What was Jerry Springer's Net Worth and Salary?
Jerry Springer was an English-born American television presenter who had a net worth of $60 million at the time of his death. Jerry died on April 27, 2023, at the age of 79, of pancreatic cancer.
Without a doubt, Jerry Springer was most widely recognized as the host of the tabloid talk show, "The Jerry Springer Show," which began as a political commentary program in 1991 but shifted its focus to tabloid news in the mid-'90s to gain better ratings.
The Jerry Springer Show aired from September 30, 1991, to July 26, 2018. The show was known for its controversial and often confrontational format, featuring guests who would share their personal stories and engage in heated arguments and physical altercations on stage. The show was a popular cultural phenomenon in the 1990s and early 2000s and is often cited as an example of "trash TV" or "tabloid talk."
Outside of his television career, Jerry was a lawyer and politician. He served as Mayor of Cincinnati from 1977 to 1978.
Early Life
He was born Gerald Norman Springer on February 13, 1944, in Highgate, London, England. He was actually born in the London Underground station of Highgate as people were hiding out from German bombing during World War II. His parents were from Germany and escaped the Nazis. Tragically, several of Jerry's family members did eventually die in concentration camps, including his maternal grandmother.
His family emigrated to New York in January 1949 and settled in Queens. Jerry attended Forest Hills High School. He earned his undergraduate degree from Tulane University and then a J.D. from Northwestern University in 1965 and 1968, respectively.
While Springer was an undergraduate at Tulane University, he worked for WTUL New Orleans FM, a college radio station, as a broadcaster.
Political Career
After college, Springer got a job at a law firm in Ohio. He then jump-started a career in politics. He spent a while serving as a campaign adviser to Robert Kennedy.
After Kennedy's assassination, Jerry continued to practice law in Cincinnati, where he was elected to the city council in 1973. In the meantime, he made his start in broadcasting, mainly as a political commentator and news anchor. Jerry successfully ran to be the 56th Mayor of Cincinnati and ultimately served from 1977-1978. In 1982, he ran for governor of Ohio but did not win his party's nomination.
While he was mayor of Cincinnati, he had featured commentaries called "The Springer Memorandum" on radio station WEBN-FM. The popularity of these commentaries launched Springer's broadcasting career. The NBC affiliate in Cincinnati, WLWT, hired Springer as a political reporter. When Springer came on board, it was the lowest-rated news program in Cincinnati. Two years later, Springer was the most popular news anchor in the city. He continued to be the most popular anchor for five years. He won 10 local Emmys for his work.
(Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
The Jerry Springer Show
On September 30, 1991, "The Jerry Springer Show" premiered. The show was developed to resemble "The Phil Donahue Show." The show began as a political talk show with guests such as Jesse Jackson and Oliver North. Then, in 1994, Springer and his new producer changed the show's format to more salacious tabloid topics in search of better ratings. Guests were usually confronted by a spouse or family member with a confession to make that led to scripted violence and shouting on stage. This formula worked, and by 1998, "The Jerry Springer Show" was beating "Oprah Winfrey Show" in a number of cities.
"The Jerry Springer Show's" last new episode aired on July 26, 2018. The show ran for 28 years. It was taped in Chicago from 1991 to 2009 and in Stamford, Connecticut from 2009 to 2018. Reruns started immediately on the CW network, which retains the rights to make new episodes of "The Jerry Springer Show."
Jerry Springer Show Salary
At the peak of his show, Jerry Springer's annual salary was $8 million.
Other Work
Springer replaced Regis Philbin as host of "America's Got Talent" for the second and third seasons of the popular show. When he left, Nick Cannon became the host of "AGT" for the next eight seasons.
Springer is the executive producer of "The Steve Wilkos Show," which is hosted by Steve Wilkos, a former Chicago police officer and the long-time head of security on Springer's talk show. As of this writing, there have been 2,000 episodes of "The Steve Wilkos Show" over 13 seasons.
Springer's talk show was also popular in the U.K., which led broadcast network ITV to approach Springer about filling in as a co-host of "This Morning with Judy Finnigan" in March 1999. He filled in again in 2000. He also made 12 episodes of a U.K. version of his show, produced by ITV. He filmed "Jerry Springer UK" in the same studio as his American show. Springer also had an ITV series called "Springer" that aired five episodes in May and June 2000 in the U.K. The show was later picked up by the U.K.'s Chanel 5 and renamed "Late Night with Jerry Springer." Two seasons of 16 total episodes ran in 2000 and 2001.
Springer also covered the U.S. presidential election in 2016 for ITV's "Good Morning Britain."
On September 9, 2019, the courtroom show "Judge Jerry" premiered. It was renewed for a second season in early February 2020. "Judge Jerry" is distributed by NBC Universal and is filmed in Stamford, Connecticut.
Personal Life
Springer married Micki Velton in 1973 and had one daughter, Katie Springer (born 1976). They divorced in 1994. Springer tends to keep his personal life private.
He is a New York Yankees fan and occasionally attends their home games.
His audiences at "The Jerry Springer Show" famously chanted "Jerry, Jerry, Jerryy" during his shows. This practice became part of the American pop culture lexicon.
In 1995, Springer recorded the album "Dr. Talk" for Fiddle Fish Records, which mostly consisted of country music covers.
In 2006, Springer appeared on "Dancing with the Stars." He was partnered with Kym Johnson on the third season of the popular show. He reportedly wanted to compete on the show to learn to waltz for his daughter Katie's wedding. He was eliminated in the seventh week of the competition.
On May 16, 2008, Springer delivered the Northwestern University School of Law commencement address. He received a standing ovation from about half the audience, and reviews of his speech were generally positive. He later stated that his speech was about "the ethical judgments we all have to make in whatever business we go into."
Springer commuted from his home in Sarasota, Florida, to Connecticut to film episodes of "Judge Jerry" every Monday and Tuesday. He also recorded a weekly podcast at another studio in Kentucky. He traveled around the U.S. in support of Democratic candidates for political office.
Real Estate
At the time of his death, Jerry owned a house in Chicago, but his primary residence was a four-bedroom, five-bathroom home on Bird Key, Florida, near Sarasota. The home is worth $2-4 million.
Death
Unfortunately, Jerry Springer died on April 27, 2023, at the age of 79, just a few months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
