Jean Seberg and Ahmed Hasni, 1979.
By Garry McGee
Author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, and Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg
Jean Seberg was not married four times.
This myth has been perpetuated for over forty years now. Uncorrected. Reprinted. Inaccurate information re-reported by news outlets that the man Jean was living with at the time of her death, Ahmed Hasni, was her fourth husband.
Algerian Ahmed Hasni, 19 (he lied about his age and said he was 29), met Jean in France in April 1979. By July they were fighting and Jean fled the violent relationship as she began preparing to work on a film produced by Georges de Beauregard, La legion saute sur Kolwezi.
Hasni found Jean and the couple reunited and rented a small first-floor apartment at 125 rue de Longchamp on August 11th. Nineteen days later Hasni alerted the police that Jean and her car had disappeared. Her body was found ten days later on September 8th in the back seat of her white Raunault, parked on the rue du Genreral-Appert, just three blocks from her apartment.
Hasni sold all of Jean's possessions after her death, including her jewelry, paintings and artwork, and kept the money she had received from selling the apartment she owned at 108 rue du bac. He also sold her letters to dealers, and portions of her writings to the top bidder (which happened to be an Italian magazine).
While this was happening, Hasni posed for newspapers and magazines, gazing at photographs of Jean. And he claimed they were married. While the U.S. news media steered clear of him, they nonetheless identified him as her fourth husband--while making much of the fact that she wasn't divorced from her third husband Dennis Berry. Jean knew that in the eyes of the law she was still married to Berry--a fact she did not deny.
Jean and husband Dennis Berry.
The truth of the matter is that Jean Seberg and Ahmed Hasni were not married. Reverend Thomas Duggan had officiated a "blessing" of the couple at the American Church in Paris, and in correspondence with Reverend Duggan, he adds there was no such marriage or wedding ceremony that took place--in the eyes of the church of the law.
Instead it was prayer said over the couple, to keep their union safe. Nothing more. Although it may sound odd to some people, how does it compare to blessing a house or a ship or other material things? Or to regular churchgoers and the prayers recited and the extensions of peace to one another?
Had news media conducted basic research by contacting the American Church in Paris and inquiring about the allegation, they would have discovered Hasni was lying. Although the French media reciprocated after investigating, most of the American news media perpetuated the misinformation and the confusion continues today.
Jean with 2nd husband, Romain Gary. Jean with 1st husband, Francois Moreuil.
Jean was buried on September 14th, 1979 at Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris, with husband Dennis Berry and her two former husbands, Romain Gary and Francois Moreuil in attendance--each laying a single pink rose on her casket. Ahmed Hasni was also at the funeral.
None of Jean's personal belongings were ever recovered from Hasni. By 1982 his whereabouts were unknown.
Garry McGee is the co-producer-director-writer of Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon (now in the distribution phase). He is the Emmy® nominated filmmaker behind the documentary The Last Wright (co-produced with Lucille Carra) and the author of Jean Seberg--Breathless, Neutralized: the FBI vs. Jean Seberg (with Jean Russell Larson) and The Films of Jean Seberg (with Michael Coates-Smith).
The award-winning documentary Jean Seberg: Actress, Activist, Icon tells the true story of Hollywood and heartbreak, beginning when an unknown 17-year-old Iowa girl who beat out 18,000 actresses to play Saint Joan in Otto Preminger's 1957 film. The documentary goes behind the scenes of her rocky life in the international film spotlight, her civil rights activism that drew FBI attention, and her mysterious death in Paris in 1979 - deemed a "probable suicide." Produced by Emmy-nominated and award-winning filmmakers Garry McGee (McMarr Ltd.), and Kelly Rundle and Tammy Rundle (Fourth Wall Films).
Visit JeanSebergMovie for updates on the documentary, glimpses behind-the-scenes, all things Jean Seberg, and upcoming news on the film's release.
Was this man ever thoroughly interrogated by Paris police? There are photos on the net where you can seen him being interviewed by French radio Europe 1. Are recordings or transcripts of his statements to the press available?
Would it be possible to have access to the police files? Also, would Jean's autopsy report shed more light on the mystery of the exceptionally high alcohol percentage in her blood (and how this was administered)?
Even after 40 odd years, Jean deserves the full truth about how she met her death to come out.
Posted by: Robert Verger | 01/29/2021 at 04:32 AM
Thank you for your comment/question. Garry McGee's "Breathless" biography addresses most of your questions in more detail. Hasni was questioned by French police, perhaps twice, and he is thought to have returned to Algeria. I'm not certain how reliable his statements to the press might be. There is an autopsy report, but I do not know whether it is readily available to the public. We agree, Jean deserves justice in the matter of her untimely and mysterious death in Paris.
Posted by: Kelly Rundle | 01/29/2021 at 02:18 PM