Jerry Springer, the talk show host, was born on this date in 1944. 10 things you might not know about Jerry Springer.
His full name was Gerald Norman Springer. He was born in London, in Highgate Tube station, to be exact. His parents had fled from Prussia to escape the anti-Semitism of the 1930s. They were sheltering in the station from an air raid when Margot Springer gave birth. Jerry lived in London until he was five and then the family moved to Queens, New York City.
Before the talk show, he had a political career. He ran for Congress in Cincinnati at the age of 25, but during the campaign he was called up for military service. He served for four months and was discharged in time to carry on campaigning. He lost but gained 45% of the vote. This was enough to encourage him to run for city council in 1971. This time, he won. He had to resign in 1974 when it came to light he had visited prostitutes and paid them with bad cheques. Publicly admitting that he’d been a naughty boy won him respect and a reputation for honesty, and when he ran again in 1975, he was voted back in. He considered running for Senate in 2000 and 2004, but the negative associations of his talk show meant he had to withdraw.
His talk show debuted on September 30, 1991 and ran for 27 seasons. It started out as a serious political talk show but changed to improve ratings.
Springer once said that he never watched his own show as he wasn’t the target audience and it didn’t interest him, although he added that he liked the people who appeared as his guests. "My show is about outrageous behaviour, so by definition, everyone on the show has to be outrageous," he said. "Most of them are not wealthy and they're not well-educated, but I like them. I find them very refreshing. They don't put on airs."
His signature line was "Take care of yourself, and each other."
He appeared in other shows. He took a turn at acting in several TV shows and films, sometimes type cast as a talk show host, as in an episode of Married... with Children as the host of a talk show called The Masculine Feminist, in which he advocated for women over a men's bowling night and eventually taking over at a bowling alley; in the 1998 film Ringmaster as a talk show host largely based on himself, though named "Jerry Farrelly"; and a cameo appearance in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me as himself during an episode of his show featuring Dr. Evil and his estranged son Scott Evil. However, he did get to play other roles as well. He he played the US president in The Defender, directed by Dolph Lundgren. He was also a guest on Countdown, a contestant on Dancing With the Stars (he said he took part so he could dance at his daughter’s wedding) and he competed in The Masked Singer as "Beetle".
He also hosted a courtroom show called Judge Jerry, which gave him a chance to use his law school education. It lasted three seasons.
His wife’s name was Micki Velton. They married in 1973 and had one daughter, Katie, who was born without nasal passages, for which she required immediate surgery after birth. She is blind, as well as deaf in one ear.
The British musical, Jerry Springer: The Opera was inspired by him and his talk show. For the New York City performances of the work at Carnegie Hall his character was portrayed by Harvey Keitel. The show won four Olivier awards for its run on London's West End.
Steve Wilkos, the security chief on the Jerry Springer Show, the guy who’d break up the onstage fights, got his own daytime talk show on the back of it.
Beta
(Combat Team Series #2)
Steff was abducted by an evil alien race, the Orbs, at fourteen. Used as a weapon for years, he eventually escapes, but his problems are just beginning. How does a man support himself when his only work experience is a paper round and using an Orb bio-integrated gun?
Warlord is an alien soldier who knows little but war. When the centuries-old conflict which ravaged his planet ends, he seeks out another world where his skills are still relevant. There are always wars on Earth, it seems. However, none of Earth's powerful armies want him.
Natalie has always wanted to visit England and sees a chance to do so while using her martial arts skills, but there are sacrifices she must make in order to fulfil her dream.
Maggie resorted to crime to fund her sister's medical care. She uses her genetic variant abilities to gain access to the rooms of wealthy hotel guests. The Ballards look like rich pickings, but they are not what they seem. When Maggie targets them, little does she know that she is walking into a trap.
Hotel owner Hamilton Lonsdale puts together a combat team to pit against those of other multi-millionaires. He recruits Warlord, Natalie, Maggie and Steff along with a trained gorilla, a probability-altering alien, a stockbroker whose work of art proved to be much more than he'd bargained for, a marketing officer who can create psionic forcefields, a teleporting member of the landed gentry, and a socially awkward fixer. This is Combat Team Beta.
Steff never talks about his time with the Orbs, until he finds a woman who lived through it, too. Steff believes he has finally found happiness, but it is destined to be short-lived. He is left with an unusual legacy which he and Team Beta struggle to comprehend; including why something out there seems determined to destroy it.
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