Academy-award winning actor Gene Hackman was born on January 30, 1930, the son of a newspaper printer. They lived with his mother in their grandmother’s house until Hackman’s parents divorced when he was 13. Three years later Hackman enrolled in the marines.

After serving for three more years as a radio operator in the field, Hackman moved to New York and got a number of odd jobs before going to college for Journalism. He did so with the support of the G.I. Bill, which granted funds to discharged soldiers looking for education. By the time Hackman was 26 he decided he wanted to act for a living. He joined the Pasadena Playhouse, located in California, and met another future acting star, Dustin Hoffman. The two proved the black sheep of the school and were considered ‘The Least Likely to Succeed’.

After graduating Hackman returned to New York and began acting in a number of low-key plays located off Broadway. He supplemented his meager income with other jobs. During this time he met and married Faye Maltese, with whom he enjoyed a 30 year marriage. The couple birthed three children together. His first major acting role came opposite actress Sandy Dennis in the play Any Wednesday. This got Hackman the attention he needed to break into film roles, which he did in the 1964 drama Lilith, starring Warren Beatty. He continued in supporting roles through the 1960’s in Bonnie and Clyde, Downhill Racer and Marooned. His role in Bonnie and Clyde even saw Hackman nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Hackman continued with supporting roles until his casting as Popeye Doyle in the 1971 crime film The French Connection. His role as Doyle won Hackman an Academy Award for Best Actor. He continued as a leading character in a variety of films during the 1970’s, starring in The Poseidon Adventure, The Conversation and even taking on a comedic role in Young Frankenstein. He rounded out the 1970’s starring as the villainous Lex Luthor in Superman: The Movie and Superman III, released in 1978 and 1980 respectively.

Despite a stall that lasted several years, Hackman continued to climb the star ladder and solidified his place as a Hollywood powerhouse in the 1980’s, though his climb was abated in 1990 after he had to undergo heart surgery. He split from wife Faye in 1986. From 1990 onward he alternately starred and co-starred in a number of acclaimed films. These films ran the gamut from serious (the Clint Eastwood western Unforgiven in 1992) to satirical (1995’s Get Shorty) to animated (Antz in 1998).

Hackman remarried in 1991, hitching himself to Betsy Arakawa, the owner of a home furnishing store in Santa Fe. He also wrote Wake of the Perdido Star together with Daniel Lenihan, an undersea archaeologist, in 1999. It was his first but not last book, joined by Justice for None in 2004. After starring in several movies in the 2000’s, including Heist and The Royal Tenenbaums, Hackman retired from acting. His last film was the box office flop Welcome to Mooseport in 2004, starring opposite Ray Romano.