Hans Habe (1911–1977)
Hans Habe and Eloise Hardt had separated in 1954, but the divorce was not finalized until several years later. Following the separation, Hans remained in Europe, but he maintained a close relationship with his daughter, who visited him regularly at his villa in Switzerland during school vacations.
In the immediate aftermath of Marina’s murder and funeral, Hans returned to Switzerland, never to return to the United States. Disillusioned and wary of American violence—from Marina’s brutal death to the assassinations of the Kennedy brothers—he chose to keep his distance from the country for the rest of his life.
In the late 1950s, Habe married actress Licci Balla. The couple remained together until his death in 1977 at the age of 66, in a hospital in Locarno, Switzerland, following a brief, undisclosed illness.
After his death, Licci Balla auctioned off his belongings in 1978. The items included a coffee and tea service once owned by Empress Catherine II, the emerald parure of Empress Charlotte of Mexico, a 143-piece collection of netsuke—small Japanese figures carved from ivory—and Habe’s 48-piece pipe collection.
The auction fetched approximately $165,000 (equivalent to $840,000 today). A newspaper article at the time remarked, “If Licci Balla-Habe loved this man so much, then the auction of Habe’s estate does not reflect this love.”
Eloise Hardt (1917–2017)
Following her separation from Hans, Eloise and Marina first went to Paris, France, where Eloise worked as a model before returning to Hollywood. They moved into West Hollywood, where Marina spent her teenage years and attended high school.
After being informed of Marina’s murder, Eloise was placed under medical care. Unable to cope with her grief in Los Angeles, she moved to London, England. She worked at a public relations office “like a robot” in an effort to suppress her grief, stating, “I was walking a very thin line, trying to hold on to my sanity.”
Hardt later married producer and promoter Paul MacNamara in the late 1960s. Although some online sources claim that Eloise remarried in 1969 or even as late as 1972, contemporary newspaper coverage of Marina Habe’s murder indicates she was already married by that time.1
MacNamara—a key player in Hollywood’s golden age—worked for Selznick Studios and authored the book Those Were the Days, My Friend, in which he wrote about his time with Alfred Hitchcock, William Randolph Hearst, and Howard Hughes. Eloise Hardt owned the copyrights to the book. Interestingly, Hardt also appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
Eloise and Paul remained married until his death in 1991 at age 84, following a stroke. She also maintained a close friendship with director John Huston, offering him an open invitation to gamble or stay overnight at her home.
Eloise Hardt died in 2017 at the age of 99 in Palos Verdes Estates, California.
John Hornburg (1945–2024)
After Marina Habe’s murder, John Hornburg moved to Arizona, where he developed and constructed apartment complexes and became a successful businessman.
In 1989, Hornburg moved back to Los Angeles and took over his father’s prominent car dealership on Sunset Boulevard. In his final years, he volunteered at a hospice and was listed as one of its top four donors.
John Hornburg passed away on December 25, 2024, at the age of 79 after a brief illness. He died at the same hospice where he had volunteered.
As the last known person to see Marina Habe alive, his death closed a significant chapter of the witness record.
Marina Habe’s Funeral and the Habe Name
Marina Habe’s funeral service, a requiem Mass, was held on Saturday, January 4, 1969, at Good Shepherd Roman Catholic Church in Beverly Hills, followed by her burial at Holy Cross Cemetery. The service was attended by approximately 350 people.
Since Marina Habe’s father had changed his surname to Habe before Marina’s birth, she was the only child to carry it—and with her murder, the Habe line effectively came to an end.