Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home last month (Image: Getty)
The Santa Fe mansion of late actor was reportedly in a “shocking” state before his tragic passing. The bodies of the 95-year-old star and his wife Betsy Arakawa were discovered in their New Mexico home last month following a welfare check by neighbourhood security.
Betsy, 65, was found on the bathroom floor near a space heater, while Gene was discovered deceased in a room near his kitchen. Their dog Zinna was also found dead, but two other dogs, Bear and Nikita, were found roaming the 12-acre property.
The two-time Oscar-winning actor once welcomed Architectural Digest into his abode back in 1990, offering admirers a glimpse of the home’s interior design.
“We bought a few things in Santa Fe. Other things came from auctions in New York, an antiques shop in Germany that Betsy and I found, and from Los Angeles. It’s a nice combination of soft southwestern pieces and hard-edged antiques,” he shared.
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The inside of the couple’s home was reportedly in a “shocking” state (Image: Express)
Yet, reports suggest that before the couple’s tragic deaths, their $3.5 million home was in disarray. “The inside of the house was shocking,” an insider revealed to MailOnline. “They didn’t have a housekeeper or a maid, so it had beautiful things – furniture and paintings – but there was dog poop on the floor.”
The source added: “The inside of the house was bad. Nothing had been dusted. There was nothing in the fridge.”
The couple, who first crossed paths in the 1980s at a fitness centre where Betsy was employed, , neighbours have disclosed. Their residence, nestled in an exclusive gated community, saw them rarely making appearances to their fellow residents.
“They have a gate, and we have a gate, and we just have never even seen each other,” one neighbour confided to the New York Times. Echoing this sentiment, another local remarked: “He wanted to be quiet, he didn’t want to be bothered, and I don’t blame him.”
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Gene and Betsy were married since 1991 (Image: Getty Images)
Gene and Betsy, who tied the knot in 1991, were a pair without children of their own, however, Gene shared Christopher, 65, Leslie, 58, and Elizabeth, with his first wife, Faye Maltese. After the couple passed away, Leslie honoured Betsy for her role in extending Gene’s life, attributing it to their “wonderful marriage”.
She told : “They had a wonderful marriage. And I give credit to his wife, Betsy, for keeping him alive. [Betsy] took very, very good care of him and was always looking out for his health. So I am appreciative to her for that, and I’m very saddened by her passing.”
Authorities discovered that Betsy died first, succumbing to , a rare infectious disease. Gene is believed to have passed away around one week later due to heart disease, with Alzheimer’s disease as a contributing factor.
Medical experts have suggested that the Unforgiven star may not have been aware of his wife’s death.