Jerry Springer guests now – grisly murders, controversial episode ban and dance fame

The Jerry Springer Show became widely known for its outrageous guests, outlandish storylines and outspoken audience when it first launched in 1991.

Presented by American chat show host Jerry Springer until 2018, the show gave insight into people’s domestic issues as the guests shared their dirty linen in public with the rampant studio audience.

Although Jerry tried his best to help his guests with his calm demeanor, those that appeared on the show often ended up in brawling arguments and physical altercations, which was sometimes orchestrated by the host himeself.

The production became a massive hit amongst audiences but quickly became known for its controversial topics, profanity, physical fights and scantily-clad guests during the mid 90s.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight in 2016, Jerry previously said: “I just do it because it’s fun to do.

“And I’m not that good at golf. I think I’d go crazy if I retired. I’m always afraid not to be working. It’s psychological, I’m sure. If I ever have nightmares about something, it’s about not having a job, which is crazy, I know.”

So to celebrate Jerry’s 77th birthday Daily Star has taken a look at some of the stars of the show and some of the crazy things that previously took place.

Twisted murders

The Jerry Springer show was known for calamity but no one could of guessed that it would possibly lead to murder.

In 2000, the tabloid talk show aired an episode featuring married couple Ralph & Eleanor Panitz and Ralph’s ex-wife Nancy.

The married couple claimed that Nancy was stalking them but Nancy denied the allegations made against her.

As their stories began to unfold Nancy shared the news that she, Ralph and Eleanor had spent the night together in a hotel just the day before.

But while on the show, Ralph and Eleanor tried their best to humiliate Nancy calling her “fat” and “old” and encouraged the audience to also take part in the horrible taunts.

Nancy eventually left the stage when she discovered that Ralph and Elanor were still married, but hours later Nancy was found dead in Sarasota, Florida, in a home she still shared with Ralph & Eleanor.

Her body was badly beaten which made it hard for police to identify her at the time.

Later on when the police did track Ralph and Elanor down, they came clean to murdering Nancy but the pair did try to escape.

But this wasn’t the only time a tragic murder took place following the show.

In 1995, a guest appeared during “secret crush” segment of the show and four days later he murdered the man who brought him onto the programme.

He was later convicted and sentenced for the crime.

Pony trouble

Kim Nelson previously detailed her experience in a blog where she described the time she worked on the set of the Jerry Springer show.

However, she was horrified by what she was made to.

Kim appeared on an episode where she was made to take a pony out onto the stage to meet its husband. The only problem was that the pony’s husband was a man.

Kim said: “When I led the horse into the studio, the cheers turned to gasps and shrieks of shock. At the end of her lead line, the poor pony ambled along behind me.

She trusted me. I felt like a traitor to her, leading her into the pit. It was like the Crusades but instead of lions, I was feeding her to a sleaze-loving audience and a creepy pervert.”

The episode was never aired due to it being deemed to inappropriate for TV, with Kim writing in a blog post: “Life went back to normal.

“I checked the listings to see when the episode was scheduled to air, but then learned that it was deemed too inappropriate to broadcast and got banned from all the major markets.”

Using the show for fame

Although many were labelled as “trash” for appearing as a guest on the famous show, some people made the most of the overall experience.

Those who had the ambition to pursue other areas of work in entertainment used the programme to gain opportunities for public air time.

A good example of this is comedian Jade Esteban Estrada who used the show to enter the mainstream spotlight.

The entertainer first appeared on the programme as a dancer, but this marked the beginning of a successful show business career—as well as a massice step towards public acceptance for his community.

Lying to get on the show

During its hay day, The Jerry Springer Show was extremely popular and many wanted to be a part of the sensational programme.

But for research purposes, journalist Harmon Leon lied to get on the show and detailed just how easy it was to do.

Harmon went undercover and made up a story that show bookers certainly found interest in.

Sharing his story on Vice, the writer penned: “When they responded to me, two days later, it was for this scenario: ‘Are you gay or transsexual? Is your partner always trying to meet people on Grindr and you want them to stop?’

“‘We are actually booking for this week’s show,’ one of the guest bookers said to me in a voicemail. ‘If you’re interested in coming on, definitely call me back.’

“This was it. With plot points written out on notecards, I called the number.”

Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk