Gene Hackman Cause of Death: Actor Died a Week After Wife Betsy Arakawa
variety.com
Gene Hackman died of cardiovascular disease about a week after his wife died of hantavirus, according to the New Mexico medical examiner.

Gene Hackman, who suffered from Alzheimer’s, lived in the house with his dead wife for a week before he died.

Of the three dogs living in the house, one died because it was locked in a carrier and therefore probably starved to death. The two free-living dogs were the only ones to survive.

  • Nougat@fedia.io
    5·
    12 days ago

    https://youtu.be/nWwKJxCa_Ao

    Notable points:

    • Betsy likely died on or shortly after Feb 11.
    • Gene’s pacemaker recorded last heart activity on Feb 18.
    • Betsy died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, likely transmitted to her by a mouse. Hantavirus mortality rate in the US southwest is 38% to 50%.
    • The pills in the bathroom were thyroid medication.
    • Gene’s cause of death was heart related. He showed severe cardiac and pulmonary problems, had a history of heart attacks and related surgeries.
    • Gene’s brain showed advanced Alzheimer’s.
    • Gene did not have hantavirus. Neither had Covid, flu, or any other common respiratory disease. No effects of carbon monoxide were seen.
    • No mention of the dog, but with the time frames involved, it’s not hard to speculate.
    • the_fuzz@lemm.eeEnglish
      2·
      12 days ago

      I read in another article that the dog that died had recently come back from a medical procedure at the vet, and was being kept in a crate. The two that survived had access to a dog door so presumably were able to get food/water outside.

  • Buffalox@lemmy.worldEnglish
    3·
    12 days ago

    So he was alone in the house for a week, while suffering Alzheimer?!
    That’s absolutely horrible.

    • DokPsy@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      12 days ago

      Not technically alone but if he had advanced enough in the disease, he would probably not notice that anything has happened…

      • meco03211@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        12 days ago

        Or he found his wife dead multiple times and by the time he could get to a phone to call for help he’d forgotten why he needed the phone.

        • anomnom@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          1·
          12 days ago

          It would have been too advanced for him to think of the phone in the first place at that point.

          We’ve dealt with terminal Alzheimer’s in my family and it’s crazy that the only viable death is starvation/dehydration even in a care facility on hospice.

          One week would have been a huge relief compared to the years of wasting, basically forced eating, and decline that we had to witness with my MIL. She couldn’t even smile for the last year and a half or more. We need end of life laws and to respect DNR paperwork much more proactively.

  • Aconite@lemmy.caEnglish
    1·
    12 days ago

    His wife was young enough that it probably never occurred to her to have a back-up plan for his care or general wellness checks. Absolutely awful.

  • BackgrndNoize@lemmy.worldEnglish
    0·
    11 days ago

    This is why I detest the idea of keeping someone alive at any cost that’s currently the law, euthanasia should be legalized and available to everyone, at some point we all have to die, I don’t understand why make people suffer into old age, we put pets down when they get too old and sick because we know that’s mercy, then why is the same mercy not shown to human beings.

    Edit: I am talking about auto euthanasia, aka an individuals right to chose his own end, not others making that choice for old / sick people

    • exocortex@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
      01·
      11 days ago

      Sorry, are you saying other people should be allowed to “put down” someone whenever they decide it’s mercy? Are you applying your example about putting down pets directly to humans?

      You know who had a big euthanasia program? The Nazis. They murdered people who were unworthy to live. They killed (among many groups of people) people born with disabilities and justified it as “mercy”.

      I think you meam something else so please be careful what you are writing. It’s easily misunderstood.

  • Dagwood222@lemm.eeEnglish
    0·
    12 days ago

    If any good comes of this, it will be raising awareness.

    It doesn’t cost you anything to check in on your neighbors.

    • catloaf@lemm.eeEnglish
      0·
      12 days ago

      Elderly people should really not be alone at all. The American family model is not healthy.

      • Drusas@fedia.io
        0·
        12 days ago

        65 isn’t really “elderly”. She just had bad luck, contracting a rare disease.

        • philpo@feddit.orgEnglish
          1·
          12 days ago

          The problem is not her age but the lack of contingency planning - this actually happens a lot in industrial nations. The caring partner has an accident or a sudden medical illness and the person cared for dies of the lack of care.

          The easiest form of backup is someone checking in regularly by phone - if the relatives (Hackman had three children and at least one granddaughter - but it seems they were estranged) or friends can form some form of habit to call each on a different day and act if none picks up unexpectedly, most of these cases can be effectivly solved.

          But additional options exist: Modern medical alarm systems can be programmed to have a “death man switch” - if a certain key is not pressed once or twice a day the system sends out an alarm to the alarm company and they try to get a voice contact. For carers of bed bound patients (with no large pets - so not applicable here) the option to use a motion detector in a hallway exists - instead of the button the system sends out an alarm when none is moving in the hallway for a certain amount of time,which means something is wrong with the carer.

          Lately there are ambient assisted living (basically smarthome) systems that can be used as well - e.g. you can hook up a sensor to the microwave and cutlery drawer. Neither has been opened by 2pm? So none had breakfast or lunch and something is wrong. Etc. etc.

          In the end people need to plan ahead - and that is the problem. Because by doing so they must submit to their own mortality and we don’t like that.

          In 22 years in healthcare I had my fair share of these cases. Most end well, but only go on our nerves as paramedics (and nurses),because it’s a really big problem if you have a patient who is the carer of someone who can’t stay at home alone, and the patient needs urgent transport. (We can’t simply take them with us most of the time)

          But just to give you a few examples of cases I remember:

          • The 45 y/o lady who basically died of thirst fully conscious - She was a quadriplegic, her husband was a bit older and seemed to have suffered a sudden cardiac arrest while caring for her, ripping of her communication computer of her bed while going down. She was still alive when found, but sadly we couldn’t save her, organs and brain were to far gone. That one really left a mark in my brain.

          • The 80 year old lady who was mobile but had heavy Alzheimer and ran away (possibly to find help,not totally known) after her partner was unable to get up for 36h after an fall resulting in a broken hip. He literally saw her walking out but couldn’t stop her. She was found 4 weeks later, in a creek.

          • The 90 year old who died of thirst and hunger after his somewhat wife died during the night. He made notes on a piece of paper about the dates… But was unable to summon help due to being bed bound. Especially bad as he had a system in place - their daughter called every day - but she had a horrific accident on “day one” and was in coma.

          Anyway. It’s a horrific way to go. Talk to your elderly relatives and neighbours.