The Jerry Springer Show's wildest moments from animal marriage to murder

27 April 2023 , 16:09

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The Jerry Springer Show's wildest moments from animal marriage to murder

Jerry Springer was known for many things - his politics, his acting career and, of course, his raucous chat show with outlandish guests.

The American broadcaster - who died at the age of 79 after being diagnosed with cancer - hosted the show for almost three decades.

Launched in 1991, it catapulted him to stardom and gripped viewers from across the world - but the format changed considerably over the years.

Drawing on his former career in politics, where he ran for Congress before becoming a political reporter, issues of the day began to be debated.

The Jerry Springer Show launched in 1991 (Getty Images)

But bosses soon intervened with a complete overhaul, with guests invited into the studio to divulge their wild tales of adultery, and more.

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It was a huge turn-around for the show, and at one point in the '90s it became the first in years to beat The Oprah Winfrey Show viewings.

But with one controversy after the next, including a guest who was later murdered, it was axed in 2018.

Here's a look back at some of the craziest moments to come out of his chat show.

Nancy's tragic murder

Nancy Campbell-Panitz was murdered after appearing on the show (Video Grab)

In 2000, married couple Ralph and Eleanor Panitz and Ralph's ex-wife Nancy appeared on the show following claims that Nancy was stalking them.

However, Nancy outright denied the allegations made against her.

During their episode, Nancy revealed that she, Ralph and Eleanor had spent the night together in a hotel just the day before.

But the couple spent their time on the show trying to humiliate Nancy, calling her "fat" and "old".

Upset, Nancy left the stage after discovering Ralph and Eleanor were still married.

Merely hours later, Nancy was tragically found dead in Sarasota, Florida, in a home she still shared with Ralph and Eleanor.

Her body was so badly beaten that police struggled to identify her.

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Ralph and Eleanor tried to escape from police - but came clean to murdering her after being tracked down.

He hosted the show for almost three decades (Corbis via Getty Images)

Lying to get on the show

Journalist Harmon Leon lied to get on The Jerry Springer Show, and detailed just how easy it was to do.

He went undercover with a dramatic story to see whether the team's bookers fact check their guests before inviting them on TV.

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."

The episode that never made it to air

Jerry didn't know that the pony's husband was a human man

Employee Kim Nelson opened up about her time working on the show in her blog - but her readers did not expect to learn such shocking behind-the-scenes details.

She explained how she was asked to bring a pony on to the stage to meet its husband.

But in a disgusting turn of events, the animal's husband was a grown 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 made it to air after being deemed inappropriate for TV.

Kim added: "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."

Paige Freshwater