Gene Hackman prioritized his health prior to his passing, according to the late actor’s loved ones.
The “French Connection” star’s friend Doug Lanham told TMZ Thursday that Hackman’s wife, Betsy Arakawa, had him on a “strict” diet and made sure he was “eating right.”
Lanham said that Arakawa, who was found dead alongside her 95-year-old husband and one of their dogs Wednesday, took his health “so seriously.”
In fact, Hackman was reportedly only able to eat cheat meals when golfing with his pals.
When he dined at Jinja Bar & Bistro, the restaurant he used to co-own with Lanham, the Oscar winner would order healthy options off the menu, such as halibut or salmon.
Hackman’s youngest child, daughter Leslie, similarly talked to the Daily Mail Thursday about her late father being in “good health.”
The 58-year-old emphasized that he was in “very good physical condition … despite his age” and regularly exercised.
“He liked to do Pilates and yoga, and he was continuing to do that several times a week,” she explained.
However, Leslie was not “terribly shock[ed]” by his death due to his age.
She is one of Hackman’s three surviving children, with the Golden Globe winner welcoming Christopher, now 65, Elizabeth, now 63, and Leslie while married to late ex-wife Faye Maltese.
The former couple split in 1986, with Hackman marrying Arakawa five years later.
His and the classical pianist’s causes of death are not yet known.
Santa Fe County’s Sheriff’s Office wrote in a news release Thursday that preliminary autopsy findings showed no signs of “external trauma.”
While there were not “apparent signs of foul play” despite the “unusual” circumstances, “this remains an open investigation,” according to Sheriff Adan Mendoza.
Official autopsy and toxicology reports are pending.
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