On April 27th, television legend Jerry Springer passed away at the age of 79 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.
Though he had a stint in politics and even served as mayor of Cincinnati, OH, Springer was best known as host of the television show that shared his name. Beginning in the 1990’s, Springer would bring guests onto his talk show to confront one another over cheating scandals, drug use, false identities, and a host of other sensational topics.
Of course, the tabloid nature of his show meant that he was a natural fit to work with WWE. In 2010, he served as guest host of Monday Night Raw, presenting a very special episode of his show that saw Kelly Kelly claim to be pregnant, though she didn’t know who the father was. Santino, Brie Bella (who Nikki Bella claimed was a man), and Chris Masters were all in contention. Eve Torres attacked Kelly Kelly for sleeping with Chris Masters, as Torres claimed to be in a relationship with him, but later revealed she had been cheating with The Great Khali.
In 2014, Springer returned to Monday Night Raw to host an intervention between the Bella Twins, who were feuding after Nikki turned on Brie at SummerSlam and helped Stephanie McMahon defeat her sister. The segment featured appearances from the twins’ parents as well as their brother JJ, and Nikki yelled that she wished her sister had died in the womb.
WWE Issued A Statement On Jerry Springer’s Passing
Following news that Springer had passed away, WWE issued a statement on their website, paying tribute to the star for his contributions to the sports entertainment giant.
WWE is saddened to learn that Jerry Springer has passed away.
A former mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio, Springer launched his iconic television career for the city’s NBC affiliate before debuting his legendary talk show “Jerry Springer” in 1991. His show captured the zeitgeist of the late ’90s to early 2000’s, bringing him world-wide success and renown. Chants of “Jerry! Jerry!” followed the magnetic host wherever he went, including multiple appearances with WWE.
In WWE, Springer was a guest host of Raw in 2010 and played a part in a hostile rivalry between WWE Hall of Famers Brie and Nikki Bella, attempting to mediate the conflict between the two on an episode of Raw in 2014.
Springer would also lend his talents to WWE in 2015 as the host of the WWE Network series “WWE Too Hot for TV.”
In 2019, after many successful seasons of “Jerry Springer,” Springer became the host of “Judge Jerry,” using his past legal experience to preside over court cases.
WWE extends its condolences to Springer’s family, friends, and fans.