LOS ANGELES, June 22 (Variety.com) – Steve Bing, a movie producer, philanthropist and screenwriter, died Monday in Los Angeles. He was 55.
The death was apparently a suicide. Police and the coroner’s office confirmed he had jumped or fallen from a Century City building where he had a 27th-floor apartment. Sources told TMZ he had been suffering from depression.
Bing, who inherited a fortune of some $600 million from his grandfather, real estate developer Leo S. Bing, contributed millions of dollars to Democratic political causes.
His parents are Peter and Helen Bing, prominent donors to Stanford University. Among the projects they funded was the campus’s $50 million concert hall that bears their name.
After receiving his inheritance at the age of 18, Bing dropped out of Stanford to try out the movie business. While he was still a high school student at Los Angeles’ Harvard-Westlake School, he wrote the story for “Missing in Action” and later wrote an episode of “Married With Children.”
In 2003, he co-wrote the action comedy “Kangaroo Jack,” starring Anthony Anderson and Jerry O’Connell.
Bing invested some $80 million in “The Polar Express,” the Tom Hanks-voiced 2004 film directed by Robert Zemeckis. He had executive producer credits on a number of films and music documentaries, including Rolling Stones documentary “Shine a Light,” directed by Martin Scorsese, “CSNY/Deja Vu,” “Rock the Kasbah,” “Get Carter,” “Beowulf,” “Rules Don’t Apply” and “Girl Walks Into a Bar.”
For a time he also signed musicians, and released a Jerry Lee Lewis album. He was helping back a documentary on the early rock ‘n’ roller that is still in development.
In addition to having a close relationship with Bill Clinton, his political contributions have included Al Gore, Gavin Newsom, Hilary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein.
He was a major donor to the Motion Picture and Television Fund, and helped send Bill Clinton to North Korea to pick up Laura Ling and Euna Lee after their detention.
The contributor to progressive causes and Hollywood producer spent much of his life living in hotels and was known for his partying lifestyle and celebrity friends.
A 2002 Los Angeles Times article described him as a “high-profile Hollywood libertine,” saying, “He is a man dedicated apparently in equal measures to philanthropy, politics and women.”
He had two children from non-marital relationships: Damian Hurley, 18, with model-actress Elizabeth Hurley, and Kira Bonder, 21, with professional tennis player Lisa Bonder. Both women filed paternity suits to compel Bing to disclose his parenthood.
The dispute over the paternity of the Bonder baby led Bing to sue studio mogul Kirk Kerkorian for invasion of privacy and trespassing. Kerkorian — who had briefly been married to Lisa Bonder — had a private investigator steal dental floss from Bing’s wastebasket for a DNA test proving Bing was the father. The suit was resolved out of court.
A ruling last year by a Los Angeles judge invalidated Peter Bing’s attempt to exclude Damian Hurley and Kira Bonder as beneficiaries of the family trust. The children of Steve Bing’s sister, Mary, are appealing that ruling.
If you or someone you know is struggling with feelings of depression or suicidal thoughts, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline offers free, round-the-clock support, information and resources for help. Reach the lifeline at 800-273-8255.
Santa Clara County’s Crisis Hotline can be reached anonymously and confidentially at 1-855-278-4204 24 hours a day.