Gene Hackman and wife Betsy Arakawa pay tribute in Santa Fe
Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Arakawa lived a quiet life in Santa Fe until their death.
Nearly a year after their deaths, Gene Hackman and Betsy Arakawa’s New Mexico estate is on the market.
The 13,000-square-foot stucco property in Santa Fe is on the market for $6.25 million, Tara S. Early and Ricky Allen of Sotheby’s International Realty confirmed to the Wall Street Journal in an interview published Thursday, Jan. 15. A luxury real estate brand is overseeing the sale of this home.
Hackman, a strong character actor who won two Oscars in a career spanning more than 60 years, died along with his wife, Arakawa, in February after the couple’s bodies were discovered by police in their home on February 26.
The mysterious circumstances surrounding Hackman and Arakawa’s deaths prompted a thorough investigation, including the release of police body camera footage detailing the conditions of their residence and Arakawa’s online activities in the weeks leading up to their deaths.
“Some buyers may be reluctant to buy a property where a fatal accident has occurred,” Earley told The Wall Street Journal. “There are other buyers for whom that is not an issue. We are selling this property on its merits and all the positives.”
Earley and Allen added that all of the couple’s personal belongings had been removed from the home and the residence had been “professionally staged” for prospective buyers.
Hackman and Arakawa’s leafy two-story home, nestled in the dry hills of Santa Fe, offered the acclaimed actors a respite from the turmoil of Hollywood in their later years.
According to Architectural Digest, the property was a labor of love for the couple, rebuilding it from the studs up in a combination of Pueblo, Colonial and Spanish Baroque styles.
One of the highlights of this home is the large living space with a state-of-the-art stereo system and large stately columns. “I wanted a big room that felt like a saloon, with other rooms opening up from it instead of being closed off by lots of walls,” Hackman told AD in 1990. “It’s completely different from other houses.”
According to the magazine, Hackman, who was also a visual artist, was heavily involved in the design of the house, sometimes mixing colors from his own painter’s palette to achieve the hues he wanted for the house. He lived in Santa Fe for 40 years, most of that time in a renovated home.
After their deaths, Hackman and Arakawa were found by authorities in separate rooms, with Arakawa in the bathroom outside the front door and Hackman in the mudroom.
Dr. Heather Jarrell, New Mexico’s chief medical examiner, said her office’s investigation determined that Hackman, 95, died of natural causes. The actor also suffered from heart disease and complications from Alzheimer’s disease. Meanwhile, 65-year-old Arakawa died of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a rare disease transmitted through contact with rat feces.
Contributor: Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY
