Ted Turner, the media mogul who founded CNN, left behind a huge legacy: five children and a $2.5 billion fortune.
In memory of Ted Turner: A legacy in media, sports and philanthropy
The media mogul founded CNN, the world’s first 24-hour news channel. He was a famous athlete and philanthropist.
Ted Turner’s legacy as a businessman and outspoken environmental activist will live on even after his death at the age of 87.
Mr. Turner passed away on Wednesday, May 6, “surrounded by his family,” his company, Turner Enterprises, announced in a news release obtained by USA TODAY. The mogul, who used his vast media fortune to promote causes such as the United Nations refugee and children’s program and conservation efforts, is survived by five children, 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
The maverick businessman made his fortune by turning a financially troubled Atlanta television station into a media empire centered around CNN, the first 24-hour cable news station, and by acquiring ownership of the famed Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks.
Find out who Mr. Turner will leave his legacy to and how much the late business titan will be worth upon his death.
Was Ted Turner married?
Ted Turner was not married at the time of his death. The businessman was married three times, with Judy (Nye) Turner in the 1960s, with whom he had a daughter, Laura, and a son, Robert Edward “Teddy” IV. He had three remaining children with Jane Smith Turner from 1964 to 1980: Beau, Rhett, and Jenny. And perhaps most famously, he gave it to actress Jane Fonda from 1991 to 2001.
Although Turner said he had a failed marriage and regrets it, the businessman reportedly had four girlfriends at one point. He joked to Piers Morgan in a 2012 CNN interview that he had “taken great pains” to maintain the “complicated” arrangement.
Ted Turner’s children followed in his footsteps
Most of Turner’s children have followed in his philanthropic and conservation footsteps.
On May 6, Fonda posted a tribute on Instagram: “Five children survive. Five talented and complex children that I had the privilege of being a stepmother to. I still love them. If it was complicated to be married to him, think how complicated it must have been to be his child. And they’re all doing well.”
The eldest, Laura Turner Seidel, is an environmental activist who chairs organizations such as the Captain Planet Foundation and nonprofit boards, including her parents’ group.
Prior to entering yacht brokerage, Robert Edward “Teddy” Turner IV worked in various areas of the Turner business, including television production. He currently teaches economics and serves on the boards of various organizations, including his mother’s Jane Smith Turner Foundation. He also ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2013.
Beau Turner’s work includes serving in a variety of leadership roles, including chair of the Turner Endangered Species Fund, continuing his father’s environmental and wildlife conservation efforts.
Rhett Turner continues the conversationalist tradition through photography and documentary filmmaking through his film production company.
And his youngest daughter, Jenny Turner Garlington, whose environmental activist work includes serving on the board of the Turner Foundation, on the boards of other wildlife organizations, and as a producer for the network’s now-defunct environmental division.
Ted Turner net worth
According to Forbes, Ted Turner’s net worth was posthumously valued at $2.5 billion.
The mogul infamously lost $8 billion in the disastrous merger of AOL and Time Warner in 2001 during the dot-com crash. He was also willing to donate much of his fortune, including $1 billion to United Nations programs and environmental causes funded through the Turner Foundation.
His wealth lies primarily in land ownership, as he is the second largest private landowner in North America, owning approximately 2 million acres of land across eight U.S. states and Argentina. The land is managed by Turner Enterprises, with the goal of governing it in an “economically sustainable and environmentally responsible manner while promoting the conservation of native species.”
