The pairing of Oscar-winning actress and anti-war activist Jane Fonda and swaggering media mogul Ted Turner, known as "The Mouth of the South," made no sense on paper.
But the star couple and their decade-long marriage, from 1991 to 2001 (the third for each), is one of the most enduring and fascinating relationships of that era and a major chapter in Turner's colorful life — which ended on May 6 at his home near Tallahassee, Florida at age 87.
Fonda, 88, paid tribute to Turner with a May 6 Instagram post.
"He swept into my life, a gloriously handsome, deeply romantic, swashbuckling pirate and I’ve never been the same," Fonda wrote. "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."
In their prime, the couple attended Turner-owned Atlanta Braves baseball games together, held hands on the 62nd annual Academy Awards red carpet, and brought their star power to the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Fonda, who gave up her acting career at Turner's insistence, admitted her role on the world stage was often a supporting one.
