“Forgotten Hollywood”- The Great Gene Hackman…
Manny P. here…
“`Simply said… Gene Hackman was the greatest actor of his generation. That is saying a lot, considering the careers of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman and Robert Duvall, among others. But it is not hyperbole when you consider his body of work with his many roles in westerns, drama, and comedy. He was natural in his approach, much like Spencer Tracy, generations before. On screen, he was an everyman!
“`The two-time Oscar-winning actor studied journalism and television production at the University of Illinois under the G. I. Bill. He joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California and was a classmate of Dustin Hoffman. Both moved to New York City and they joined Robert Duvall, sharing New York apartments.
“`Any Wednesday with actress Sandy Dennis was a huge Broadway success in 1964. It opened the door to film work. His initial credited role was in Lilith, with Jean Seberg and Warren Beatty in the lead roles. After taking guest-starring parts on television, Hackman would embark on arguably one of the finest career paths in cinematic history.
“`He starred (or co-starred) in Bonnie and Clyde, Downhill Racer, I Never Sang for My Father, Marooned, The French Connection (Best Actor), The Poseidon Adventure, The Conversation, Young Frankenstein, Bite the Bullet, Red, the Superman series of films, Hoosiers, No Way Out, Mississippi Burning, Crimson Tide, The Quick and the Dead, Postcards From the Edge, Unforgiven (Best Supporting Actor), The Firm, Get Shorty, Absolute Power, Enemy of the State, Runaway Jury and Welcome to Mooseport.
“`Hackman was honored with a Cecil B. DeMille Award from the Golden Globe Awards for his outstanding contribution to the entertainment field a year before he officially retired, in 2003. He came out of retirement to narrate two documentaries related to the United States Marine Corps: The Unknown Flag Raiser of Iwo Jima and We the Marines.
“`As legendary filmmakers line up to pay homage, including Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Tom Hanks, Viola Davis, Alec Baldwin, Gwyneth Paltrow, Josh Brolin, Nathan Lane and Francis Ford Coppola, we remember the legendary star for his body of unmatched work.
“`Gene Hackman was ninety-five.
Until next time> “never forget”
This entry was posted on Friday, February 28th, 2025 at 6:23 pm and is filed under Blog by Manny Pacheco. You can follow any comments to this post through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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