Gene Hackman’s awards and heirlooms for sale from home where he lay dead for days… amid estate mystery

Fans of the late Gene Hackman will soon have the chance to own some of his most prized possessions.

Valuables, including Hackman’s many Golden Globe awards and expensive modernist paintings, will go up for auction starting in November.

The auctions take place eight months after the acting icon’s tragic death at the age of 95 in February.

Hackman’s body was found on February 26, a week after he was believed to have died following the death of his wife, Betsy Arakawa. The actor, who has Alzheimer’s disease, was left alone at home for about a week after his wife’s death.

new tenders Bonhams It’s a painful reminder of the couple’s lonely deaths, as some of the items appear to have come from the house where his body remained undiscovered for days.

The sales came after it was revealed that three of his children, excluded from his will, had buried Hackman in an unmarked grave in a secret ceremony.

The auction announcements came after it was revealed that three of Hackman’s children, excluded from his will, were buried in an unmarked grave in a secret ceremony; Daughters Elizabeth Gene and Leslie Anne were seen dining at Denny’s in February, shortly after news of their father’s death broke.

Hackman’s wife of 33 years, Betsy Arakawa, died of hantavirus at her home a few days before Hackman. They were buried side by side in an unmarked field earlier this year; seen in 1991

Accordingly BonhamsA selection of Hackman’s possessions will be auctioned in three separate sales; One will be held live and the other two will be online auctions.

The auction is said to include three of the four Golden Globe Awards won by Hackman; These include Clint Eastwood’s best supporting actor award for the Western classic Unforgiven, Wes Anderson’s best actor award for his drama The Royal Tenenbaums, and the latest honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award for ‘outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment’.

In addition to the Golden Globe that Hackman received for Tenenbaum’s Royalty, the auction also includes a certificate for that honor, as well as letters congratulating Hackman sent by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

Apparently missing from the collection is Hackman’s first Golden Globe for best actor, which he won for starring in William Friedkin’s iconic police thriller The French Connection (1971).

The actor was also awarded an Oscar for his roles in Unforgiven and The French Connection, but these prestigious awards are not included in the auction.

The auction will also include particularly intimate items, including a wristwatch that Hackman appears to have worn shortly before his death.

Two watches are being auctioned: Seiko’s stainless steel quartz diver’s wristwatch, which can go 200 meters below the surface and is nicknamed ‘Pepsi’ for its red-blue bezel.

It is presented with a Seiko Prospex strapless automatic diver’s watch with a black rubber strap.

Hackman appears to have changed watches and was wearing a black Seiko Prospex with a rubber bracelet when he was spotted on a rare outing at Wendy’s in Santa Fe in March 2023, when he was 93 years old.

Hackman’s collection will include 13 works by American and modernist artists. The work includes works by Milton Avery, Auguste Rodin and Richard Diebenkorn.

The auction is said to include three of the four Golden Globe Awards Hackman won; Seen in Beverly Hills in 2003

These include best supporting actor, which he won for Clint Eastwood’s Western classic Unforgiven (pictured).

The auction also includes Hackman’s best actor award for Wes Anderson’s drama The Royal Tenenbaums (pictured) and the latest honorary Cecil B. DeMille Award, given for ‘outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment’.

The auction will also feature particularly intimate items, including a Seiko wristwatch that Hackman appears to have worn shortly before his death. In 2023, he is seen wearing a Seiko Prospex automatic diver’s watch (R). The watch is available with the Seiko stainless steel quartz ‘Pepsi’ 200 diver’s wristwatch.

According to the auction house, Hackman had a lifelong passion for art, but focused more on collecting after retiring following his memorable 2004 comedy Welcome To Mooseport.

Hackman, who is said to have focused on illustration and sculpture in his retirement years, also devoted himself to the study of art and the artists who inspired him the most.

Gene Hackman’s collection includes examples of ‘Post-War and Contemporary art, Western and Native American art, photography and prints’.

Bonhams US Head of 20th and 21st Century Art Andrew Huber said Hackman’s art collection represents ‘prestigious works of impeccable provenance, further enhanced by their association with one of the greatest actors of our time’.

“Hackman was not just a collector, he was an artist himself, and his approach to collecting reflects the care, aesthetic sensitivity, and discipline evident in his own artistic practice,” Huber continued. ‘This is a collection shaped by extraordinary thought and passion.’

Among the most anticipated works of art in the auction is Figure on the Pier by American modernist artist Milton Avery (1885–1965). The painting, which shows a lone person on a pier looking out to sea, is estimated to sell for an impressive $500,000-$700,000.

Bonhams also noted the color etching Green (1986) by Richard Diebenkorn (1922–1993), which can fetch between $300,000 and $500,000.

Hackman also owned another Diebenkorn etching from 1992, High Green, Version II, which is estimated to sell for $70,000 to $90,000.

Gene Hackman’s collection includes examples of ‘Post-War and Contemporary art, Western and Native American art, photography and prints’. Bonhams highlighted the color etching Green (1986) by Richard Diebenkorn (1922–1993), which could fetch US$300,000–500,000.

Ida Rittenberg Kohlmeyer (1912–1997) is represented by Horizontal Rectangles 81-A, a quilt-like painting made in oil and charcoal in 1981. Bonham’s estimate is for a sale between $50,000 and $70,000.

Hackman was also immortalized in one of the paintings, a portrait of Everett Raymond Kinstler (1926–2019).

Ida Rittenberg Kohlmeyer (1912–1997) is represented by Horizontal Rectangles 81-A, a quilt-like painting made in oil and charcoal in 1981. Bonham estimates a sale of $50,000 to $70,000.

Legendary French sculptor August Rodin (1840–1917) is represented by a large-scale bronze estimated at $200,000 to $300,000.

Smaller works expected to sell for tens of thousands of dollars include works by Frit Scholder (1937–2005), Wassily Kandinsky (1866–1944), and Robert Motherwell (1915–1991).

Hackman was also immortalized in one of the paintings, a portrait of Everett Raymond Kinstler (1926–2019).

Rounding out the collections is a dartboard found in Hackman’s game room, estimated to sell for $100 to $150.

Hackman’s effort to auction off his significant assets follows the Daily Mail’s exclusive report that his property has been hacked. six-figure credit card debt.

In May, the Daily Mail revealed that Hackman’s three children – son Christopher, 65, and daughters Elizabeth Jean, 62, and Leslie Anne, 58 – had opted for a secret funeral for their father, which even some cemetery workers were caught unawares.

The Oscar-winning actor was buried in an unnamed place with his wife of 33 years, Betsy Arakawa.

Rounding out the collections is a dartboard found in Hackman’s game room, estimated to sell for $100 to $150.

Hackman’s effort to auction off his significant assets follows the Daily Mail’s exclusive report that his estate is plagued by six-figure credit card debt; seen in 1993

After his wife’s death due to Alzheimer’s disease, Hackman did not call for help and remained in Arakawa for about six days until his death around February 18. Their bodies were found in the house on February 26.

Investigators determined that Arakawa died from respiratory symptoms of hantavirus, transmitted through rodent feces, at his home around February 12.

Hackman, who had Alzheimer’s disease, did not seek help and remained at home with his wife’s body and three dogs until he died around February 18, according to the last measurements taken from his pacemaker.

Their bodies were found in the house on February 26.

The cause of death was attributed to heart disease, as well as complications from kidney disease and Alzheimer’s.

Two of the couple’s dogs were found alive on the property, while one was found dead in its kennel, where it was apparently left after Arakawa’s death.