Apparently, the front door was open and he had a coat on. No doubt he was totally shell shocked over his caregiver being gone. Too scared to wonder outside on his own, maybe? Reports are heart failure. Maybe brought on by lack of proper care.
RIP Actor Gene Hackman
- Thread starter Carmudgeon
- Start date
His kids are in their early 60's and late 50's so they're essentially the same age as his second wife. We don't know the type of relationship he had with them nor the last time one of them spoke with their stepmother.
From articles I've read about this, they weren't in regular contact with him, which was my point. It's an all-too-common scenario: Kids who can't be bothered to be a part of their elderly parents lives.
He was well hydrated so he was at least finding something to drink. There was apparently no food in his stomach. But you can go for a long time without eating. Whether he was taking his cardiac meds is a different story.
One of the saddest things you'll ever see is a couple where one is highly dependent on the other, and the healthier one dies, leaving the dependent one completely up a creek. If they had been visited earlier that would have been the case here as well.
There is a lot more of that in this country than most people could imagine.
From what I have read, he had a falling out with his daughter years ago. It was only recently they were starting to communicate again. His wife was over 30 years younger than him, so the daughter most likely didn't feel the need to be concerned about his age or condition under those circumstances. Especially considering they were both very private people.
The press is still showing those nice photos of the couple from 30 years ago. Most people don’t realize what poor shape Gene was in. Hate to say it but this brings up the whole issue of assisted living vs trying to make due at home.
While all of that may in fact be true, here is the part I'm having trouble with. If she in fact did die from Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, that is a progressive disease. It doesn't strike you down and kill you in mere seconds, like a severe heart attack or stroke.
She had to feel herself getting sicker and sicker as the hours and days passed. You would think at some point she would have called 911, a neighbor, or someone, to report her and her husband's poor, rapidly deteriorating condition, and request some help.
That's another thing that doesn't pass the smell test with this whole thing. I know they're saying both Hackman and his wife were extremely private people, and kept to themselves.
Be that as it may, money was the least of their problems. They both could afford in home care on a daily basis, if so required. Or at least hire someone to provide a daily welfare check or phone call. That can be done very reasonably.
If my wife died, that's what I would do. We are a lot like Hackman in that regard. Neither of us have any children or family. And we pretty much keep to ourselves. If I lost her, I would establish a welfare phone call on a daily basis at a certain time, just to be sure I was alive and still kicking.
Otherwise the harsh reality is, if I were living alone and dropped dead, it could be weeks or longer before anyone stumbled upon it... And that is something I wouldn't want to burden anyone with.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Good points.
All I know is sometimes when people get old, they quit taking care of their homes, their selves, etc. it is reported sometimes elderly people due in squalor, and after their death it is identified they had a worth of seven figures.
I can see when people are not right behaviorally, allowing rodents to live,, breed, and overwhelm a single family home. Full of rodent waste throughout. Every breath a person takes in those rodent filled single family homes comes with airborne rodent pathogens.
She was still a "senior" being around 63-65 years old. Still no excuse . I am sure they will be hovering to get their hands on his estate.
I liked Gene in Superman, which makes 10,357,238 in the list of heirs.
Estrangement happens. We don't know their relationship and Hackman married a woman who was essentially the same age as his kids.
4WD
$50 site donor 2025
Well, if anything - hard ending aside - he lived a full life …
The rodent thing happened early to her - and even earlier when a young guy here died from drinking out of cans at their bay house (mice enter mostly unused camps) …
4WD
$50 site donor 2025
Yes, I won’t drink from cans myself …
Wife had a friend contact and die relatively quickly from Hantavirus. I mean within days
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