The world recently lost TV host Jerry Springer after he battled cancer. While Springer was busy with his own show, he also guest-starred on a number of series, either as himself or as someone else, popping up on all sorts of shows. Considering his storied history on television, right before Springer's death, he opened up about his happiest moment on television, and Dancing with the Stars is involved.
Jerry Springer appeared in the third season of the dancing competition in 2006, making it to the final five. While he didn’t make it all the way, he did tell Genevieve Hassan on the podcast Celebrity Catch Up that his single happiest moment was in part of DWTS. The late television personality explained that he had originally done the show so he could learn the waltz for his daughter’s wedding, which is so sweet.
Springer reflected on doing the waltz on Dancing with the Stars and his daughter, Katie, coming down for the show and to see it in person. While he didn’t win the Mirrorball trophy, he still came out a winner the night of the waltz because of the beautiful memory he had of his daughter:
When she came to Hollywood the night we did the waltz, and then she came out of the audience, that was my single happiest moment in television. I mean, that was just, it was magical. So that is my best memory. It was all worth it because of that.
It’s a special thing that Springer did for his daughter and that he was able to have that moment with her, not only in the audience but at her wedding as well. The fact that he also talked about this just weeks before his death shows that the memory has really stuck with him. It’s clear that it meant a lot to him, and to be able to hold on to that moment until his final days really says a lot. Especially considering Springer's long-running talk show and history on TV, having a personal moment like this be a favorite is lovely.
Even though Jerry Springer had a sweet reason to be on Dancing with the Stars, it’s unlikely he had a similar one for being on The Masked Singer unless he had plans to dress up in a crazy costume for a different event. He made it to the second round of the Fox reality series during Season 8 last year, and he even suspected that TMS wouldn’t have him around for a long time and assumed he was just filling space. However, it still seemed like he had a good time, and just like DWTS, he may not have won, but it was likely a memory he kept with him.
Since Jerry Springer had this happy memory with him for years, it’s likely his daughter has had the same one. With him now gone, it’s nice that she has this and plenty more to look back on and remember him by. It’s never easy to say goodbye to someone, but memories will last a lifetime. It's clear that many were "marveled" by Springer, and ultimately he made quite an impact on television, however, for him it seemed like the moments where he got to be close to his family are what meant the most.
