Gene Hackman R.I.P.

[Anonymous]

People puzzling over why kids didn't check in more. The evidence is pretty strong that they did not have great relationships with him. One daughter told the media that he was in 'great health for a man of 95,' two days after he was discovered dead. Today, the medical examiner described him as 'in extremely poor health.' Those kids seemed to have no idea what was going on with him. Maybe he and Betsy agreed to keep that illness private and they hid it. Not tough to do, considering that daughter lived in California and had not spoke to him for several months and had not seen him in more than a year.

[Anonymous]

They seemed like very private people. Betsy appeared to be a devoted caregiver but maybe at the expense of her own health. It is unfortunate that they did not have more of a network to check on them regularly. Perhaps the children really didn't have a close relationship with him despite their own claims. Not being aware of their father having Alzheimer's and not calling for months sounds distant.

[Anonymous]

Shame on the kids. The father was 95 and and not mentally there. If they had constant contact (a freaking phone call!) then they would know that mom is sick and someone needs to come and help with dad until she is well. They were left to rot in their home. America sucks. How we treat our own family is disgusting. The human race sucks.

[Anonymous]

She was probably cleaning out a shed or garage.

[Anonymous]

They had a pest service. It was literally a pest control guy there for pre-scheduled service who alerted neighborhood security.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't imagine how mortified the family is. Regardless of the reason, having everyone in the country know that my father wandered around his house with severe dementia, unable to get help for more than a week would be so embarrassing. Not to mention how guilty I would feel. I mean, I was present when my dad died, and I still (against all reason) felt guilty.

How is this embarrassing? Extremely sad, yes but hardly embarrassing.

+1 very sad but I imagine stories like this will become more common with an aging population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So.

Biologist here.

You almost need to sleep on a bed of rodent droppings to catch hantavirus. Meaning, the dose of droppings needs to be extreme to catch it, which is why it's so rare. This is why it's usually caught by hikers who sleep outdoors - not the day hiker who happens to sit in a pile of infected leaves and eat a sandwich.

The authorities haven't said a word, but I'd be interested in the cleanliness of their home, and her state of mind. No sane person, unless perhaps they're a hoarder, lives in such a way in their own home to cause a hantavirus infection.
I doubt at her age and with her husband, that they were camping overnight in the woods...

And dehydration was probably a factor in the death of Gene and the dog. The media just isn't very accurate and the experts are cagey. But obviously you die from thirst before you die from lack of food.

I will also note that a relative of Gene's denied he had advanced Alzheimer's. It's sadly typical of some people that they feel shame and the need to hide such diagnoses, but it only ends up confusing everyone. I am glad the salient points of the medical report were publicly disclosed. That relative must be feeling pretty foolish now.

This is just wrong. Hantavirus is rare and yes you’re more likely to get it indoors, but as this article discussing an outbreak at Yosemite makes clear, you can catch it outside and you certainly don’t have to be writhing in a bed of it.

https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2012/08/104306/hantavirus-be-careful-not-fearful

I know someone who got hantavirus from sweeping up their garage and around the outside of their house.

Anyone who has lived in the 4 corners area (the real 4 corners, not just those states) knows someone who has had it.

Why those areas?

It is from a specific type of mouse that mostly lives out wesr.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Shame on the kids. The father was 95 and and not mentally there. If they had constant contact (a freaking phone call!) then they would know that mom is sick and someone needs to come and help with dad until she is well. They were left to rot in their home. America sucks. How we treat our own family is disgusting. The human race sucks.

STOP.THIS.

If the human race does suck, it’s because of people like you.

[Anonymous]

Hackman's "kids", I'm assuming are pretty old themselves give he married their mom in 1956. We have no idea what their caretaking abilities and duties were.

[Anonymous]

Why didn’t they have hired help?

He had money.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just don’t/can’t understand how they had no help at all! No housecleaners? How did she grocery shop? Did she ever leave the house? Seems like he shouldn’t have been left alone for her to even run small errands. Our next door neighbor has full blown dementia. His adult daughter and son in law live there, plus they have at least 8 hours of health aides per day. And they aren’t even that wealthy! This is all so bizarre. And Hantavius was just mentioned on The Pitt and here it is in real life!

My dad has dementia and heart failure, and mostly sat around watching TV. My mom could go to the grocery store, etc. - she just couldn’t stay gone longer than about 4 hours.

Also, my dad did Pilates and yoga, as well as rode an exercise bike. That said, he stopped the exercise classes once he could no longer drive.

My dad was the same - he had dementia and mostly sat in his recliner during the day napping/watching TV. She felt comfortable leaving him alone for two hours or so to run errands.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People puzzling over why kids didn't check in more. The evidence is pretty strong that they did not have great relationships with him. One daughter told the media that he was in 'great health for a man of 95,' two days after he was discovered dead. Today, the medical examiner described him as 'in extremely poor health.' Those kids seemed to have no idea what was going on with him. Maybe he and Betsy agreed to keep that illness private and they hid it. Not tough to do, considering that daughter lived in California and had not spoke to him for several months and had not seen him in more than a year.

+1 Very sad when family members have infrequent contact

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't imagine how mortified the family is. Regardless of the reason, having everyone in the country know that my father wandered around his house with severe dementia, unable to get help for more than a week would be so embarrassing. Not to mention how guilty I would feel. I mean, I was present when my dad died, and I still (against all reason) felt guilty.

How is this embarrassing? Extremely sad, yes but hardly embarrassing.

+1 very sad but I imagine stories like this will become more common with an aging population.

No, loving families would not be out of touch for this length of time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They seemed like very private people. Betsy appeared to be a devoted caregiver but maybe at the expense of her own health. It is unfortunate that they did not have more of a network to check on them regularly. Perhaps the children really didn't have a close relationship with him despite their own claims. Not being aware of their father having Alzheimer's and not calling for months sounds distant.

+1. Yes to all you said

[Anonymous]

Betsy died first from Hantavirus. She was in the bathroom getting her daily prescription when she was overcome, collapsed and expired.

Gene was in poor health plus Alzheimer's. With Betsy gone, he was not getting his daily meds. Subsequently he too expired several days later as his body couldn't function without the heart medications.

The poor dog in the crate expired from lack of water. It's interesting the two other dogs survived - but what were they eating and drinking? Perhaps there was a natural water source they had access to. If they were running at large, were they roaming throughout the neighborhood? How is it possible nobody thought that was strange? Were they always roaming? I would have to guess Betsy treated them like her babies, and they would not ordinarily be roaming at large.