page_title: Ted Turner
section_title: Other ventures
hierarchical_section_title: Ted Turner / Business career / Other ventures
caption_attribution_description: English: THE KREMLIN, MOSCOW. Vladimir Putin with Ted Turner.Русский: МОСКВА, КРЕМЛЬ. С известным американским предпринимателем и общественным деятелем Тедом Тернером.
context_page_description: Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media proprietor, producer, and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the Cable News Network, the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television, which later became TBS.
  As a philanthropist, he is known for his $1 billion gift to support the United Nations, which created the United Nations Foundation, a public charity to broaden U.S. support for the UN. Turner serves as Chairman of the United Nations Foundation board of directors. Additionally, in 2001, Turner co-founded the Nuclear Threat Initiative with US Senator Sam Nunn. NTI is a non-partisan organization dedicated to reducing global reliance on, and preventing the proliferation of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. He currently serves as Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors.
  Turner's media empire began with his father's billboard business, Turner Outdoor Advertising, which he took over in 1963 after his father's suicide. It was worth $1 million. His purchase of an Atlanta UHF station in 1970 began the Turner Broadcasting System.
context_section_description: In 1981, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Brut Productions from Faberge Inc.
  After a failed attempt to acquire CBS, Turner purchased the film studio MGM/UA Entertainment Co. from Kirk Kerkorian in 1986 for $1.5 billion. Following the acquisition, Turner had enormous debt and sold parts of the acquisition; Kerkorian bought back MGM/UA Entertainment. The MGM/UA Studio lot in Culver City was sold to Lorimar/Telepictures. Turner kept MGM's pre-May 1986 and pre-merger film and TV library
  Turner Entertainment Co. was established in August 1986 to oversee film and TV properties owned by Turner.
  In 1988, Turner purchased Jim Crockett Promotions which he renamed World Championship Wrestling (WCW) which became the main competitor to Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation (WWF). In 2001, under AOL Time Warner, it was sold to the World Wrestling Federation.
  Also in 1988, he introduced Turner Network Television (TNT) with Gone with the Wind. TNT, initially showing older movies and television shows, added original programs and newer reruns. TNT used World Championship Wrestling (WCW) to attract a broader audience.
  In 1989, Turner created the Turner Tomorrow Fellowship for fiction offering positive solutions to global problems. The winner, from 2500 entries worldwide, was Daniel Quinn's Ishmael.
  In 1992, the pre-May 1986 MGM library, which also included Warner Bros. properties including the early Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies libraries and also the Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios Popeye cartoons from Paramount (and then United Artists), became the core of Cartoon Network. A year before, Turner's companies purchased Hanna-Barbera Productions (whose longtime parent, Taft/Great American Broadcasting, had been headquartered in Turner's original hometown of Cincinnati), beating out several other bidders including MCA Inc. (whose subsidiaries included Universal Pictures and Universal Parks & Resorts) and Hallmark Cards. With the 1996 Time Warner merger, the channel's archives gained the later Warner Bros. cartoon library as well as other Time Warner-owned cartoons.
  In 1990, he created the Turner Foundation, which focuses on philanthropic grants in environment and population. In the same year he created Captain Planet, an environmental superhero. Turner produced two TV series with him as featured character.
  In 1993, Turner and Russian journalist Eduard Sagalajev founded The Moscow Independent Broadcasting Corporation (MIBC). This corporation operated the sixth frequency in Russian television and founded the Russian channel TV-6. The company was later purchased by Russian businessman Boris Berezovsky and an unknown group of private persons. In 2007 the license for TV-6 had expired and there was no application for renewal.
  Since its launch in late 1994, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) broadcast the older MGM, Warner Bros., and RKO libraries. In the mid-1980s, Turner became a force for the colorization of black-and-white films. In 1985, the film Yankee Doodle Dandy became the first black-and-white movie redistributed in color after computer coloring. Despite opposition by film aficionados, stars, and directors, the movie won over a section of the public, and Turner colorized  most of the films he had owned. However, in the mid-1990s, the cost of colorization led Turner to abandon the idea. In contrast with TNT, TCM has shown the unaltered versions of films.
