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| The late Ted Turner / Photo: screenshot from his official website |
On May 6 (local time), the British tabloid the Daily Mail reported on Turner’s death, noting that after three marriages and five children he gave a large share of his vast wealth back to society — maintaining his reputation as a philanthropist to the end.
Turner is reported to have donated at least one-third of his estate to charitable causes. Over the years he contributed at least $1.3 billion (approximately 1.73 trillion KRW) to a range of initiatives and in 1997 pledged $1 billion (approximately 1.33 trillion KRW) to the United Nations. In a 2017 op‑ed he called the U.N. “the best investment I ever made,” describing it as humanity’s best hope for a better world for his grandchildren and people everywhere. Because his fortune fell sharply after the 2001 AOL merger, his final payments to the U.N. were not completed until 2015.
Turner founded CNN in 1980, transforming how audiences consume news and building a media empire in the process. Forbes estimated his net worth at roughly $2.8 billion (approximately 3.73 trillion KRW) at the time of his death. He was the second‑largest private landowner in North America, holding about 2 million acres — roughly 3,100 square miles — across eight U.S. states.
Turner Enterprises said he died peacefully with family at his side. He was unmarried at the time of his death. Actress Jane Fonda, who was married to him for ten years, called him “my favorite ex‑husband” and paid tribute to him.
Turner had been living with Lewy body dementia and was hospitalized last June for a mild case of pneumonia. He is survived by five children from his first and second marriages, 14 grandchildren and two great‑grandchildren.
“I don’t measure success by numbers,” he once said. “Giving more than $1.3 billion (approximately 1.73 trillion KRW) to various causes is one of the proudest achievements of my life.”
[Sports Today reporter Lim Si-ryeong ent@stoo.com]
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