Gene Hackman
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox person
Eugene Allen Hackman (January 30, 1930 – Template:Circa) was an American actor. Hackman made his credited film debut in the drama Lilith (1964). He later won two Academy Awards, his first for Best Actor for his role as Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in William Friedkin's action thriller The French Connection (1971) and his second for Best Supporting Actor for playing a sheriff in Clint Eastwood's Western Unforgiven (1992). He was Oscar-nominated for playing Buck Barrow in the crime drama Bonnie and Clyde (1967), a college professor in the drama I Never Sang for My Father (1970), and an FBI agent in the historical drama Mississippi Burning (1988).
Hackman gained further fame for his portrayal of Lex Luthor in three of the Superman films from 1978 to 1987. He also acted in The Poseidon Adventure (1972), Scarecrow (1973), The Conversation (1974), Night Moves (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), Under Fire (1983), Hoosiers (1986), The Firm (1993), Wyatt Earp (1994), Crimson Tide (1995), The Quick and the Dead (1995), Get Shorty (1995), The Birdcage (1996), Absolute Power (1997), Enemy of the State (1998), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), and Runaway Jury (2003).
Considered one of the greatest actors of his generation and a paragon of the New Hollywood movement, Hackman's acting career spanned over four decades. He received several accolades, including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. Hackman retired from acting after starring in Welcome to Mooseport (2004), venturing into writing novels and occasionally providing narration for television documentaries until 2017.
Early life and military service
[edit]
Hackman was born on January 30, 1930, in San Bernardino, California,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to Anna Lyda Elizabeth (Template:Nee) and Eugene Ezra Hackman.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He had a brother named Richard. Anna, an actress, painter, and pianist, was born in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The family moved frequently before eventually settling in Danville, Illinois, where they lived in the house of Anna's English-born mother, Beatrice.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman's father operated the printing press for the Commercial-News, a local newspaper. Hackman later stated that he decided to become an actor at the age of 10.<ref name="Deseret News">Template:Cite news</ref> His parents divorced when he was 13 years old, and his father later left the family.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Hackman spent his sophomore year at Storm Lake High School.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He left home at the age of 16, lied about his age to enlist in the U.S. Marine Corps, and served four and a half years as a field radio operator. Hackman was stationed in China (Qingdao and later in Shanghai) as part of Operation Beleaguer. He later stated that part of his role there was destroying Japanese military equipment so that Communist revolutionaries did not capture it. After the Communists conquered the mainland in 1949, he was reassigned to Hawaii and Japan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After his discharge in 1951,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman moved to New York City, where he worked at various jobs.<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio">Stated on Inside the Actors Studio, 2001</ref> In 1962, his mother died in a fire she had accidentally started while smoking.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman began a study of journalism and television production at the University of Illinois under the G.I. Bill but left without graduating and moved back to California.<ref name="Britannica">Template:Cite web</ref>
Career
[edit]1956–1969: Career beginnings
[edit]Template:Quote box In 1956, Hackman began pursuing an acting career. He joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California,<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> where he befriended another aspiring actor, Dustin Hoffman.<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> Already seen as outsiders by their classmates, Hackman and Hoffman were voted "the least likely to succeed",<ref name="Life and Work">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> and Hackman got the lowest score the Pasadena Playhouse had yet given.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Determined to prove them wrong, Hackman moved to New York City. A 2004 article in Vanity Fair described Hackman, Hoffman, and Robert Duvall as struggling California-born actors and close friends, sharing New York apartments in various two-person combinations in the 1960s.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
