[1] Bennett was born to a Jewish family[2] in Chicago, Illinois, in 1930,[3] the son of Kathryn (née Susman), a journalist, and Yale Fishman, a lawyer.

[3] As a young boy, Bennett appeared on the radio program Quiz Kids, which introduced him to show business.

[3] Following The Mod Squad, Bennett joined Universal Studios where he produced a variety of television series and miniseries.

He was particularly drawn to the episode "Space Seed," which featured Ricardo Montalbán as the genetically enhanced supervillain Khan Noonien Singh.

Bennett himself developed the original story premise, and then worked with screenwriter Jack B. Sowards on the early drafts of the screenplay.

[4] Star Trek II proved to be an enormous success, both in terms of the box office receipts and fan response.

Also, Martin Davis who at the time was the head of Gulf & Western, wanted a film featuring the original cast to mark Star Trek's 25th anniversary in 1991.

After producing the Star Trek films, Bennett wrote the television movie Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (1992).

[5] Bennett died on February 25, 2015, in Medford, Oregon, due to a burst embolism in his small intestine and a second one found in his lung.