Legendary actor Gene Hackman has died; he was found dead in his New Mexico home along with his wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog. I want to take a moment to reflect on Hackman and also his link to United Airlines.
Gene Hackman Commercials For United Airlines – A Walk Down Memory Lane
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Hackman narrated a series of commercials for United Airlines, including the first to feature George Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue:
Here are some more:
I love this one, though I’m not sure about the “we’ll take you back” comment in today’s political climate!
I really liked Gene Hackman as an actor. My favorite Gene Hackman movie was The Birdcage, where he played a conservative US Senator who was forced to sneak out of a Miami nightclub in drag…hilarious movie. Nathan Lane is the best…
Don’t watch this if you haven’t seen the movie!
I also loved The Firm, a 1993 mystery thriller with Tom Cruise. Of course he was great in The French Connection, Mississippi Burning, and Enemy of the State…all great films.
He got his start at the Pasadena Playhouse in California, just a short drive from my house, and I loved that he retired at his peak, enjoying his last years in the seclusion of Santa Fe, New Mexico rather than making a fool out of himself by hanging on too long.
The circumstances surrounding his death are odd (my hunch, like his daughter, is still that of carbon monoxide poisoning). But I’m thankful for Hackman today and for the laughs and thrills he brought us through his decades of acting.