Celebrating the Legacy of Ted Beattie

Zoo Knoxville Executive Director 1987-1992

The international zoo community has lost a visionary pioneer with the passing of Ted A. Beattie, who served as the executive director of Zoo Knoxville from 1987 until 1992. His leadership was transformative for Zoo Knoxville.  With the support of his wife Penny, he created a cultural shift that established the zoo’s relevance in the community and laid the foundation for Zoo Knoxville’s ongoing momentum.

Shortly after his arrival in Knoxville, Ted took some of the zoo’s most influential founding supporters, including Bill Arant, Jim Haslam and Sharon Pryse, on a trip to Africa, and ignited their passion to build a great zoo for Knoxville.  Ted and Penny united a newly formed board of directors that included Natalie Haslam, whose vision established the iconic Knoxville events Zoofari and BOO! at the Zoo.   

Under Ted’s guidance, Zoo Knoxville rose to a new level of professionalism and earned accreditation by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), the gold standard for any facility caring for animals and making Zoo Knoxville part of the largest conservation movement on the planet.  The zoo added new departments and gained international recognition for the work it was doing to save species.  He built the zoo’s first modern exhibits with natural habitats, and in 2019 his impact was memorialized when the “Heart of Africa” area at Zoo Knoxville was named in his honor.

“What Ted put in motion during his time as executive director was the zoo’s evolution into a conservation organization working to save animals from extinction on an international level,” said Lisa New, president and CEO of Zoo Knoxville. 

After his departure from Zoo Knoxville, Ted worked as the executive director of the Fort Worth Zoo.  In 1994, he accepted the defining role of his career as president and CEO of John G. Shedd Aquarium Chicago, where he oversaw the $47 million addition of Wild Reef in 2003 and the $79 million renovation of the Abbott Oceanarium marine mammal pavilion in 2009.

He led Shedd Aquarium for 22 years before his retirement in 2016.

“Tedd Beattie may have left East Tennessee but he never stopped supporting Zoo Knoxville. He was there when we needed him,” said Patrick Roddy, former executive director of Zoo Knoxville. 

Ted A. Beattie (77) passed away peacefully on January 6 in Sarasota, Florida, surrounded by family.  Zoo Knoxville is proud to be part of his legacy.