CNN founder and media mogul Ted Turner passed away on Wednesday at the age of 87. Turner Enterprises confirmed the news of his passing. Tony Ressler from The Hawkes also shared, “A true original, a visionary, and a force of nature whose impact will be felt for generations,” recalling Ted Turner.Recently, Ted Turner’s ex-wife, Jane Fonda, wrote a heartwarming long note, paying tribute to the late entrepreneur and famed media personality. Jane and Ted were married for 10 years before they parted ways in 2001. Remembering her late ex-husband, Jane shared, “MY IMMEDIATE THOUGHTS ABOUT TED: He swept into my life, a gloriously handsome, deeply romantic, swashbuckling pirate, and I’ve never been the same.”
Jane Fonda’s beautifully heartwarming tribute to Ted Turner
Describing their bond, Jane continued, “He needed me. No one had ever let me know they needed me, and this wasn’t your average human being that needed me; this was the creator of CNN and Turner Classic Movies, who had won the America’s Cup as the world’s greatest sailor. He had a big life, a brilliant mind, and a soaring sense of humor.”She further elaborated, “He could also take care of me. That was new as well. To be needed and cared for simultaneously is transformative. Ted Turner helped me believe in myself.” Highlighting it as Ted’s greatest strengths, she continued, “He gave me confidence. I think I did the same for him, but that’s what women are raised to do. Men like Ted aren’t supposed to express need and vulnerability. That was Ted’s greatest strength, I believe.” She mentioned how over the years, Ted helped her learn, grow, and evolve on different scales and levels. “He also taught me more than any other person or school classes, mostly about nature and wildlife, hunting and fishing (hunters and fishermen who follow the law are the best environmentalists), but also about business and strategy. Ted was supremely strategic,” she said before adding, “It was likely innate, but he studied the Classics in college, knew about the Peleponesian War inside and out and the strategies used by Alexander the Great and even Genghis Khan. And sailing big boats as he did further honed those strategic talents which he then brought into his businesses to much success. He could see around corners for sure.” “Next to Katharine Hepburn, Ted was the most competitive person I have ever met and that was fascinating to witness. Whether it was who’d made the most ski runs at the end of the day, to acres of land owned (stewarded is the more fitting word for his relationship to land), who had the most billions, how many countries he’d made love to his prior lover in and could I match that, it was challenging. Ted was challenging, but I’ve always been up for a challenge, and with Ted it was almost always worth it,” she added.
Jane Fonda’s final words of love and respect for her ex-husband Ted Turner
“As our friend, Ron Olson, said, ‘Ted was a great teacher, often by example. He challenged us to think big (he once asked me to draft a resolution for the UN and the US Congress to ban all nuclear weapons; I did) and act small (for the twenty years since meeting Ted, I too, pick up trash on my walks)’,” she continued.Pouring her heart out, she expressed her love and shared, “I loved Ted with all my heart. I see him in heaven now with all the wildlife he helped bring back from extinction – the black-footed ferrets, the prairie dogs, the Big Horned sheep, the Mexican gray wolf, the Yellowstone wolf pack, bison, the red cockaded woodpecker, and so many more; they’re all gathered at the pearly gates, applauding and thanking him for saving their species.““Five children survive him, five talented, complex kids whom I had the privilege of becoming stepmother to. I had four stepmothers growing up, and I know how important stepmothers can be, so we all did our best to build an extended, rag-tag family, and I love them to this day. If it was complicated to be married to him, think how complicated it was being his child. And they are all doing fine. Rest in Peace, dearest Ted. You are loved, and you will be remembered,” she concluded.