To support himself between acting jobs, Hackman was working at a Howard Johnson's restaurant<ref name="Meryman">Template:Cite journal</ref> when he encountered an instructor from the Pasadena Playhouse, who said that his job proved that Hackman "wouldn't amount to anything."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A Marine officer who saw him as a doorman said, "Hackman, you're a sorry son of a bitch." Rejection motivated Hackman, who said: Template:Blockquote
Hackman began performing in several Off-Broadway plays, starting with Witness for the Prosecution in 1957 at the Gateway Playhouse in Bellport, New York, and including Come to the Palace of Sin in 1963.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He got various bit roles, for example, in the film Mad Dog Coll and on multiple television series: 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.<ref name="Roots"/> In 1963, he made his Broadway debut in Children From Their Games, which had only a short run, as did A Rainy Day in Newark. However, Any Wednesday with actress Sandy Dennis was a huge Broadway success in 1964.<ref name="Hall"/> This opened the door to film work. His first credited role was in Lilith, with Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty in the leading roles.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
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Hackman returned to Broadway in Poor Richard (1964–65) by Jean Kerr, which ran for over a hundred performances.<ref name="Hall"/> He continued to do television – The Trials of O'Brien, Hawk, and The F.B.I. – and had a small part as Dr. John Whipple in the epic film Hawaii. He had small roles in features like First to Fight (1967), A Covenant with Death (1967), and Banning (1967). Hackman was originally cast as Mr. Robinson in the 1967 Mike Nichols independent romantic comedy film The Graduate, but Nichols fired him three weeks into rehearsal for being "too young" for the role; he was replaced by Murray Hamilton.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Also in 1967, he appeared in an episode of the television series The Invaders entitled "The Spores" and as Buck Barrow in 1967's biographical crime drama Bonnie and Clyde,<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
A return to Broadway that same year, The Natural Look, ran for just one performance. Additionally, he performed Off-Broadway in Fragments and The Basement. Hackman was in episodes of Iron Horse ("Leopards Try, But Leopards Can't") and Insight ("Confrontation"). In 1968, he appeared in an episode of I Spy, in the role of "Hunter", in the episode "Happy Birthday... Everybody". That same year, he starred in the CBS Playhouse episode "My Father and My Mother" and the dystopian television film Shadow on the Land.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1969, he played a ski coach in Downhill Racer and an astronaut in Marooned. Also that year, he played a member of a barnstorming skydiving team that entertained mostly at county fairs, a film which also inspired many to pursue skydiving and has a cult-like status amongst skydivers as a result: The Gypsy Moths. Hackman supported Jim Brown in two films, The Split (1968) and Riot (1969). Hackman nearly accepted the role of Mike Brady for the TV series The Brady Bunch,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but his agent advised that he decline it in exchange for a more promising role, which he did, but this story is said to have been exaggerated.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1970–1979: Breakthrough and stardom
[edit]
Hackman was nominated for a second Oscar for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the drama film I Never Sang for My Father (1970), directed by Gilbert Cates. Hackman acted opposite Melvyn Douglas, where they played father and son who are unable to communicate. Roger Ebert wrote of his performance, "Much of the film is just between the two of them and the characters seem to work so well because Douglas and Hackman respond to each other in every shot; the effect is not of acting, but as if the story were happening right now while we see it."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He starred in the drama Doctors' Wives (1971) and the western film The Hunting Party (1971). He won his first Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as New York City Police Detective Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in the crime drama The French Connection (1971), directed by William Friedkin. This film marked his graduation to stardom.<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> Robert B. Frederick of Variety praised the performances of Hackman and Roy Scheider, writing, "They are very believable as two hard-nosed narcotics officers" who are also "overworked, tired and mean".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
