Gene Hackman

Eugene Allen Hackman (January 30, 1930 – c. February 18, 2025) was an American actor widely regarded as one of the finest of his era and a key figure in the New Hollywood movement. His mainstream film career lasted more than forty years, earning him two Academy Awards, two BAFTAs, a Silver Bear, and four Golden Globes.

Born in San Bernardino, California, Hackman became interested in acting as a child. His first credited film role came in the 1964 drama *Lilith*. He went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in William Friedkin’s *The French Connection*, and a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for playing a ruthless sheriff in Clint Eastwood’s *Unforgiven*. He also received Oscar nominations for his roles as Buck Barrow in *Bonnie and Clyde* and as an FBI agent in *Mississippi Burning*.

Hackman became widely known for playing Lex Luthor in three *Superman* films. Other notable performances include *The Conversation*, *Night Moves*, *Hoosiers*, *No Way Out*, *Crimson Tide*, *The Quick and the Dead*, *Get Shorty*, *Enemy of the State*, and *The Royal Tenenbaums*. He retired from acting in 2004, afterward writing novels and occasionally narrating television documentaries until 2017. In his final years, his health declined. He was found dead at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico, alongside his wife. The cause of death was determined to be a combination of Alzheimer’s disease, severe heart disease, and kidney disease. His wife had died several days earlier from hantavirus.

Hackman was born to Anna Lyda Elizabeth and Eugene Ezra Hackman, and had a brother named Richard. His mother, a waitress, painter, pianist, and actress, was from Sarnia, Ontario. His father operated a printing press for the local newspaper. The family moved often before settling in Danville, Illinois, in the home of Anna’s English-born mother. Hackman decided at age ten to become an actor. When he was thirteen, his father divorced his mother and left.

He spent his sophomore year at Storm Lake High School in Iowa. At sixteen, he lied about his age to join the U.S. Marine Corps, serving four and a half years as a field radio operator. He was stationed in China as part of Operation Beleaguer, where he helped destroy Japanese military equipment to prevent its capture by Communist forces. After the Communist takeover in 1949, he was reassigned to Hawaii and Japan. Discharged in 1951, he moved to New York City and worked various jobs. He studied journalism and television production at the University of Illinois under the G.I. Bill but left before graduating and returned to California. In 1962, his mother died in a fire she accidentally started while smoking.

In 1956, Hackman began pursuing acting. He joined the Pasadena Playhouse, where he befriended Dustin Hoffman. The two were voted “least likely to succeed” by classmates, and Hackman received the lowest score the Playhouse had ever given. Determined to prove them wrong, he moved to New York City. A 2004 *Vanity Fair* article described Hackman, Hoffman, and Robert Duvall as struggling California-born actors and close friends who shared apartments in various pairings during the 1960s.

To support himself, Hackman worked at Howard Johnson’s. There, an instructor from the Pasadena Playhouse told him the job proved he “wouldn’t amount to anything.” A Marine officer who saw him working as a doorman said, “Hackman, you’re a sorry son of a bitch.” Hackman’s response was not recorded in the source.

He began performing off-Broadway, starting with *Witness for the Prosecution* in 1957 and *Come to the Palace of Sin* in 1963. He landed bit roles in the film *Mad Dog Coll* and on television series including *Tallahassee 7000*, *The United States Steel Hour*, *Route 66*, *Naked City*, *The Defenders*, *The DuPont Show of the Week*, *East Side/West Side*, and *Brenner*. In 1963, he made his Broadway debut in the short-lived *Children From Their Games* and *A Rainy Day in Newark*. The 1964 Broadway hit *Any Wednesday*, with Sandy Dennis, opened the door to film work. His first credited role was in *Lilith*, starring Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty.

He returned to Broadway in *Poor Richard* (1964–65), which ran over a hundred performances. He continued television work on *The Trials of O'Brien*, *Hawk*, and *The F.B.I.*, and had a small part as Dr. John Whipple in the epic *Hawaii*. He also had small roles in *First to Fight* (1967), *A Covenant with Death* (1967), and *Banning* (1967). Hackman was originally cast as Mr. Robinson in Mike Nichols’ *The Graduate* but was fired three weeks into rehearsal for being “too young,” replaced by Murray Hamilton. In 1967, he appeared in an episode of *The Invaders* titled “The Spores” and played Buck Barrow in *Bonnie and Clyde*, earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. That same year, he returned to Broadway in *The Natural Look*, which ran for only a short time.