( CNN ) -- CNN and Turner Broadcasting System founder Ted Turner says he 's `` recuperating well '' after falling ill South America . Turner , 75 , confirmed in a statement issued Monday that he `` underwent a minor surgical procedure due to appendicitis '' during a `` brief hospital stay '' in Argentina . Turner 's spokesman previously declined to reveal why he was hospitalized last Friday , saying only that he was there `` for observation . '' Argentina 's state-run Telam news agency reported Turner was initially treated in Bariloche , a lakeside city near the Chilean border , about 1,500 kilometers ( 940 miles ) southwest of Buenos Aires . He was suffering from acute abdominal pain , according to clinic spokeswoman Paula Redondo . Turner was flown later that morning to the capital of Buenos Aires to have surgery , according to Telam . `` I 'm happy to report I 'm recuperating well and looking forward to getting back to business as usual , '' Turner said Monday in his statement . `` The doctors and medical staff at both hospitals in Bariloche and Buenos Aires were amazing and took really good care of me . '' He said he was heading back to the United States . `` To my family , current and former colleagues and everyone else who called , sent notes of encouragement and get well wishes , I ca n't thank you enough for lifting my spirits during my ordeal , '' he said . `` During moments like this I tend to reflect on the past , and while I have dealt with many difficult situations in my lifetime , I am humbled by this experience and will be forever grateful to you all . '' Soon after graduating from Brown University and serving in the U.S. Coast Guard , Turner took over the family business -- Turner Advertising -- in 1963 . Seven years later , he bought TV stations in Charlotte , North Carolina , and Atlanta to kickstart a media empire that would one day include TBS , TNT , HLN , Cartoon Network , TCM and CNN , which launched in 1980 . In 1996 , Turner sold Turner Broadcasting to Time Warner , though he remained active in the business for several more years . Besides his business ventures -- including the Ted 's Montana Grill chain and the renewable energy company RT Solar -- Turner has been one of the United States most generous philanthropists , including a $ 1 billion donation to the United Nations in 1997 . The reinvention of Ted Turner . CNN 's Greg Botelho and Robert Lenz contributed to this report .
Ted Turner confirms he `` underwent a minor surgical procedure due to appendicitis '' `` I am humbled by this experience , '' the CNN founder says . Turner was hospitalized in Argentina Friday .