After The French Connection, Hackman starred in ten films (not including his cameo as a blind man in the Mel Brooks-directed satirical horror comedy film Young Frankenstein in 1974) over the next three years, making him the most prolific actor in Hollywood during that time frame. He followed The French Connection with leading roles in the drama Cisco Pike (1972), the action crime thriller Prime Cut (1972), and the disaster film The Poseidon Adventure (1972). He also starred in the road comedy-drama Scarecrow (1973) alongside Al Pacino, which was Hackman's favorite role of his career and won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following year, he starred as a surveillance expert in the neo-noir mystery thriller The Conversation (1974), directed by Francis Ford Coppola, which was nominated for several Oscars and also won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes.<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/> That same year, Hackman appeared in what would become one of his most famous comedic roles, as Harold the Blind Man in Young Frankenstein.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman also appeared in the western Zandy's Bride (1974) and the neo-noir film Night Moves (1975) for director Arthur Penn.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Hackman played one of Teddy Roosevelt's former Rough Riders in the Western horse-race saga Bite the Bullet (1975).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He reprised his Oscar-winning role as Doyle in the sequel French Connection II (1975), for which he was nominated for the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role and the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama. He co-starred with Burt Reynolds and Liza Minnelli in the musical Lucky Lady (1975), directed by Stanley Donen, a notorious flop. After making the neo-noir thriller The Domino Principle (1977) for Stanley Kramer, Hackman was part of an all-star cast in the war film A Bridge Too Far (1977), playing Polish General Stanisław Sosabowski, and was an officer in the French Foreign Legion in March or Die (1977).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman showed a talent for both comedy and the "slow burn" as criminal mastermind Lex Luthor opposite Christopher Reeve in the leading role in the superhero film Superman: The Movie (1978).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Ron Pennington of The Hollywood Reporter wrote of his performance, "Hackman plays Lex Luthor, 'the greatest criminal mind of our time,' with an effective light touch, making him humorous but not out-and-out comical."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He reprised the role for two of its sequels, Superman II (1980) and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
1980–1999: Established career and acclaim
[edit]Hackman alternated between leading and supporting roles during the 1980s. He appeared opposite Barbra Streisand in All Night Long (1981) and supported Warren Beatty in Reds (1981). He played the lead in Eureka (1983) and a supporting role in Under Fire (1983). Hackman provided the voice of God in Two of a Kind (1983) and starred in Uncommon Valor (1983), Misunderstood (1984), Twice in a Lifetime (1985), Target (1985) for Arthur Penn, and Power (1986). Between 1985 and 1988, he starred in nine films, making him the busiest actor, alongside Steve Guttenberg.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Hackman played a high school basketball coach in Hoosiers (1986), which a 2008 American Film Institute poll named the fourth-greatest sports film of all time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987), he also voiced Nuclear Man (who was portrayed by Mark Pillow) and was in No Way Out (1987), Split Decisions (1988), Bat*21 (1988), and Full Moon in Blue Water (1988).
Hackman acted opposite Gena Rowlands in the Woody Allen drama Another Woman (1988).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman starred in the Alan Parker-directed crime drama Mississippi Burning (1988), costarring Willem Dafoe, where they portrayed FBI agents investigating the murder of a civil rights leader. He earned acclaim for the role, with Roger Ebert praising his performance for his subtlety.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was nominated for a second Academy Award for Best Actor, losing to Dustin Hoffman for Rain Man.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After this he appeared in The Package (1989).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman starred in Loose Cannons (1990) with Dan Aykroyd, and he had a supporting role in Postcards from the Edge (1990). He appeared with Anne Archer in Narrow Margin (1990), a remake of the 1952 film The Narrow Margin. After Class Action (1991) and Company Business (1991), Hackman played the sadistic sheriff "Little Bill" Daggett in the Western Unforgiven, directed by Clint Eastwood and written by David Webb Peoples. Hackman had pledged to avoid violent roles, but Eastwood convinced him to take the part, which earned him a second Oscar, this time for Best Supporting Actor. The film also won Best Picture.<ref name="Inside the Actors Studio"/>
