Ted Bensinger obit

Ted Bensinger, 1929-2013 

He was not on the list.

Ted Bensinger was born on November 27, 1929 in Chicago, Illinois, USA as Benjamin Edward Bensinger. He was an actor, known for The Fugitive (1963) and Batman (1966). He was married to Jarma Lewis. He died on June 29, 2013 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

B.E. “Ted” Bensinger III was the great-grandson of the founder of Brunswick Corp., but he left the family business early, about the time its iconic automated bowling pinsetting systems were coming online, to follow his own path in finance and investments.

“He invested in real estate in Jackson Hole (Wyoming) and Indian Wells (California) and in Jamaica,” said his brother Peter. “He had a good eye for people and for places.”

He was also an athlete and outdoorsman.

“He liked to hunt and fish and play golf and make outrageous golf bets,” said Peter Bensinger, administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration from 1976 to 1981.

Mr. Bensinger, 83, died of complications from lung and brain cancer Saturday, June 29, in his Beverly Hills, Calif., home, according to his brother.

He grew up on the Near North Side of Chicago. After attending Culver Military Academy in Indiana, he went on to Yale University, graduating in 1951.

He began with Brunswick in sales in Iowa. By the late 1950s, he was branch manager of the company’s Los Angeles office, covering Southern California for the company then best known for billiards and bowling equipment.

“Teddy was a very good salesman,” his brother said.

But he was fascinated with finance and investing, and after earning a master’s degree in business administration from UCLA in the early 1960s, he worked for what was then Dean Witter & Co. in California. He later spent time with Lehman Bros. in London before returning to California.

There he was involved in activities ranging from investing in real estate to owning a date farm near Palm Springs to owning racehorses. And he continued his athletic pursuits.

“He was a jack-of-all-trades,” his brother said, “a sportsman and investor who gave a lot of money to charities.”

Mr. Bensinger had been a member of the Board of Governors of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Southern California since 2007. He also donated a patient room waiting area in the radiation oncology division of the Cedars-Sinai Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute there, according to a representative.

“He was one of those unforgettable characters,” said longtime friend Gardner Stern. “He was dynamic, energetic and great company, and a great storyteller.”

Another friend, Ed Weil Jr., agreed. “We told stories to each other. Some were true, some not.”

Mr. Bensinger is also survived by sons John, Kerry and Tyler; another brother, Roger; and six grandchildren.

Mr. Bensinger was married for 25 years to the late film actress Jarma Lewis before their divorce. Two subsequent marriages also ended in divorce.