• Betsy Arakawa is a classical pianist and businesswoman, and is the second wife of retired American actor and novelist Gene Hackman.
• She was born in Hawaii in 1961 and studied piano from a young age.
• Betsy is currently a piano teacher and fitness coach, while also running her own business.
• She and Gene don't have any children together, but he has three children from a previous marriage.
• Betsy is 60, with an estimated net worth of over $1 million.

 

Who is Betsy Arakawa?

Betsy was born in Hawaii, USA, on 1 December 1961 – her zodiac sign is Sagittarius, and she holds American nationality. She’s a classical pianist and a businesswoman, although she’s probably known best for being the second wife of retired American actor and novelist Gene Hackman.

Early life and education

Betsy was raised in Hawaii by her parents, about whom not a lot is known, as she respects their privacy; it’s believed that her father was a businessman and the owner of his own small company, and that her mother was a housewife. Betsy hasn’t mentioned having any siblings, and is thus believed to be an only child.

She became interested in music at a very early age, and began taking piano lessons when she was eight.

Betsy became sporting upon enrolling at a local high school, playing soccer and volleyball for school teams, while she still remained focused on music, and next learned to play the guitar.

She matriculated in 1980, and although she hasn’t spoken of her further education, it’s believed that she attended college, from which she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in 1984.

Betsy’s career

Betsy’s today working as a piano teacher, while it’s also said that she’s working as a fitness coach at a fitness center in Los Angeles, California.

She’s also a businesswoman, as she’s today running her own company, however, not a lot is known about her business ventures.

Love life and marriage with Gene Hackman

Betsy prefers to keep the details of her love life hidden from the media’s attention, but this has proven to be hard now that she’s married to a famous actor.

She met Gene in 1984, and they began dating in the same year, while he was still married to his first wife Faye Maltese; the affair eventually led to Gene and Faye’s divorce in 1986, and he and Betsy married in 1991, in a small ceremony attended by only a couple of their closest friends.

Betsy and Gene don’t have children together, however, Gene has three children from his marriage with Faye: Christopher Allen, Leslie Anne and Elizabeth Jean.

Neither has spoken of any other people whom they have perhaps been with, and as of May 2022, Betsy’s married to Gene Hackman; they don’t have children together.

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Hobbies and other interests

Betsy was physically highly active in her 20s and 30s, as had multiple training sessions at the gym every week, and also practiced yoga on a daily basis, however, she rarely works out at the gym nowadays, but still practices yoga.

She and her husband are both huge lovers of animals, and have had several pet dogs and cats; the two have also donated money to a couple of animal shelters.

Betsy’s into travelling, and has been to various US states, for both work and pleasure, while she and her husband have also travelled all around the world together; Betsy’s dream travel destination seems to be Paris, France.

She likes to watch movies in her spare time and her favorite actresses are Angelina Jolie, Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, while a couple of her favorite films are “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life”, “Les Miserables” and “One Day”.

Age, height and net worth

Betsy’s age is 60. She has long black hair and brown eyes, her height is 5ft 5ins (1.65m) and she weighs around 120lbs (55kgs).

As of May 2022, her net worth stands at more than $1 million, while her husband Gene’s net worth has been estimated at over $80 million.

Who is her husband Gene?

Eugene Allen ‘Gene’ Hackman was born in San Bernardino, California USA, on 30 January 1930 – his zodiac sign is Aquarius, and he holds American nationality. He appeared in more than 100 movies and TV series, before retiring in 2006, while he’s perhaps still known best for his portrayal of the lead character Doyle in the critically acclaimed 1971 action crime movie “The French Connection”. It was directed by William Friedkin, also starred Roy Schneider and Fernando Rey, and follows two detectives working in the New York Police Department, who have just discovered a heroin smuggling ring in Marseilles, France; the movie won 27 awards, including five Oscars, while it was nominated for 12 other awards.

Gene was raised in San Bernardino alongside his brother Richard, by their mother Anna Lynda Elizabeth (nee Gray) and father Eugene Ezra Hackman. Gene was 10 years old that he knew he wanted to become a professional actor; his parents divorced when he was 13, and his father disappeared from his life not long after that.

He studied at Storm Lake High School, but quit aged 16; Gene then lied about his age so that he could join the US Marine Corps, and spent close to five years serving as a field radio operator, as stationed in China and Japan for most of that time. He returned to the US in 1951, and eventually enrolled at the University of Illinois to study journalism, but quit to focus solely on acting.

Gene made his debut film appearance in the 1961 biographical crime drama “Mad Dog Coll”, and the same year saw him make his debut TV series appearance, playing Joe Lawson in the episode “The Fugitive” of the crime drama “Tallahassee 7000”. He attracted some attention in 1964, when he played the supporting character Norman in the drama movie “Lilith”, while a couple of Gene’s following notable performances were in the 1967 biographical crime action movie “Bonnie and Clyde”, which won two Oscars, the 1970 musical film “I Never Sang for My Father” and the 1974 comedy movie “Young Frankenstein”, which was nominated for two Oscars.

Gene starred as Lex Luthor in the 1978 superhero action movie “Superman”, as well as in its 1980 sequel “Superman II”, but what marked the ‘80s for him was perhaps his portrayal of the lead character Coach Norman Dale in the sports movie “Hoosiers”. It was directed by David Anspaugh, also starred Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper, and follows a coach and a local drunk as they’re training a small town basketball team; the movie won three of the 10 awards for which it was nominated, including two Oscar nominations.

Some of Gene’s most notable performances in the ‘90s were perhaps in the 1994 biographical adventure movie “Wyatt Earp”, the 1996 mystery crime film “Extreme Measures” and the 1998 mystery crime movie “Twilight”.

His final role, after which he retired, was his portrayal of Lex Luthor in the 2006 romantic action adventure movie “Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut”.

Gene has won 33 awards, including two Oscars: the first in 1972, for Best Actor in a Leading Role for “The French Connection”, and the second in 1993, for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for “Unforgiven”; he has been nominated for 39 other awards.

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