Gene Hackman and his wife, Besty Arakawa, were laid to rest following a small, private memorial.
The couple, who were both found dead in their New Mexico home on Feb. 26, were recently remembered by their close family and friends at a memorial held in Santa Fe, according to People.
The “French Connection” actor’s three children, son Christopher, 65, and daughters Elizabeth, 63, and Leslie, 58, whom he welcomed with his first wife, Faye Maltese, attended the services.
In February, Hackman and Arakawa’s bodies were found in their $4 million home. Zinna, one of the couple’s three dogs, was also deceased in its crate, likely dying of starvation and dehydration.
The actor and his wife 95 and 65, were respectively.
The couple’s living dogs helped first responders find Hackman’s dead body after they searched his home for more than 30 minutes.
As the paramedics continued searching the 10,000-square-foot home, one of the couple’s dogs kept running up to them, barking and running off in a different direction.
Once they followed the animal, it led into the mudroom, where the “Mississippi Burning” star’s corpse was lying on the floor alongside his sunglasses and cane.
An autopsy confirmed that Arakawa died nearly a week earlier than her husband after she contracted a rare rodent-transmitted virus called hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS).
The Oscar winner’s cause of death was listed as hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, with “evidence of advanced Alzheimer’s disease” as a significant contributory factor.
Medical professionals believe that Hackman may not have known his wife was dead due to his Alzheimer’s disease.
TMZ reported this week that the couple’s home was reportedly a “breeding ground for infestation” before their deaths.
Dead rodents, droppings and nests were discovered across eight buildings of the couple’s abode when the New Mexico Department of Public Health conducted an environmental assessment in March.
