I’m sorry to have to report that controversial talk show host Jerry Springer died Thursday morning of prostate cancer at 79.

https://www.westernjournal.com/breaking-jerry-springer-dies-age-79-family-reveals-cause-death/

While Springer is best known for hosting the long-running talk show that many critics blamed for starting the fad of “trash TV” with its salacious topics and more brawls than professional wrestling, many fans don’t remember that he started out in politics. He was the former mayor of Cincinnati and unsuccessfully ran for Congress. He also recorded an album of country western songs called “Dr. Talk” in 1995. Here he is singing the title track, to prove his more recent appearance on “The Masked Singer” wasn’t his first time singing.

https://youtu.be/ZxmVOQDTYsY

Here’s an interview with him by David Letterman where he talks candidly about his background, including a scandal that cost him his city council seat, and admits his show is “plain stupid” but claims he tries to keep it honest and it’s mostly true.  

https://youtu.be/6ckwBZUx_rE

I asked Gov. Huckabee if he knew Jerry Springer, and he said he only met him once when he was a guest on the Huckabee show, but he seemed to be a very nice man, and that comes across in the interview above. Whatever you think of his legacy, he had no pretensions that it was anything other than dumb entertainment. That’s better than today’s woke lectures.