Stephen Leo Bing (March 31, 1965 – June 22, 2020) was an American businessman, philanthropist, film producer, and screenwriter. He was the founder of Shangri-La Entertainment, an organization with interests in property, construction, entertainment and music. Early life Bing was born in New York City in 1965. His parents were Helen, a nurse, and Peter Bing, a doctor in public health. He was of Jewish background. Bing attended the Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles. At the age of 18, he inherited an estimated $600 million from his grandfather, Leo S. Bing, a real estate developer who had made his fortune in New York in the 1920s. The Los Angeles Business Journals January 2010 publication of "The Lists 2010" listed him in its "Wealthiest Angelenos" section of the magazine, which estimated his worth at $590 million, coming in at No. 46. After inheriting his fortune, Bing dropped out of Stanford University in his junior year to pursue a career in Hollywood. Entertainment industry Bing reportedly invested $80 million in The Polar Express, an animated film featuring the voice of Tom Hanks, which earned $285 million globally and was one of the year's box-office successes. He was also the financier of Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf, and the producer/financier of Shine a Light, a Rolling Stones concert film directed by Martin Scorsese. Bing also financed and produced the independently released Jerry Lee Lewis album Last Man Standing. In addition to his producing and film finance work, he also co-wrote both the screenplay and the story of Kangaroo Jack (2003). Politics Beginning with a $500 contribution in 1993 to support Senator Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., in his bid for re-election, Bing contributed more than $10.7 million at the federal level to the Democratic Party and its candidates, according to OpenSecrets. The biggest checks were written in 2002 when he gave a total of $8.2 million to the Democratic National Committee. He also gave to specific candidates, including Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein. Bing was reported to have given at least $49.5 million during the 2006 election cycle in support of Proposition 87, a California initiative which sought to raise $4 billion in oil production taxes to help develop alternative fuels. Bing also supported several key races in other parts of the country as Democrats fought to win back control of Congress. They included Democratic challenger Bob Casey, Jr. in Pennsylvania,