I vaguely recall reading a Warren Buffett interview long ago in which he gently chided Ted Turner for always talking about himself in the press. We all know what's happened since then--Buffett is on CNBC every other day, while Turner has become something of a recluse. And I also recall reading a Ted Turner interview in which he scolded Warren Buffett for not giving away more of his money. We know what's happened since then too.
Tempora mutantur nos et mutamur in illis, as Benjamin Graham might say.
Anyway, in connection with the release of his memoirs, Turner did an interview for 60 Minutes. You should check it out. Love him or hate him, you can learn a lot about business from him because he, like Steve Wynn, has the candor gene. He just can't help blurting out what he thinks, and people like that make the best teachers.
My first stock purchase as an adult was because of Ted Turner. I bought shares in Time Warner soon after he merged his company into it. I had the romantic notion that Turner would revitalize the decadent Time Warner culture with his entrepreneurial, penny-pinching energy. I ended up making about 2.5x my money, although I suspect the bull market and a revival in the cable sector had more to do with it than my original thesis.
Disclosure: Long Berkshire Hathaway
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