Hackman returned to Broadway, starring in the 1992 Ariel Dorfman play Death and the Maiden, acting opposite Glenn Close and Richard Dreyfus at the Brooks Atkinson Theater.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1993, he appeared in Geronimo: An American Legend as Brigadier General George Crook and co-starred with Tom Cruise as a corrupt lawyer in The Firm, a legal thriller based on the John Grisham novel of the same name. Hackman would appear in two other films based on John Grisham novels, playing Sam Cayhall, a Klansman on death row, in The Chamber (1996), and jury consultant Rankin Fitch in Runaway Jury (2003). Other films Hackman appeared in during the 1990s include Wyatt Earp (1994) (as Nicholas Porter Earp, Wyatt EarpTemplate:'s father), The Quick and the Dead (1995) opposite Sharon Stone, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Russell Crowe, and as submarine Captain Frank Ramsey alongside Denzel Washington in Crimson Tide (1995).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Hackman played film producer Harry Zimm alongside John Travolta in the comedy-drama Get Shorty (1995). In 1996, he took a comedic turn as conservative Senator Kevin Keeley in The Birdcage with Robin Williams and Nathan Lane.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He co-starred with Hugh Grant in Extreme Measures (1996) and reunited with Clint Eastwood in Absolute Power (1997). Hackman did Twilight (1998) with Paul Newman for director Robert Benton, voiced the villain in the DreamWorks' animated film Antz (1998), and co-starred with Will Smith in Enemy of the State (1998), his character reminiscent of the one he had portrayed in The Conversation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2000–2004: Final films and retirement
[edit]
Hackman co-starred with Morgan Freeman in Under Suspicion (2000), Keanu Reeves in The Replacements (2000), Owen Wilson in Behind Enemy Lines (2001), and Sigourney Weaver in Heartbreakers (2001) and appeared in the David Mamet crime thriller Heist (2001)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> as an aging professional thief of considerable skill who is forced into one final job. He made a cameo in The Mexican (2001).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman gained much critical acclaim<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> playing against type as the head of an eccentric family in Wes Anderson's comedy film The Royal Tenenbaums (2001). Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Hackman is utter perfection as the misbegotten paterfamilias, conveying beautifully Royal's underlying decency and love for his family as well as his con-man slickness."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> For his performance, he received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 2003, he also starred in another John Grisham legal drama, Runaway Jury, at long last getting to make a picture with his long-time friend Dustin Hoffman.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2004, Hackman appeared alongside Ray Romano in the comedy Welcome to Mooseport, his final film acting role.<ref name="Roots" /> Hackman was honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award from the Golden Globe Awards for his "outstanding contribution to the entertainment field" in 2003. Michael Caine and Robin Williams presented him with the award.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
In July 2004, Hackman gave a rare interview to Larry King, where he announced that he had no future film projects lined up and believed his acting career was over.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2008, while promoting his third novel, he confirmed that he had retired from acting.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> That year, Hackman made his last televised appearance in Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, as Guy Fieri went to a Santa Fe diner where Hackman was eating.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Speaking on his retirement in 2009, Hackman said, "The straw that broke the camel's back was actually a stress test that I took in New York. The doctor advised me that my heart wasn't in the kind of shape that I should be putting it under any stress."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> When asked during a GQ magazine interview in 2011 if he would ever come out of retirement to do one more film, he said he might consider it "if I could do it in my own house, maybe, without them disturbing anything and just one or two people."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Other work
[edit]
Together with undersea archaeologist Daniel Lenihan, Hackman wrote three historical fiction novels: Wake of the Perdido Star (1999),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> a sea adventure of the 19th century; Justice for None (2004),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> a Depression-era tale of murder based on a real-life crime in his boyhood town of Danville;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Escape from Andersonville (2008), about a prison escape during the American Civil War.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His first solo effort, a story of love and revenge set in the Old West titled Payback at Morning Peak, was released in 2011.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> His final novel, Pursuit, a police thriller, followed in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
