Hollywood paid tribute to Gene Hackman, who was found dead along with his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and their dog in their New Mexico home.
Cause of death is under investigation
Medical investigators have not released an official cause of death for the couple or the German shepherd. The Santa Fe Sheriff’s Animal Control Division worked with the couple’s family to ensure the safety of the two surviving dogs.
The couple already showed signs of being dead for so long that paramedics did not attempt to revive them, officials said.
There had been early speculation that the couple may have died from carbon monoxide poisoning, but authorities said there is no evidence to back up that assertion.
Authorities also found no signs of forced entry at the property, or blunt force trauma on the couple’s bodies.
“This is an open investigation that’s a couple days old. We’re putting together the timeline. We’re trying to figure out all the evidence and the autopsy is key, and that is going to take some time,” Mendoza told the news program “Today.”
He asked for “a little bit of patience on the family’s part, on everybody’s part, so we can have some answers to these deaths.”
The bodies of actor Gene Hackman, his wife and their dog were discovered in Santa Fe, N.M., on Wednesday afternoon during a welfare check, officials said.
What happens next
Mendoza said the medical examiner has ordered several tests expedited. Even then, full toxicology and autopsy results will take time.
Another challenge for investigators is building a timeline — when were they last seen alive, who spoke to them last, etc. — for a couple Mendoza described as “private individuals.” There were no security cameras on the property.
For more details about the investigation, check out the full article here.
The week’s biggest stories
Oscars coverage
- Oscars 2025: Final predictions for all 23 award categories.
- Forget the pundits — here’s what ought to win. And what should have gotten a chance.
- What roads will be closed leading up to the ceremony?
Aftermath of Los Angeles fires
- The L.A. Fire Department did not alert the city’s Department of Water and Power to more than 1,000 fire hydrants needing repair.
- A Corona-area dump burdened with underground fire seeks to accept fire debris.
- Report estimates up to $8.9 billion in lost economic output from Palisades and Eaton fires.
Trump administration policies and reactions
- L.A. Police Department presence at South L.A. immigration raid sparks questions.
- Trump administration antisemitism task force says it will visit UCLA, USC.
- They patrol L.A.’s streets in search of ICE, Trump immigration raids.
- Federal prison officer “alarmed” about “inhumane” handling of migrants; 2 U.S. senators want hearing.
- USC scrubs DEI from some webpages as Trump cracks down on campus diversity programs.
Crime, courts, law and policing
- “Utterly botched”: Glitchy rollout of new California bar exam prompts lawsuit and legislative review.
- 25 dogs set loose during break-in at SoCal shelter
- Elderly victims targeted in bank and real estate schemes, police say. Two men arrested, one at large.
- For the third time in months, teens attack an L.A. driver.
More big stories
- UC Native Americans demand action against scholars claiming Indigenous roots without proof.
- Golden Globes ends policy of paying 50 voting members $75,000 salaries.
- Pope Francis had coughing fit, inhaled vomit and now requires assisted ventilation, Vatican says.
- Patriarch of L.A. classic Eastside Italian Deli dies at 81.
- More tech layoffs hit Bay Area as HP and Autodesk announce job cuts.
- Shohei Ohtani’s swing looking good: Dodgers star homers in first spring at-bat.
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Column One
Column One is The Times’ home for narrative and long-form journalism. Here’s a great piece from this past week:
In the mid-1960s, Louvenia Jenkins posed a question to her mailman: Do any Black people live in Pacific Palisades? The mail carrier, a light-skinned Black man, told her there were about half a dozen or so, but they were “all passing.” As in, their skin was light enough that they could pass as white. Jenkins was then in her late 30s, living in a rented home in Santa Monica. She was an unmarried Black woman with darker skin. And she wanted to buy her own house in an era when many banks still refused to lend women money without a male co-signer.
More great reads
- New JPL space mission seeks to unravel the mystery of cosmic “inflation.”
- LeBron James gets why Anthony Edwards doesn’t want to be face of the NBA.
- Inside the mysterious slaying of a Hollywood pimp with Russian mob tattoos
- Opinion: When unregulated AI re-creates the past, we can’t trust that the “historical” is real.
- Raw milk spiked with alcohol flows in secret in this immigrant L.A. subculture.
- Column: Selling California to Denmark is not the craziest idea. We’ve been eyed for takeover before.
- Opinion: People like Andrew Tate have no place in the American conservative movement.
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected].
For your weekend
Going out
- 👮 Melissa Fumero, who plays the overeager Amy Santiago on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” shares her Sunday Funday, which includes hitting the beach.
- ☺️ In case you needed a break, here are 11 cozy things to do in L.A. to warm your soul.
- 🏨 SoCal’s most overlooked weekend escape is a place you’ve probably driven past.
- 🌮 If you need a change of pace, take a look at the best places to eat and drink this month, according to our food writers.
Staying in
- 🍿 Get the popcorn ready. Here’s how to watch the Oscars and everything else you need to know.
- 📺 Mindy Kaling’s “Running Point” premiered on Netflix this week. Our critic says it’s a cozy comedy that could’ve been pitched as “Ted Lasso” meets “Succession.”
- 🏠 Prime Video’s recently released “House of David” isn’t just a religious show, executive producers say. It’s “a war of houses.”
- 📚 The calendar Marches ahead. Here are 10 books to read this month.
- 🧑🍳 Looking for an exotic dip? Alyse Whitney is serving up a recipe for uniquely tasty Spicy California Roll Guacamole.
- ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, Sudoku, word search and arcade games.
L.A. Affairs
Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.
They seemed to have little in common. His father had been to federal prison for fraud and she was a career prosecutor. She dreamed of preparing sea urchins with a “sous chef” boyfriend, while he didn’t cook. She fantasized about backpacking the world, while Vegas was enough for him. He didn’t read; she wanted to be a writer. Yet, he was loyal and kind, something she valued highly. Would that be enough for her?
Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Andrew J. Campa, reporter
Luke Money, news editor
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