Jerry Springer honored, remembered during celebration of life

CINCINNATI (WXIX) - Friends and family gathered at Memorial Hall on Friday to honor the life of the late Cincinnati icon, Jerry Springer.

Prior to his entertainment career, Springer held several political positions within the city.

In 1971, he was elected to Cincinnati City Council. Several years later he became mayor and served one term.

Hamilton County Commissioner Denise Driehaus says she knew the former mayor well from when she used to babysit his daughter, Katie.

“We’d have great conversations on the way when he was taking me home. All these great stories. I mean he was a great guy. He was great for this city. He was here at a time when we needed somebody to think differently,” she said Friday after the ceremony.

Before making the jump to full-time show host, Springer worked as an anchor and political reporter in the Cincinnati television market.

“The Jerry Springer Show,” which aired for 27 years from 1991 to 2018, became known for its outlandish segments. At the height of the show’s popularity it even topped Oprah Winfrey’s show in the ratings, the AP says.

He even had a cameo in the 1999 comedy, “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me.”

Before the conclusion of “The Jerry Springer Show,” Springer sat down with FOX19 NOW to talk about the craziness of his show. Watch his interview and more in the videos at the top of the story.

The daytime show ended with more than 4,000 episodes aired.

FOX19′s Betsy Ross also had the opportunity to work with the talk-show host and former mayor.

“He would have loved what people said about him. There were a lot of laughs. There were a lot of tears and I think that it was something that we all felt Jerry’s presence there,” Ross said after the ceremony on Friday.

In October 2022, Springer made an appearance on the FOX game show, “The Masked Singer,” which would have been one of his final appearances on TV, according to the BBC.

The former mayor and talk show host died on April 27 after battling pancreatic cancer.

Many attended his memorial Friday, including Cincinnati City Councilmember Scotty Johnson.

”It’s a great day to remember a great guy that did a whole lot of different things and he did it his own way. Jerry, honestly, made being a politician cool. And that’s something I admired. He was always encouraging when I talked to him so I’m here to celebrate a great man’s life,” Johnson said.

Only close family and friends were invited via invitation to the memorial on Friday.

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