Jerry Springer is a pop culture icon and talk show veteran. He cemented a permanent place for himself in television history. WIth the recent news of his death, tributes to the late host have been pouring in.
"Other than my father, Jerry was the most influential man in my life," Steve Wilkos said in a statement. "Everything I have today I owe to Jerry. He was the smartest, most generous, kindest person I’ve ever known. My wife and I are devastated. We will miss him terribly."
Springer's show was often the subject of questions, the biggest of which was whether the guests were real people or paid actors.
Jerry Started His Career In Politics And Moved Over To Television
Even though he is now most famously associated with his long-running talk show, Springer first gained public attention for a completely different career.
Springer began a political career in Ohio. He unsuccessfully ran a campaign for Congress in 1970. Springer served in Cincinnati's City Council in 1971. The future talk show host would be elected the 56th mayor of Cincinnati, a position he held for one term from 1977 to 1978.
Springer later moved into television, with The Jerry Springer Show lasting 27 seasons, running from 1991 to 2018.
The show helped Springer branch out to other projects, which included hosting a radio talk show for two seasons. He also hosted America's Got Talent and starred in a film titled Ringmaster. Springer also competed on Dancing With the Stars.
"With all the joking I do with the show, I’m fully aware and thank God every day that my life has taken this incredible turn because of this silly show," he told the Cincinnati Enquirer in 2011.
After The Jerry Springer Show ended, he went on to host the Judge Jerry reality show. It ran for three seasons, from 2019 to 2022. His possible final television appearance was on The Masked Singer, where he was revealed in October 2022 as "The Beetle."
On April 27, 2023, Springer's spokesperson Linda Shafran confirmed the host died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 79. He passed away at his home in Chicago.
Jerry Reflected On His Family's History While Speaking About One Infamous Guest
Springer was born on February 13, 1944 in a London underground railway station that was used as a bomb shelter. His parents, Richard and Margot, named him Gerald Norman Springer. They were German Jews who fled to England during the Holocaust. Springer's family would later immigrate to the United States and settled in Queens, New York when he was five years old.
His family's history would greatly impact how Springer's show unfolded, as he reflected when speaking to People in 2019.
"We had a neo-Nazi on and I kind of lost it," Springer said. "I'd lost my family in the Holocaust, so when he started talking about turning my mother into a lampshade or something, I lost it."
Springer said that he regretted reacting the way he did.
"I'm supposed to be able to handle all the outrageous things. But I kind of put my finger in his face and yelled at him," he said. "Suddenly, he stood up and he was a big guy. I was like, 'Oh. This was not a good idea.' Thankfully security got him on the ground."
Jerry Said That The Stories On His Show Were '98% Real'
In 2002, TV Guide called The Jerry Springer Show the "worst show in the history of television." The Jerry Springer Show was known for its shocking and controversial moments. These moments included violent altercations between guests, chair throwing, and the security guards coming on stage to break up the fights. The audience would often chant "Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!" This helped The Jerry Springer Show hold a permanent place in pop culture history.
It also helped the show to do extremely well in the ratings. Springer himself even seemed to embrace the controversy, writing in his Twitter bio, "Talk show host, ringmaster of civilization’s end."
Springer would tell USA Today that even if he wanted to tone down the show's antics, he wouldn't have been able to.
"I'm contractually obligated," Springer said. "What the affiliates are buying is a show about craziness."
That craziness led to many rumors, the most prevalent being that the show's guests weren't real people, but actually paid actors. Springer himself addressed these rumors in February when speaking to Australia's The Morning Show.
"I'd say it was 98% real. In fact, the lawyers were involved, [so] you'd get sued if you made it up," Springer revealed.
While Springer insisted the guests were real, he did say they would behave in an over-the-top manner due to the nature of the show.
"The situations were truthful. What was embellished... was the reactions. Because you had the audience screaming, 'Jerry, Jerry!'" he said.
"They'd seen the show 100 times before. And so you could have the same people on Oprah and they would have behaved perfectly. It's just that when they came to our show, they kind of knew the drill and they just behaved like that," Springer added.
In 2019, Springer told People that he had no plans to stop working, because he genuinely enjoyed what he was doing.
"I will be stopping when I'm 104. I want to be able to enjoy my retirement," he said. "I'm lucky. I don't need to make a living anymore. I work because it's enjoyable to do and people enjoy the show. As long as I'm healthy, I'll keep doing it. I can't imagine doing nothing."
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGiuoZmkYremvtGyZKyoop67qLHRZqqaoZRitq950Z6qqaeeqLJuwM5mqa6ln6fAbrPUnqqtq12ku260yKxkrKCfrHq4sdGeZKmZmZl6oq%2FTqKmsZw%3D%3D