caption: Turner with Vladimir Putin
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "TAS19: MOSCOW,RUSSIA. May 11. President Vladimir Putin /R/ gestures as he talks to well-known U.S. public figure and TV magnate Ted Turner, in the Kremlin here on Thursday. Turner is in Russia on \"a private trip\" which will last several days. He plans to meet, during this time, Russian statesmen and to hold an informal meeting with prominent men of culture. (ITAR-TASS photo / Vladimir Rodionov, Sergei Velichkin) ----- \u0422\u0410\u0421 34 \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u044f, \u041c\u043e\u0441\u043a\u0432\u0430, 11 \u043c\u0430\u044f. \u0412\u043e\u043f\u0440\u043e\u0441\u044b \u0431\u0435\u0437\u043e\u043f\u0430\u0441\u043d\u043e\u0441\u0442\u0438 \u0432 \u043c\u0438\u0440\u0435 \u0438 \u0432\u043e\u0437\u043c\u043e\u0436\u043d\u044b\u0435 \u043c\u0435\u0440\u044b \u043f\u043e \u0443\u043b\u0443\u0447\u0448\u0435\u043d\u0438\u044e \u0434\u043e\u0432\u0435\u0440\u0438\u044f \u043c\u0435\u0436\u0434\u0443 \u0420\u043e\u0441\u0441\u0438\u0435\u0439 \u0438 \u0421\u0428\u0410 \u043e\u0431\u0441\u0443\u0434\u0438\u043b\u0438 \u0441\u0435\u0433\u043e\u0434\u043d\u044f \u043d\u0430 \u0432\u0441\u0442\u0440\u0435\u0447\u0435 \u0432 \u041a\u0440\u0435\u043c\u043b\u0435 \u043f\u0440\u0435\u0437\u0438\u0434\u0435\u043d\u0442 \u0420\u0424 \u0412\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440 \u041f\u0443\u0442\u0438\u043d (\u043d\u0430 \u0441\u043d\u0438\u043c\u043a\u0435 \u0441\u043f\u0440\u0430\u0432\u0430) \u0438 \u0438\u0437\u0432\u0435\u0441\u0442\u043d\u044b\u0439 \u0430\u043c\u0435\u0440\u0438\u043a\u0430\u043d\u0441\u043a\u0438\u0439 \u043e\u0431\u0449\u0435\u0441\u0442\u0432\u0435\u043d\u043d\u044b\u0439 \u0434\u0435\u044f\u0442\u0435\u043b\u044c \u0422\u0435\u0434 \u0422\u0435\u0440\u043d\u0435\u0440 (\u0441\u043b\u0435\u0432\u0430). \u0422\u0435\u0440\u043d\u0435\u0440 \u0438\u0437\u0432\u0435\u0441\u0442\u0435\u043d \u0432 \u043c\u0438\u0440\u0435 \u0433\u043b\u0430\u0432\u043d\u044b\u043c \u043e\u0431\u0440\u0430\u0437\u043e\u043c \u043a\u0430\u043a \u043e\u0441\u043d\u043e\u0432\u0430\u0442\u0435\u043b\u044c \u043a\u0440\u0443\u0433\u043b\u043e\u0441\u0443\u0442\u043e\u0447\u043d\u043e\u0439 \u0438\u043d\u0444\u043e\u0440\u043c\u0430\u0446\u0438\u043e\u043d\u043d\u043e\u0439 \u0442\u0435\u043b\u0435\u043a\u043e\u043c\u043f\u0430\u043d\u0438\u0438 \u0421\u0438-\u044d\u043d-\u044d\u043d \u0438 \u043e\u0440\u0433\u0430\u043d\u0438\u0437\u0430\u0442\u043e\u0440 \u0418\u0433\u0440 \u0414\u043e\u0431\u0440\u043e\u0439 \u0412\u043e\u043b\u0438. \u0411\u0435\u0441\u0435\u0434\u0430 \u0412\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440\u0430 \u041f\u0443\u0442\u0438\u043d\u0430 \u0438 \u0422\u0435\u0434\u0430 \u0422\u0435\u0440\u043d\u0435\u0440\u0430 \u043f\u0440\u043e\u0434\u043e\u043b\u0436\u0430\u043b\u0430\u0441\u044c \u043e\u043a\u043e\u043b\u043e \u0447\u0430\u0441\u0430. \u043e\u0442\u043e \u0412\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440\u0430 \u0420\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043e\u043d\u043e\u0432\u0430 \u0438 \u0421\u0435\u0440\u0433\u0435\u044f \u0412\u0435\u043b\u0438\u0447\u043a\u0438\u043d\u0430 (\u0418\u0422\u0410\u0420-\u0422\u0410\u0421\u0421)", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS Windows", "Image DateTime": "2007:04:04 10:08:50", "Image Artist": "\u0412\u0435\u043b\u0438\u0447\u043a\u0438\u043d \u0421\u0435\u0440\u0433\u0435\u0439,\u0420\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043e\u043d\u043e\u0432 \u0412\u043b\u0430\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438", "Image ExifOffset": "1624", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "1762", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "7102", "EXIF ColorSpace": "Uncalibrated", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "500", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "334"}