After retiring from acting, Hackman narrated four episodes of the NFL Films sports documentary series America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions in 2007.<ref name="IMDB"/> He later narrated two documentaries related to the United States Marine Corps: The Unknown Flag Raiser of Iwo Jima (2016)<ref>Smithsonian Channel.com: Template:Citation</ref> and We, the Marines (2017).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Personal life
[edit]Marriages and family
[edit]In 1956, Hackman married Faye Maltese (1928–2017),<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> with whom he had one son and two daughters: Christopher Allen, Elizabeth Jean, and Leslie Anne Hackman.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He was often out on location making films while the children were growing up.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The couple divorced in 1986, after three decades of marriage.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
On December 1, 1991, Hackman married classical pianist Betsy Arakawa (1959–2025) after they had dated for seven years.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> They shared a Santa Fe, New Mexico, home, which Architectural Digest featured in 1990.<ref name="Chatfield-Taylor">Template:Cite web</ref> At the time, the home blended Southwestern styles and was at the crest of a 12-acre hilltop, with a 360-degree view that stretched to the Jemez, Sangre de Cristo, and Sandia mountains.<ref name="Chatfield-Taylor" />
Views and interests
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Hackman was a supporter of the Democratic Party and said he was "proud" to be included on Nixon's Enemies List. However, he spoke fondly about Republican president Ronald Reagan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In the late 1970s, Hackman competed in Sports Car Club of America races, driving an open-wheeled Formula Ford.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 1980, he won the Long Beach Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He also drove a Dan Gurney Team Toyota in the 24 Hours of Daytona Endurance Race in 1983.<ref>Template:Cite newsTemplate:Cbignore</ref>
Hackman was a fan of the Jacksonville Jaguars, an NFL football team based in Jacksonville, Florida, and regularly attended Jaguars games as a guest of former head coach Jack Del Rio.<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> Their friendship went back to Del Rio's playing days at the University of Southern California.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Hackman was also interested in architecture and design. As of 1990, he had created ten homes, two of which were featured in Architectural Digest.<ref name="Chatfield-Taylor" /> After a period of time, he moved on to another house restoration. "I don't know what's wrong with me," he remarked. "I guess I like the process, and when it's over, it's over."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman was an active cyclist well into his 90s.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Health
[edit]In 1990, Hackman underwent an angioplasty.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2012, Hackman was struck by a pickup truck while he was cycling in the Florida Keys. It was initially reported that he had suffered serious head trauma; however, his publicist stated that his injury was nothing more than "bumps and bruises".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Hackman attended an event in Santa Fe in late 2022.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was last seen in public in March 2024.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After his death, autopsy reports revealed Hackman had Alzheimer's disease, which contributed to his death.<ref name="Stahl">Template:Cite web</ref>
Death
[edit]In the final months of his life, Hackman's neighbors in Santa Fe, New Mexico, noticed that his health appeared to be declining, and he and Arakawa ceased communicating with family and friends.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Arakawa – who was Hackman's sole caregiver – was last seen alive at a CVS Pharmacy on February 11, 2025, and returned to their gated community at 5:15 p.m.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On February 12, Arakawa called a local private physician and made an appointment for that afternoon, complaining of respiratory issues, but did not show up.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Arakawa died in their home a short time later from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Hackman did not seek help; authorities believe he was unable to comprehend her death due to Alzheimer's disease.<ref name="Stahl" /> Hackman died in the home around February 18, at which point his pacemaker recorded an abnormal rhythm. He died from severe heart disease, complicated by advanced Alzheimer's disease and kidney disease.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman was 95.
