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It’s truly bizarre to think back and remember just how ubiquitous Jerry Springer was for a few years in the ’90s. Seriously, you didn’t even have to watch his syndicated tabloid trash show to know exactly who he was and exactly what his show was about. The Jerry Springer Show was such a phenomenon that it even overtook the Oprah Winfrey Show as the most-watched talk show for a hot minute!
It wasn’t just other talk shows that emulated the Springer vibe by upping the scandalous and sensational sleaze on display. Springer’s pop culture presence was felt in tv shows and movies that were generally far removed from Springer’s freak show aesthetic. So many sitcoms and dramas and movies, ranging from late-night syndicated series to big blockbusters, all wanted a piece of the action. Can you blame them? The Springer formula of dropping low IQ weirdos into a highly-combustible situation was so easily parodied, it’s a wonder more shows didn’t get in on it. Seriously, how did Baywatch never do a Springer episode? Imagine the two titans of ’90s syndicated TV coming together!
While the Baywatch beach babes never tore it up on the Springer stage, plenty of other characters did, ranging from witches to lottery winners and proto-MRAs. To celebrate Jerry Springer’s birthday, here’s a list of his TV guest spots you can stream (as well as a few movies that had to be included).
'Married... with Children' (1993)
Married… with Children was way ahead of what would eventually become a major TV trend of the ’90s. Jerry Springer made his scripted TV debut playing a talk show host with the same name but a totally different game. The Jerry Springer of Married… with Children was also known as the Masculine Feminist, and Al Bundy’s men’s right’s group NO MA’AM had a bone to pick with him on live TV.
'Roseanne' (1996)
By the mid-’90s, The Jerry Springer Show had shifted from mundane topics and fully into filth and fights–and Roseanne capitalized on that. Springer’s second-ever scripted TV appearance came during the final season of Roseanne, a season of TV that is truly beyond wild. In this episode, Roseanne daydreams about appearing on Springer to regale the tail of her family’s lottery win–a tale that she somehow makes super boring.
'The X-Files' (1997)
This classic X-Files episode has so much going on in it that the Jerry Springer cameo is totally overshadowed. There’s a two-headed mutant that loves peanut butter and jamming out to Cher, a whole lot of sexual assault underneath fumigation tents, a town of people that may or may not be part farm animal, and also there’s a bit where Jerry Springer interviews the mother of a werewolf baby. Jerry is part of the most normal part of the episode.
'The Simpsons' (1998)
Considering just how many celebs popped up on The Simpsons (the episode right after this features Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger as themselves), it’s crazy that Springer popped up on so many other shows before appearing in Springfield. The Simpsons worked in a Jerry Springer cameo during the 9th “Treehouse of Horror” special. The Simpsons go on Springer after Maggie’s first tooth comes in as a fang, making everyone wonder who really is her father (it’s an alien, at least according to this horror short).
Stream The Simpsons "Treehouse of Horror IX" on Simpsons World
'Ringmaster' (1998)
What’s bigger than a guest spot on a TV show? A movie! Jerry Springer’s ’90s popularity peaked in 1998 with the release of the Springer-inspired comedy film Ringmaster. The movie starred Springer as a fictionalized version of himself named Jerry Farrelly, the host of a trashy talk show simply titled Jerry. The film, which stars a pre-My Name Is Earl Jaime Pressly as a trailer park queen, was a box office flop–but you can stream it for free on Tubi!
'Sabrina: The Teenage Witch' (1999)
Springer returned to his guest star roots in 1999, making his TGIF debut on an episode of Sabrina. Just think: if Springer-mania had hit a few years earlier, we could have seen Steve Urkel and Stefan Urquelle fight over Laura! Instead, Springer pops up as a sort of talk show host/warlock used by the witches council to solve disputes. If you’ve been waiting to see Jerry Springer use magic powers, this is the episode for you.
'Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me' (1999)
Save the best for last, right? By far the biggest Springer cameo of all time happened in one of the biggest comedies of the decade (and the third-biggest fat suit comedy of all time–also, how is that a subgenre, Box Office Mojo?!). Considering all of Scott Evil’s family drama, what better place to reintroduce the world to Dr. Evil than with a raucous Springer segment?
