Ted Turner 1938-2026
05-06-26 | 10:53 AM
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From: Somewhere between Heaven and Hell
Ted Turner 1938-2026
By Jonathan Kandell
May 6, 2026 Updated 11:39 a.m. ET
Ted Turner, the media mogul who cut a brash and vivid figure on the American scene of the late 20th century by dominating the cable television industry, creating the 24-hour news cycle with CNN, and extending his restless reach into professional sports, environmentalism and philanthropy, died on Wednesday at his home near Tallahassee, Fla. He was 87.
Phillip Evans, a spokesman for the family, confirmed the death. Mr. Turner announced in 2018 that he had Lewy body dementia, a progressive brain disorder.
May 6, 2026 Updated 11:39 a.m. ET
Ted Turner, the media mogul who cut a brash and vivid figure on the American scene of the late 20th century by dominating the cable television industry, creating the 24-hour news cycle with CNN, and extending his restless reach into professional sports, environmentalism and philanthropy, died on Wednesday at his home near Tallahassee, Fla. He was 87.
Phillip Evans, a spokesman for the family, confirmed the death. Mr. Turner announced in 2018 that he had Lewy body dementia, a progressive brain disorder.
05-06-26 | 11:04 AM
#2
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
I appreciate his love of wrestling which led to WCW getting national exposure it might not have otherwise and him being half of the inspiration behind cinema classic Gremlin 2’s Daniel Clamp.
I know little else about him. I know he was viewed as a kind of “Good” captain of industry. I don’t know that that is totally possible in this country but in respect to the aforementioned qualities about him I won’t research any further.
I know little else about him. I know he was viewed as a kind of “Good” captain of industry. I don’t know that that is totally possible in this country but in respect to the aforementioned qualities about him I won’t research any further.
05-06-26 | 11:43 AM
#3
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
Hopefully the mortician does a good job of giving his corpse some colorization.
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Kurt D (05-06-26)
05-06-26 | 12:23 PM
#4
DVD Talk God
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
He was definitely a pioneer with cable TV. Before TNT lost the NBA and stopped making scripted TV, it was a pretty solid cable network.
And I did watch a lot of TBS back in the day.
I still watch CNN sporadically, but I know a lot of people hate that network.
And I did watch a lot of TBS back in the day.
I still watch CNN sporadically, but I know a lot of people hate that network.
05-06-26 | 02:01 PM
#5
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
When I used to eat meat regularly, I used to love his Bison restaurant, Ted's Montana Grill. It was hot thing for about 5 minutes.
I was surprised to see that there are still 47 open locations across 16 states. All the ones around us closed many years ago. Bison meat tasted pretty damn good. I thought it was Buffalo until I looked it up. Apparently, they are two different animals, and I have to admit that I thought they were the same thing.
I was surprised to see that there are still 47 open locations across 16 states. All the ones around us closed many years ago. Bison meat tasted pretty damn good. I thought it was Buffalo until I looked it up. Apparently, they are two different animals, and I have to admit that I thought they were the same thing.
05-06-26 | 03:26 PM
#6
DVD Talk Legend
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
Ted's had great food. Their onion rings were fantastic.
AFAIK, the one not far from me is still open.
AFAIK, the one not far from me is still open.
05-06-26 | 10:54 PM
#7
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
No wonder he bought a lot of land to protect bison.
RIP and he left a legacy of great TV networks and WCW when it was still in business.
The world would have sucked with no CNN, TNT, TCM, Headline News, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and TBS.
He made a big donation to the UN so he was not the typical greedy rich guy.
RIP and he left a legacy of great TV networks and WCW when it was still in business.
The world would have sucked with no CNN, TNT, TCM, Headline News, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and TBS.
He made a big donation to the UN so he was not the typical greedy rich guy.
05-07-26 | 01:07 AM
#8
DVD Talk Hero
Re: Ted Turner 1938-2026
He made the Atlanta Braves a team with a national following through the power of TBS. Cable would have been very different without Turner in the 1980s and 1990s. Apparently the WCW was never particularly profitable until the NWO era and only remained on the air thanks to Ted.