On February 26, the bodies of Hackman, Arakawa, and one of their dogs, named Zinna,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> were found.<ref name="Jacobs2">Template:Cite news</ref> The other two of the couple's dogs were found alive in the home.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The discovery was made after maintenance workers, concerned that the couple had not answered the door, called security for help. Security personnel saw the bodies through a window and alerted authorities.<ref name="Jacobs2" /> Although foul play was not suspected, the deaths were deemed suspicious enough to warrant an investigation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Montoya Bryan2">Template:Cite web</ref> Carbon monoxide poisoning was ruled out on February 28.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The causes of death were announced at a press conference on March 7.<ref name="Stahl"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Gene Hackman's estate requested the courts block images and videos related to the investigation, such as police body camera footage.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Hackman's will, created in 1995, listed Arakawa as his sole inheritor; Arakawa's will stated that if they were to die within 90 days of each other, the proceeds would go to charity.<ref name="Granville25">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web Note: Template:As of access to this source is location-restricted.</ref>
Tributes and legacy
[edit]Numerous members of the film industry paid tribute to Hackman following his death. Clint Eastwood, who directed Hackman in the films Unforgiven (1992) and Absolute Power (1997), wrote in a statement: "There was no finer actor than Gene. Intense and instinctive. Never a false note. He was also a dear friend whom I will miss very much." Francis Ford Coppola, who directed him in The Conversation (1974), wrote: "Gene Hackman [was] a great actor, inspiring and magnificent in his work and complexity. I mourn his loss, and celebrate his existence and contribution."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Prince William released a statement, saying "Hackman was a true genius of film who brought each and every character to life with power, authenticity and star quality."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Morgan Freeman paid tribute to Hackman at the 97th Academy Awards, saying, "Like everyone who ever shared a scene with him, I learned he was a generous performer whose gifts elevated everyone's work" and that he would be "remembered [as someone who did good work] and so much more."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Others who paid tribute include Dustin Hoffman, Glenn Close, Tom Hanks, Viola Davis, Bill Murray, Mel Brooks, Alec Baldwin, Gwyneth Paltrow, Barbra Streisand, Nathan Lane, Josh Brolin, John Cusack, Ben Stiller, Antonio Banderas, Hank Azaria, George Takei, and Jennifer Love Hewitt.<ref>Multiple sources:
- Template:Cite magazine
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- Template:Cite news</ref> The Guardian film critic Peter Bradshaw wrote that Hackman's death marked the end of American new wave cinema. He described Hackman as "really a star; in fact the star of every scene he was in – that tough, wised-up, intelligent, but unhandsome face perpetually on the verge of coolly unconcerned derision, or creased in a heartbreakingly fatherly, pained smile."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Acting credits
[edit]Film
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Mad Dog Coll | Policeman | Uncredited | <ref name="AFI Filmography">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 1964 | Lilith | Norman | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1966 | Hawaii | John Whipple | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1967 | Banning | Tommy Del Gaddo | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Community Shelter Planning | Donald Ross | Short film | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | |
| A Covenant with Death | Alfred Harmsworth | <ref name="Rotten Tomatoes"/> | ||
| First to Fight | Sergeant Tweed | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Bonnie and Clyde | Buck Barrow | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1968 | The Split | Lt. Walter Brill | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1969 | Riot | "Red" Fraker | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| The Gypsy Moths | Joe Browdy | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Downhill Racer | Eugene Claire | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Marooned | "Buzz" Lloyd | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1970 | I Never Sang for My Father | Gene Garrison | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1971 | Doctors' Wives | Dave Randolph | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| The Hunting Party | Brandt Ruger | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Template:Sortname | Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1972 | Prime Cut | Mary Ann | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| The Poseidon Adventure | Rev. Frank Scott | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Cisco Pike | Sergeant Leo Holland | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1973 | Scarecrow | Max Millan | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1974 | The Conversation | Harry Caul | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Young Frankenstein | Harold, The Blind Man | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Zandy's Bride | Zandy Allan | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1975 | French Connection II | Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Lucky Lady | Kibby Womack | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Night Moves | Harry Moseby | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Bite the Bullet | Sam Clayton | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1977 | The Domino Principle | Roy Tucker | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| A Bridge Too Far | Stanisław Sosabowski | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| March or Die | Major William Sherman Foster | <ref name="Rotten Tomatoes"/> | ||
