It’s been confirmed that iconic television host Jerry Springer has died. He was 79-years-old.
As shared via TMZ, “a family spokesperson says Jerry was battling a ‘brief illness.'” Although the spokesperson doesn’t go into more detail, they have sources which allege it was “pancreatic cancer” and only diagnosed within the last few months. Sadly, “this week he took a turn for the worse.”
The spokesperson continues to note that Jerry Springer, who passed away on Thursday morning, went “peacefully at his home in the Chicago area.” His most recent work up until his illness took over involved hosting a folk music show for a Cincinnati radio station.
Of course, many fans will recognize Springer for his talk show “The Jerry Springer Show.” The series first debuted in 1991 and soon escalated into a rather outrageous platform for guests. In fact, it was quite well-known for said guests to break into fights on the series while the audience cheered.
It became quite a sensation at the time and there was enough popularity to keep it running until 2018. By then, Springer took the time to work on other projects including his series “Judge Jerry.” This particular show only ran for three seasons, however, which goes to show just how much the earlier show resonated with audiences.
Springer’s early career also involved politics. Though he had a failed campaign to join the U.S. Congress in 1970, he eventually joined Cincinatti’s City Council a year later. And, in 1977, Springer was elected mayor for the city. He only served one term in the position, however, and clearly television became his strongsuit. Though even the early days of “The Jerry Springer Show” focused on politics before it grew into something much crazier.
Springer is survived by his daughter Katie Springer and older sister Evelyn. Fans can stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any possible updates as we have them.