Gene Hackman, former Marine, dead at 95
Gene Hackman in June 2008
Legendary Oscar-winning actor Gene Hackman has been found dead at the age of 95. Curiously, he was found dead with his wife and his dog, but the cops are saying there’s no signs of foul play. Stars and Stripes has the story.
Before acting, Hackman spent a stint in the Marine Corps, serving in China as a field radio operator. He’d ran away from home at 16 to lie about his age and enlist in 1946.
When he later took up acting in his 20s, he made friends with Dustin Hoffman. Together the two were voted “Least likely to succeed” by their classmates at the Pasadena Playhouse. Hackman got the lowest score then yet given by the Playhouse. The pair moved to NYC and became close friends with Robert Duvall. In the coming years as they struggled to establish themselves, the three would share apartments in various two-man configurations.
Hackman was nominated five times for an Oscar, and won twice (Best Actor for The French Connection and Best Supporting Actor for Unforgiven). He won five Golden Globes out of nine nominations, a SAG award (twice nominated) and many other awards in a career that spanned decades.
I always thought it was cool that three amazing actors were close friends, and all of them were Oscar, BAFTA, and Golden Globe winners.
Category: Breaking News, Marines, Veterans in the news
Figured you’d be on this, Mason. Popped up on my news feeds first thing this morning, all of the articles basically saying the same thing with very few details. May take awhile for us to find out what happened.
Much respect for this gentleman, not only for his acting abilities, but the fact that he didn’t use his position to force feed us his political beliefs. A trait sadly lacking with most of the Holly Weird types.
Godspeed, Fare Well, and Rest Easy to Gene, his wife, and their puppy dog. Thanks for the memories and your service to our Country, Good Sir. Semper Fi!
Fair Winds, sir!
Step back. . . slow salute.
The family is saying Carbon Monoxide. That is awfully specific for a guess so the police may have told them that is what they suspect. It would explain why everyone passed without foul play suspected.
Hackman was one of the all time greats in acting and by most accounts a decent guy. The Unforgiven is near the top of my favorite Westerns of all time and the interplay between Hackman and Freeman and Hackman and Eastwood is simply great film. Enemy of the State, while a bit dated, was one of my all time favorite spy thrillers. Crimson Tide one of my favorite fictional military thrillers. He will be missed, but we will always have him in the screen.
Damn, 95 and taken out by a heater/CO2.
Lots of good roles, but I’ll take the time to mention a few that won’t be mentioned on many people’s lists:
The Bird Cage – seeing in him drag at the end was hilarious
Get Shorty – bumbling movie producer
Mississippi Burning – hard-scrabble Fed
Hoosiers – great hoops coach/mentor
A Bridge Too Far – Polish para-Colonel
Young Frankenstein – one scene but funny
The Poseidon Adventure – great role/sacrifice to others
The Birdcage was one of his “straight man” comedy roles and he was a pretty good in it. Mississippi Burning was also a great film that he did great in, probably drawing on his French Connection character.
“Hey, Zimm doesn’t ask for dick!!”.
RIP Mr Hackman, enjoyed your work.
If you liked Enemy of the State, then you really need to check out The Conversation.
He was a good enough actor that you could love him or hate him depending on who he was playing….which meant to me he was believable.
Not all actors pull that off with the ease this man did, which makes me think he’s one of the better examples of his craft.
I like his movies, Mississippi Burning and Unforgiven were both excellent as was damn near everything else he did…
CO remains a silent killer across our nation, more people need to have active monitors and make sure they’re up to date and powered….
95 is a good run, but he may have had more in him if not for this accidental death.
Rest in Peace with your family Mr. Hackman, you certainly earned it.
I really despised his character in Crimson Tide. Anyone who has suffered under poor leadership in the military can easily identify the character. He made the role believable because you could empathize and understand the character at times even if you didn’t like him. He said he drew on some of the leadership he had while in the Marines to formulate the character.
That was the talent, taking a one dimensional role like Lex Luthor and making it multidimensional.
He also said he based his character in The Conversation (1974) on a Marine he served with, who he was “convinced became a serial killer.”
Another great one lost to us.
God speed, Marine.
Read somewhere in an interview with him that by his own admission he was promoted to and demoted from Corporal several times due to his own stubborn nature — but he still did his time honorably. While a struggling actor and doorman at Howard Johnson’s in Times Square in the 1950s he recalled a Sergeant he served with walked by in his dress blues and without stopping said “Hackman, you’re a sorry sonofabitch.” Another time one of his acting school instructors (whom he despised) spotted him and loudly proclaimed “see Hackman? I told you you wouldn’t amount to anything.”
The man defied the odds, recalling that he got off on their abuse and the degradation and the struggle. It was a drug that drove him. I bet by the 1970s all of those people who doubted him were choking to death in their well-earned obscurity on those words.
RIP Mr. Hackman.
Edit: I also recall maybe 10 years ago a homeless dude called his wife a derogatory word and he laid him out. He didn’t fuck around!
After the French Connection he was made. Five Academy Awards and huge commercial success in a lower budget film will do that. Makes a 15 year struggle worthwhile.
Not one of my favorite actors but a great one. Tight friends with Dustin Hoffman and Robert Duvall – I’ll always stop and watch anything one of the latter two are in, whereas I would pass on most Hackman films. That’s why there are 31 flavors, right? I guess if you have to go, carbon monoxide is as good a way to go as any. ‘Way better than some ugly cancer or whatever.
Surely you liked his performance in “Unforgiven.”