| 1978 | Superman | Lex Luthor | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1980 | Superman II | <ref name="Rotten Tomatoes"/> | ||
| 1981 | All Night Long | George Dupler | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Reds | Pete Van Wherry | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1983 | Under Fire | Alex Grazier | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Two of a Kind | God | Voice; uncredited | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Uncommon Valor | Col. Jason Rhodes, USMC (Ret.) | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Eureka | Jack McCann | <ref name="Rotten Tomatoes"/> | ||
| 1984 | Misunderstood | Ned Rawley | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1985 | Twice in a Lifetime | Harry MacKenzie | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Target | Walter Lloyd / Duncan "Duke" Potter | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1986 | Power | Wilfred Buckley | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Hoosiers | Coach Norman Dale | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1987 | No Way Out | David Brice | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Superman IV: The Quest for Peace | Lex Luthor / Nuclear Man (voice) | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1988 | Bat*21 | Lt. Col Iceal Hambleton, USAF | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Split Decisions | Danny McGuinn | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Another Woman | Larry Lewis | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Full Moon in Blue Water | Floyd | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Mississippi Burning | Rupert Anderson | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1989 | The Package | Sergeant Johnny Gallagher | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1990 | Loose Cannons | Det. MacArthur 'Mac' Stern | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Postcards from the Edge | Lowell Kolchek | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Narrow Margin | Robert Caulfield | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1991 | Class Action | Jedediah Tucker Ward | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Company Business | Sam Boyd | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1992 | Unforgiven | Sheriff Bill "Little Bill" Daggett | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1993 | The Firm | Avery Tolar | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Geronimo: An American Legend | Brigadier General George Crook | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1994 | Wyatt Earp | Nicholas Porter Earp | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1995 | The Quick and the Dead | John Herod | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Crimson Tide | Captain Frank Ramsey | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Get Shorty | Harry Zimm | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1996 | The Birdcage | Senator Kevin Keeley | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Extreme Measures | Dr. Lawrence Myrick | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| The Chamber | Sam Cayhall | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 1997 | Absolute Power | President Alan Richmond | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 1998 | Twilight | Jack Ames | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| Antz | General Mandible | Voice | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Enemy of the State | Edward "Brill" Lyle | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 2000 | Under Suspicion | Henry Hearst | Also executive producer | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> |
| The Replacements | Coach Jimmy McGinty | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 2001 | The Mexican | Arnold Margolese | <ref name="Rotten Tomatoes">Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Heartbreakers | William B. Tensy | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Heist | Joe Moore | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| Behind Enemy Lines | Admiral Leslie Reigart | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| The Royal Tenenbaums | Royal Tenenbaum | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | ||
| 2003 | Runaway Jury | Rankin Fitch | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> | |
| 2004 | Welcome to Mooseport | Monroe "Eagle" Cole | Final film role | <ref name="AFI Filmography"/> |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Template:Reference column heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959–1962 | The United States Steel Hour | Various characters | 8 episodes | <ref name="Roots">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 1959–1964 | Brenner | Officer Richard Clayburn Patrolman Claibourne |
3 episodes | |
| 1961 | Tallahassee 7000 | Joe Lawson | Episode: "The Fugitive" | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 1961–1963 | The Defenders | Jerry Warner / Stanley McGuirk | 2 episodes | <ref name="Roots"/> |
