Betsy Arakawa

Betsy Machiko Arakawa Hackman (December 15, 1959 – c. February 12, 2025) was an American classical pianist and businesswoman. Born in Hawaii, she performed with the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra at the age of eleven and later worked for the television game show Card Sharks as a production assistant. She met Gene Hackman in the 1980s, marrying him in 1991 and assisting with his novels. In 2001, she co-founded a linens and home furnishings store in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she and Hackman lived; the couple were also business partners in a local Asian restaurant.

Arakawa was found dead along with her husband at their home in Santa Fe on February 26, 2025. This led to an investigation that showed that she died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome around February 12, about a week before Hackman.

Life and career

Betsy Machiko Arakawa was born on December 15, 1959, raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, and was of Japanese descent. An only child, she was raised by her mother, who was a businesswoman. She went to Kahala Elementary School and Punahou School, the same private secondary school as Barack Obama. As a child, Arakawa studied piano with Ellen Masaki and performed at the Honolulu International Center Concert Hall at age eleven, where she performed the final movement of Haydn's Keyboard Concerto No. 4 with the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra. Arakawa studied social sciences and communication at the University of Southern California from 1981 to 1983. She later completed a master's degree in liberal arts at St. John's College in Santa Fe, New Mexico. During a summer break, Arakawa served as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Aztecs, a professional soccer team, and worked for the television game show Card Sharks as a production assistant.