CNN Founder Ted Turner Dies at Age 87—After Retreating From Media To Spend His Final Years on 113,000-Acre Montana Ranch

CNN founder and so-called "Mouth of the South" Ted Turner has died at the age of 87, eight years after revealing that he had been diagnosed with Lewy body dementia.

News of Turner's passing was first reported by the network that he launched in 1980, with a statement shared by his company, Turner Enterprises, noting that he was surrounded by his family and loved ones when he died.

"On behalf of the Turner family, it is with great sadness that we announce the passing of philanthropist, environmentalist and cable pioneer Ted Turner who died peacefully today at age 87, surrounded by his family," the statement read.

"He is survived by his five children—Laura Turner Seydel (Rutherford), Robert E. (Teddy) Turner IV (Blair), Rhett Turner, Beau Turner (Georgia), Jennie Turner Garlington (Peek), 14 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren."

The media magnate was considered a pioneer of modern news, having spent a majority of his career working in the industry, beginning at the age of 24, when he took over his father's billboard company.

However, in his later years, Turner, who was previously married to actress Jane Fonda, turned his focus to another great passion: ranches, buying up a reported 14 ranch properties across the U.S., including a staggering 113,000-acre spread in Montana, where he is understood to have spent many of the years leading up to his death.

In 2012, Turner spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about his passion for environmentalism, telling the outlet that he had amassed a staggering portfolio of 28 properties, 14 of which were ranches with 55,000 bison between them.

Once upon a time, Turner was considered America's largest private landowner, with close to 2 million acres across his properties—although he was later exceeded by his fellow media mogul John Malone, the chairman of Liberty Media, who amassed around 2.2 million acres as of 2011.

At the time of his death, Turner had an estimated net worth of around $2.6 billion—a large portion of which had been invested into properties across the U.S., which included his beloved ranch in Bozeman, MT, where he is understood to have been based for many of his final years.

"Turner’s happiest moments were spent on his lands where he claimed to have felt most at home, surrounded by his bison, as well as numerous other animal and plant species," his website notes.

"For instance, he found solace fly fishing on his ranches in Montana during the summer months; quail hunting and fishing in the fall and winter on his southeastern properties in Georgia and Florida; and spending early to late spring on his properties in New Mexico which are part of the Ted Turner Reserves portfolio of nature tourism destinations.

"In an effort to protect the habitats of the species living on his lands, some of which are imperiled or endangered, and to conserve the biodiversity of his properties, Turner founded the Turner Endangered Species Fund in 1997. The Fund, which works closely with all of Turner’s properties, has seen great success in species such as the Desert Bighorn Sheep, Aplomado Falcon and the Rio Grande Cutthroat Trout."

The company further notes that Turner had taken steps before his death to ensure that his ranches will "continue to be protected," with all future development and parcellation of the properties limited.

"At the time of his death, Turner was also one of the largest private landowners in the United States with more than two million acres," it states. "The wellbeing of these properties and the species present on each was of utmost importance to Turner; therefore, Turner ensured that upon his passing, his lands will continue to be protected, limiting future development and parcellation."

According to Turner's website, he owned "personal and ranch land in eight U.S. states" when he passed away, having purchased his "first bison in 1967 and his first ranch in 1987."

Turner dedicated all of his ranches to bettering the environment, with the website noting: "All of the Turner ranches feature one or more of the following: bison ranching, commercial hunting or fishing and limited sustainable timber harvesting.

"Mr. Turner’s commitment to the environment is consistent with the management philosophy of his ranches and properties. The mission statement of Turner Enterprises, Inc. is 'to manage Turner lands in an economically sustainable and ecologically sensitive manner while promoting the conservation of native species.'

"This philosophy allows natural processes to take precedence, but still recognizes the 'hand of man.' Turner Enterprises, Inc. strives for management that is both ecologically sensitive and commercially sustainable."

The media tycoon was said to have carried around a list of "11 Voluntary Initiatives" in his wallet on which he made clear his commitment to sustainability, with one point noting: "I promise to care for Planet Earth and all living things thereon, especially my fellow beings."

Turner's ranches are located in Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, and South Dakota—however, Variety notes that he "spent a good portion of his final years on his 113,000-acre ranch near Bozeman."

That property, which is known as Flying D Ranch, is described on its website as offering a beautiful natural environment that includes "steep, forested land ... rolling meadows ... [and] high-rolling bench topography."

"A good habitat for a variety of native wildlife, the Flying D is home to established populations of mule deer, white-tailed deer, Rocky Mountain elk, Rocky Mountain gray wolf, Shiras moose, pronghorn antelope, black bear, mountain lions and badgers, among others," the description continues.

"In addition to these species, golden and bald eagle sightings are made throughout most of the year."

Flying D was one of two ranches Turner owned in Montana—however, his largest land holdings were in Nebraska, where he owned five properties totaling close to 450,000 acres.

Turner is credited, according to CNN, with helping to "bring bison back from the brink of extinction," and he later opened a chain of Ted's Montana Grill restaurants, where he served the meat reared on his ranches. The outlet reports that there are currently 40 of these venues operating in 16 states across the U.S.

The media mogul was born in Ohio but raised largely in Savannah, GA, where his family moved when he was 9 years old. He attended Brown University, but was later expelled, prompting a return to the South, where he began buying up radio stations—before pivoting to TV and then sports.

In 1976, four years before launching CNN, Turner bought the Atlanta Braves, before snapping up the Atlanta Hawks the following year, using his television stations to broadcast their games.

However, it was his launch of CNN, which became the first-ever 24-hour news network, that solidified Turner's status as one of the country's most prominent media giants, and saw him named as TIME's Man of the Year in 1991.

"Ted was an intensely involved and committed leader, intrepid, fearless and always willing to back a hunch and trust his own judgement," CNN CEO Mark Thompson said in a statement.

“He was and always will be the presiding spirit of CNN. Ted is the giant on whose shoulders we stand, and we will all take a moment today to recognize him and his impact on our lives and the world.”

However, in the early 2000s, Turner began to pivot away from television—and media—in order to focus his efforts on philanthropy and environmentalism, a passion he and his former spouse, Fonda, shared during their marriage, which lasted for 10 years, from 1991 until 2001.

Fonda was the last of Turner's three wives; he had previously been married to Judy Nye from 1960 until 1964, then tied the knot with Jane Shirley Smith in 1965, before they divorced in 1988. Turner welcomed five children during his first two marriages.

After his split from Fonda, Turner admitted that he was left devastated by the end of the relationship—particularly as it came during a very difficult period in his professional life, during which he lost a reported $7 billion.

"I lost Jane. I lost my job here. I lost my fortune, most of it. Got a billion or two left. You can get by on that if you economize," he famously told Piers Morgan during a 2012 interview.

However, he noted that he and Fonda had remained close, regularly appearing at charity events together and even speaking on the phone frequently.

In 2018, during an interview with "CBS Sunday Morning" at his Bozeman estate, Turner revealed that he had been diagnosed with Lewy body dementia, a progressive brain disorder that affects a person's memories and cognitive functions—and is considered fatal.

At the time, he told the network that he was grateful to have not been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, although he conceded that he he was experiencing some difficult symptoms, saying: "[I'm] tired. Exhausted. That's the main symptoms, and, forgetfulness."