| 1963 | Look Up and Live | Frank Collins | Episode: "Look Up and Live" | <ref name="Britannica"/> |
| Naked City | Mr. Jasper | Episode: "Prime of Life" | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | |
| Route 66 | Motorist | Episode: "Who Will Cheer My Bonny Bride?" | ||
| The DuPont Show of the Week | Douglas McCann | Episode: "Ride with Terror" | <ref name="Britannica"/> | |
| East Side West Side | Policeman | Episode: "Creeps Live Here" | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | |
| 1966 | The Trials of O'Brien | Roger Nathan | Episode: "The Only Game in Town" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Hawk | Houston Worth | Episode: "Do Not Mutilate or Spindle" | ||
| 1967 | The F.B.I. | Herb Kenyon | Episode: "The Courier" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| The Invaders | Tom Jessup | Episode: "The Spores" | <ref name="Roots"/> | |
| Iron Horse | Harry Wadsworth | Episode: "Leopards Try, But Leopards Can't" | ||
| CBS Playhouse | Ned | Episode: "My Father and My Mother" | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | |
| I Spy | Frank Hunter | Episode: "Happy Birthday Everybody" | ||
| Insight | Holt | Episode: "Confrontation" | ||
| 1968 | Shadow on the Land | Reverend Thomas Davis | Television film | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 2007 | America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions | Narrator | 4 episodes | <ref name="IMDB">Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 2008 | Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives | Himself | Episode: "What's for Breakfast?" | <ref name="Dick"/> |
| 2016 | The Unknown Flag Raiser of Iwo Jima | Narrator | Voice; documentary | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 2017 | We, the Marines | <ref name="Dick">Template:Cite news</ref> |
Theatre
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Template:Reference column heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960–1961 | The Premise | Various roles | The Premise, Bleecker Street | <ref name="Hall">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| 1963 | Children from Their Games | Charles Widgin Rochambeau | Morosco Theatre, Broadway | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| A Rainy Day in Newark | Sidney Rice | Belasco Theatre, Broadway | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Come to the Palace of Sin | Performer | Lucille Lortel Theatre, Off-Broadway | <ref name="Life and Work" />Template:Rp | |
| 1964–1965 | Any Wednesday | Cass Henderson | Music Box Theatre / George Abbott Theatre | <ref name="Life and Work" />Template:Rp |
| Poor Richard | Sydney Caroll | Helen Hayes Theatre, Broadway | <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | |
| 1967 | The Natural Look | Dr. Barney Harris | Longacre Theatre, Broadway | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Fragments / The Basement | Baxter / Zach | Cherry Lane Theatre, Off-Broadway | <ref name="Life and Work" />Template:Rp | |
| 1992 | Death and the Maiden | Roberto Miranda | Brooks Atkinson Theatre, Broadway | <ref name="auto"/> |
Awards and nominations
[edit]Template:Main Hackman received two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, and one Screen Actors Guild Award.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He was recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the following performances:
- 40th Academy Awards (1967): Best Supporting Actor, nomination, Bonnie & Clyde
- 43th Academy Awards (1970): Best Supporting Actor, nomination, I Never Sang for My Father
- 44th Academy Awards (1971): Best Actor, win, The French Connection
- 61st Academy Awards (1988): Best Actor, nomination, Mississippi Burning
- 65th Academy Awards (1992): Best Supporting Actor, win, Unforgiven
Asteroid 55397 Hackman, discovered by Roy Tucker in 2001, was named in his honor.<ref name="MPC-object" /> The official Template:Minor planet meaning link was published by the Minor Planet Center on May 18, 2019 (Template:Small).<ref name="MPC-Circulars-Archive" />
Publications
[edit]- Hackman, Gene, and Daniel Lenihan (1999). Wake of the Perdido Star. New York: Newmarket Press. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.
- Hackman, Gene, and Daniel Lenihan (2004). Justice for None. New York: St. Martin's Press. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.
- Hackman, Gene, and Daniel Lenihan (2008). Escape from Andersonville: A Novel of the Civil War. New York: St. Martin's Press. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.
- Hackman, Gene (2011). Payback at Morning Peak: A Novel of the American West. New York: Simon & Schuster. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.
- Hackman, Gene (2013). Pursuit. New York: Pocket Books. Template:ISBN. Template:OCLC.
References
[edit]External links
[edit]- Pages with broken file links
- 1930 births
- 2025 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
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- 20th-century American novelists
- 21st-century American male actors
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- American male film actors
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- American people of Canadian descent
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- Cecil B. DeMille Award Golden Globe winners
- Deaths from Alzheimer's disease in the United States
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- People from Danville, Illinois
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- United States Marines
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