Who is Ted Jorgensen? All you need to know about Jeff Bezos' father
Family can sometimes be complicated, and no amount of wealth or power can change which family you are born into. So with that, imagine finding out you are the father of one of the wealthiest people on earth. This was the case for Ted Jorgensen, known as Jeff Bezos' father.
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Ted Jorgensen was the owner of a bicycle store in Glendale, Arizona. Interestingly enough, he did not know that Jeff Bezos is his son until a few years before his death.
Ted Jorgensen's profile summary
- Full name: Ted Jorgensen
- Gender: Male
- Date of birth: 10th of October 1944
- Place of birth: Chicago, Illinois, United States
- Date of death: 16th of March 2015
- Ted Jorgensen's age: 71 years (At the time of death)
- Zodiac sign: Libra
- Known for: Being Jeff Bezos' father
- Nationality: American
- Ethnicity: Caucasian
- Sexual orientation: Heterosexual
- Spouse: Jacklyn Bezos (1964-1965), Linda
- Children: Jeff Bezos
- Mother: Dolores Pollack
- Father: Theodore John
- Siblings: Gordon
- Occupation: Entrepreneur
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Ted Jorgensen's biography
Who is Jeff Bezos' natural father? Ted was born on 10 October, 1944 in Chicago, Illinois, United States. His parents are Theodore John Jorgensen and Dolores Pollack. Details of his childhood and upbringing remain unknown.
Bio
Since he was born in the US, Ted Jorgensen's nationality is American. He has a brother called Gordon Jorgensen. He lived in New Mexico for some time before moving to Glendale, Arizona, where he spent the rest of his life.
As for Ted Jorgensen's ethnicity, he traced his ancestry back to Denmark.
Ted Jorgensen's career
Ted Jorgensen's unicycle career started at the age of 18 when he worked as a performer at the circus. He had previously worked at a retail shop for a low wage. He migrated to Phoenix because he had lost custody of his son and became an entrepreneur, starting a bicycle shop called The Road Runner Bike Centre. Six years later, he moved his shop to Glendale.
Who is Ted Jorgensen's wife?
The late entrepreneur met his first wife, Jacklyn, when they were both teenagers in 1960. They later got into marriage. Ted, however, had a nasty tendency to binge drink, which has had a terrible impact on his wife and children. Only two years into the marriage, Jackie left.
Is Ted Jorgensen the father of Bezos? At the time Jackie left, she left with their infant son Jeffrey Preston. That was the last time Jorgensen ever saw his child.
'The last time I saw him, he was in diapers. Said Ted in an interview.
After many years, Brad Stone, a reporter and author of The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and Amazon, tracked down Jorgensen Glendale, Arizona, in 2012. The book shared the sad story of how Ted never had the chance to meet his son. He also got to admit his mistakes and tried to make up for them.
The reporter was shocked to hear that Jorgensen did not know who Jeff Bezos, who is one of the wealthiest people on earth. He said:
"I didn't know where he was, if he had a good job or not or if he was alive or dead."
He also admitted that he was not a good husband or father to Jackie and their son. It took him so long to contact his family because Jackie had asked him not to interfere.
"I used to wonder all the time, though, whatever happened to Jeff. Then I just reached a point where I thought he was long gone. That was the only child I ever had. That makes a difference too. I just want to see him as my son, just to have him acknowledge that I'm his father and he's my son."
Did Ted Jorgensen ever meet his son?
Unfortunately, he passed away on the 16th of March 2015 before his last wish could come true. Ted Jorgensen's cause of death is unknown.
After his separation from Jackie, Ted married a lady named Linda. Together, they raised four children called Mike, Lee, Darin and Todd. He also had 10 grandchildren. Jackie eventually married Michael Bezos, who later adopted Jeffery after much legal wrangling.
Is Ted Jorgensen rich?
Ted did not die a wealthy man compared with his son's wealth. His net worth, however, cannot be estimated.
Although Ted Jorgensen did not get to see his son one last time, at least he passed away knowing that Jeffery became successful in his life.
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Kelly Lippke (Senior Editor) Kelly Lippke is a copy editor/proofreader who started her career at the Northern-Natal Courier with a BA in Communication Science/Psychology (Unisa, 2007). Kelly has worked for several Caxton publications, including the Highway Mail and Northglen News. Kelly’s unique editing perspective stems from an additional major in Linguistics. Kelly joined Briefly News in 2018 and she has 14 years of experience. Kelly has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at kelly.lippke@briefly.co.za.
Privie Kandi (Entertainment Editor) Privilege Kandi is an entertainment news editor (joined Briefly in 2022). A Journalism and Mass Communication graduate from the Christian College of Southern Africa (2016), she has been in the arts and entertainment industry for six years. Privie has worked for the Zimbabwe International Film and Festival Trust as a communications officer and a writer and TV producer for lifestyle and entertainment channel CME TV. She passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at privie.kandi@briefly.co.za.