Shortly before I left home to head for work, I received a text message from my mother informing me of Gene Hackman's passing as well as that of his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and one of their dogs.
Given the circumstances of his death, Mom described it as "unnerving" and suspected the worst (murder/suicide?) as I am sure many others have done. For my part, I considered the possibility of an accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. However, the authorities have ruled that out and are treating their deaths as suspicious as both appear to have died some time ago.
At this point, I don't wish to dwell on what ended Gene Hackman's life. Rather, I would like to spend the rest of this post discussing his legacy as among the greatest American actors of the second half of the 20th Century. The fact that Hackman retired from film more than 20 years ago and is spoken of with such reverence is a testament to his work and his craft.
I first became aware of Gene Hackman due to his portrayal of Lex Luthor in Superman which is the very first film I truly remember watching in a movie theatre. His villainy had a sharp comical edge which managed to avoid both campiness and caricature. Dad thought Hackman's portrayal of Luthor was the best part of the film. I still remember when Superman knocked down the door of his lair, Luthor retorted, "Come on in. The door is open."
Hackman remains among the few A list actors who could convincingly play either a hero or a villain. Some of his characters had elements of both. He could be devil-may-care like Popeye Doyle in The French Connection (for which he won an Academy Award for Best Actor) or reserved yet paranoid like Harry Caul in The Conversation. It is also worth noting that Hackman learned to play saxophone for the role.
Hackman's comedic chops were evident in an uncredited role in Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein in which he portrayed a lonely, blind shepherd who welcomed Young Frankenstein's company. I saw Young Frankenstein last Memorial Day Weekend noting that Hackman and Terri Garr still remained with us. Now both are gone less than a year later.
I remember a time when my bus trips featured movies. Most of them were not very good. But I found Crimson Tide riveting as Gene Hackman stood toe-to-toe with Denzel Washington aboard a nuclear submarine and it is among Washington's favorite roles.
Other Hackman roles which stand out for me are the scheming patriarch Royal Tenenbaum in Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums, the diabolical Little Bill in Unforgiven (for which he won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor) and especially FBI agent Rupert Anderson in Mississippi Burning.
Hackman's Anderson is a good old Mississippi boy who doesn't think a great deal of the idealism of his boss Alan Ward as played by Willem Dafoe. But Agent Anderson thinks even less of Klansmen especially those who get in the way of his investigations. Agent Anderson played dirty, but you were sure glad he was ultimately on the side of good.
I write all of this with the realization that I am scarcely scratching the career of an actor who, along with Dustin Hoffman, was picked the least likely to succeed in their acting class. Gene Hackman defied all expectations, worked with what he had and made it work for him. American cinema is the better for his work. R.I.P.
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