‘Heck, why don’t we just come up with a book?’: how Gene Hackman became an author

‘I don’t picture myself as a great writer, but I really enjoy the process’ … Hackman in Behind Enemy Lines. Photograph: 20th Century Fox/Allstar

The Oscar winner Gene Hackman and his marine archaeologist friend Daniel Lenihan were chatting in a cafe in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when they came up with the idea for their first book.

The swashbuckling sea yarn, Wake of the Perdido Star, would be the first of five novels written by the celebrated actor, who was found dead on Wednesday.