Bicoastal Villains has signed director Philippe Andre and The Guard Brothers (Tom and Charles)….Directors Jesper Ericstam and Magnus Rosman have joined Venice, Calif.-based Backyard Productions….Santa Monica-based BeachHouse Films has signed director Andre Marcell for representation on the West Coast and in the Midwest. Marcell continues to be repped on the East Coast by Riptide Films, New York….Charles Wolford has joined Modernista!, Boston, as executive producer, director of broadcast production….Creative director J.J. Sedelmaier of J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, White Plains, N.Y., and creative director Neal Adams of Continuity Studios have entered into an agreement to jointly pursue animation projects in the advertising and broadcast realms. Continuity is an illustration and design studio in New York, specializing in comic book-style projects….Avalanche Productions, New York, is repping documentary filmmaker Ivy Meeropol for select commercial assignments. Her documentary Heir to an Execution gained recognition at the Sundance and Tribeca Festivals, and is slated to debut on HBO….Editors Devin Bosquet and Natasha Uppal have come aboard Foundation, the postproduction house recently launched in Los Angeles and Chicago by editor James Lipetzky….West Hollywood-based visual effects/design house A52 has named Mark Tobin as its managing director/executive producer. Tobin formerly served as a producer at Santa Monica visual effects studio Method….Bruce Hanson has joined motion graphics firm Digital Kitchen, Seattle and Chicago, as its COO….
Gene Hackman Died Of Heart Disease; Hantavirus Claimed His Wife’s Life About One Week Prior
Actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease a full week after his wife died from hantavirus in their New Mexico hillside home, likely unaware that she was dead because he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, authorities revealed Friday. Both deaths were ruled to be from natural causes, chief medical examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell said alongside state fire and health officials at a news conference. "Mr. Hackman showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease," Jarrell said. "He was in a very poor state of health. He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that's what resulted in his death." Authorities didn't suspect foul play after the bodies of Hackman, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered Feb 26. Immediate tests for carbon monoxide poisoning were negative. Investigators found that the last known communication and activity from Arakawa was Feb. 11 when she visited a pharmacy, pet store and grocery before returning to their gated neighborhood that afternoon, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Friday. Hackman's pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later and that he had an abnormal heart rhythm Feb. 18, the day he likely died, Jarrell said. Although there was no reliable way to determine the date and time when both died, all signs point to their deaths coming a week apart, Jarrell said. "It's quite possible he was not aware she was deceased," Jarrell said. Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City medical examiner, said he believes Hackman was severely impaired due to Alzheimer's disease and unable to deal with his wife's death in the last week of his life. "You are talking about very severe Alzheimer's disease that normal people would be in a nursing home or have a nurse, but she was taking care... Read More