Gene Hackman’s Santa Fe Neighbors Recall Actor’s Quiet Life in Gated Community

He had two Oscars, adoring fans and four decades of acting to his credit. He won over critics, befriended celebrities and starred in scores of films watched by millions of moviegoers. But for the past two decades, Gene Hackman found solace at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac where few neighbors ever even saw him.

Mr. Hackman, 95, and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 65, who were both found dead in their home just outside Santa Fe, N.M., last week, were famous for their privacy after retiring. And the revelation that Mr. Hackman probably died nine days before the couple’s bodies were found illustrates the seclusion of their neighborhood and just how isolated they had become.

In Santa Fe Summit, the gated community where they lived just east of the city, even some of their nearest neighbors said they had seen no sign of the couple in recent years, except for their trash cans on the side of the road, waiting to be picked up. The couple did not attend homeowner’s association meetings or annual picnics, and their expansive four-bedroom home — on a quiet road called Old Sunset Trail — is hidden even from the start of the driveway.

The couple did have their share of friends around town. Mr. Hackman had invested in a restaurant, where his paintings hung on the walls, and Ms. Arakawa had co-founded a store that sells home goods. But some friends said the couple retreated farther from public life during the Covid-19 pandemic, and at home, they basked in their neighborhood’s solitude. Their desire for privacy was respected by their neighbors, who include doctors, lawyers and executives drawn to the community in search of private houses with stunning views a short drive from downtown Santa Fe.