Morgan Freeman opened the annual In Memoriam segment at the
2025 Oscars by sharing kind words about his former co-star, Gene Hackman, who died last week.

Freeman addressed the Dolby Theatre audience in Hollywood by
saying, “This week, our community lost a giant — and I lost a dear
friend, Gene Hackman.”

Freeman continued, “I had the pleasure of working alongside Gene
on two films, Unforgiven and Under Suspicion, and like everyone
who ever shared a scene with him, I learned he was a generous performer and a man whose gifts elevated everyone’s work.

He received two Oscars, but more importantly, he won the hearts
of film lovers all over the world.”

1992

2000

At Mount Carmel in Waco, Texas, agents of the U.S. Treasury Department’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms
launched a raid against the Branch Davidian compound as
part of an investigation into illegal possession of firearms
and explosives by the cult. 

Following the unsuccessful ATF raid, the Federal Bureau of
Investigation took over the situation. A standoff with the
Branch Davidians stretched into seven weeks.

David Koresh and at least 80 of his followers, including 22
children, died during the federal government’s second
disastrous assault. A fire erupted and the compound
was completely engulfed by the flames.

David Koresh (born Vernon Wayne Howell)
(August 17, 1959 – April 19, 1993)

Eugene Allen Hackman
(January 30, 1930 – c.February 26, 2025)

American actor and novelist, widely regarded as one of the
greatest actors of his generation. Hackman gained widespread recognition for his breakthrough role as Buck Barrow in
"Bonnie and Clyde" (1967), which earned him his first
Academy Award nomination.

Hackman, his wife, and their dog were found dead at their home
in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He was 95.

An investigation into the deaths of the couple and their dog is
ongoing, according to Santa Fe police.

On February 27, 1980, the long-lost glasses of rocker Buddy
Holly, who died in a deadly plane crash in 1959, were found—
filed away in a manila envelope in a court clerk’s office marked
"Charles Harden Holly".

That envelope was opened by Sheriff Jerry Allen. The glasses
were eventually returned to Holly’s widow.

A Beechcraft Bonanza carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens 
and “The Big Bopper” Richardson, crashed outside Clear
Lake, Iowa, in the early morning hours of February 3, 1959.
 

(FOX News) – Actress Michelle Trachtenberg was found dead
in a New York City apartment today. She  was 39.

Authorities found Trachtenberg after responding to a 911 call
around 8 a.m. local time. The actress was unconscious and unresponsive, according to the New York Police Department.

Police sources told ABC-7 that Trachtenberg had recently
undergone a liver transplant and may have been experiencing complications.

The actress starred as Dawn Summers on "Buffy the Vampire
Slayer" for three years. The series ran from 1997-2003 on WB.