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October 25, 2006: No More Spring in His Step
Even after being told he was voted out, Jerry Springer was still cracking jokes: “Thank you for having me. And thank you for letting me go home.” It’s that mixture of sincere humbleness and self-deprecating humor that I’m going to miss most about Jerry. I think Tom Bergeron said it best when he called Jerry “the heart and soul of this show.” This season would not have been the same without him. He gave the show a sweet paternal subplot, a little age variety and some wry commentary — much funnier commentary than Samantha Harris provides (could he possibly sub for her the remainder of the season? Just a suggestion). And in spite of his constant wisecracks, he didn’t treat this competition merely as a joke — he did try to learn the dances. While he sometimes fell short in terms of natural ability and technique, he did succeed in entertaining the crowd. Jerry, you will be missed.
Speaking of people missed, MIA Season 1 professional champ Alec came back last night to do a little dancing. Then it was like homecoming week for high-placing contestants from the first two seasons of Dancing with the Stars. It was fun seeing the been-there/done-that crew of Jerry Rice, Drew Lachey, Lisa Rinna and Joey McIntyre offer insight into the final legs of the competition as if they were wise old sages. The flashback theme continued with some moonwalking moves (I forgot how cool that can look when done right) courtesy of Maksim’s dance students. This was a rare situation where a fun ‘80s pop song worked well with the dance being performed.
And just in case we mistakenly thought that all these dances were, well, kind of girly, this week’s behind-the-scenes segment was there to set us straight: Ballroom dancing is full of manly men. Downtime on the show isn’t all spray-on tans and pedicures — on the contrary, the “boys’ club” can be found doing really masculine things like watching ESPN together. As Emmitt Smith said, “A man in pink looks strong.... That’s a confident man.”
So now it’s time for those confident men (and one woman) to step up their game once again. The strongest dancers this season have made it to the final four. That should make for some intense competition in the coming weeks, as well as some fine dancing.
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Oct 25, 2006 11:58 PM
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I think Jerry Springer surprised so many people with his humor, sincerity and general all-around nice-guy attitude. He really is not just the host of a nasty talk show. He showed such a great side of him. I would love to see him do a classy talk show, because I think he really could do some great things for people who need help. I will miss him.
I love watching Emmitt dance. He has such a great time doing it. I hope he is in the final three.
Mario is almost too good. He is near professional level and clearly is no newcomer to dancing.
Joey is putting so much effort into his dancing and consistently does great.
Monique is the best of the women dancers from this season, but should not make it any further.
The final three should be Emmitt, Mario and Joey if it is based on skills. But who should win? I haven't decided yet.
The men danced so well this week. I think this is now a three horse race.
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Oct 26, 2006 9:55 AM
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I hate to admit it, but I was one of those fools that kept calling for Jerry. But sometimes one just had to let go. At least, he left with two decent performances (as opposed to last week's Paso). I'll still miss him.
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Oct 26, 2006 9:58 AM
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Voting for whom you like is just as legitimate as voting for who you think is best. You aren't, after all, a paid judge.
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Oct 26, 2006 10:06 AM
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i am a new fan of this show after my mom called me to tell me how cute is emmitt. this guy is so sexy! at first i didn't think he was handsome, but when i saw his hips move in some latin dance and then this week in the samba? i am smitten. he will get my vote. mario is near perfect but he lacks the innate sexiness of emmitt. plus emmitt is just ALL MAN, nothing pink about him. GO EMMITT!!!
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Oct 26, 2006 10:12 AM
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what man watches this show anyway? this is the definition of a "chick show".
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Oct 26, 2006 10:30 AM
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I was happy to see Jerry go although I was hoping that the fans didn't vote to keep him. You never know with this show, anything can happen. Even though he was fun to watch, it was his time to go. Now it is down to the final 4 people who can actually dance. Even though Monique is the only girl left and usually I would vote to have at least one woman be in the finals, I really hope the three guys wind up staying next week and she is the one to go. I think the bottom 2 next week will be Monique and Joey and hopefully Monique goes. If Joey can have 2 more goods dances next week like he did this week, then he should be able to stay on. I am looking forward to a showdown between the 3 men but I do hope it comes down to Joey and Mario and whoever wins, would be fine with me. Can't wait to see what happens!
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Oct 26, 2006 12:15 PM
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Jerry Springer is nothing like the morons/actors he has on his TV show. My apologies if any of you have seen this since it is from the TV Guide site, but below is a little bio of Jerry, some of which I didn't even know. I, too, will miss him on the show. And it's always nice to see older celebrities on the show!!
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Say what you will about this silver-haired tabloid talk-show host, he certainly parlayed what could have been 15 minutes of fame into a long and healthy career. Although his eponymous series — which became a smash syndicated hit with its never-ending parade of trash-talking exes, bitch-slapping babes and decked-out drag queens — was decidedly low-rent, Springer is an intelligent ex-politico with a dramatic history. Born in England to Jewish refugees who fled Nazi Germany, Springer immigrated to the U.S. as a child. After graduating from law school, he worked as an aide to Robert F. Kennedy but joined a Cincinnati law firm after his boss was assassinated. In the '70s, Springer was elected to local government, serving as a city councilman until a scandal forced him to resign in 1974. (He patronized a prostitute and was caught because he paid for her services by check!) But a few years later, he spun his illegal activities into a campaign platform of honesty, was reelected councilman and later served as the city's mayor. During the '80s, he traded politics for journalism, becoming a popular news anchor and radio personality. In 1991, he went national with the syndicated Jerry Springer Show. Although it started out as a subdued, serious Donahue clone, the host spiced things up in order to improve the ratings and he ended up becoming an international entertainment icon simply by sitting back and letting his guests behave badly. No matter how violent or outrageous the episode, he always closed the show with his incongruous catchphrase, "Take care of yourself, and each other." Springer's fame led to a plethora of TV and film cameos, a starring turn in the thinly veiled autobiographical 1998 flick Ringmaster and a country album. A ubiquitous pop-culture punch line — there's even an opera named after him — Springer has a more serious side as a high-profile Democratic fund-raiser, activist and political commentator. In 2006, the so-called Sultan of Salaciousness melted viewers' hearts when he signed on to Dancing with the Stars so he could learn to waltz for his physically challenged daughter's wedding.
Jerry Springer Fast Facts:
Elected mayor of Cincinnati in 1977 by the largest plurality in the city's history.
Won seven local Emmys for his commentaries on Cincinnati's WLWT-TV.
Recorded a country album in 1995 called Dr. Talk.
Jerry Springer Relationships:
Richard Springer - Father
Margot Springer - Mother
Evelyn Springer - Sister
Katie Springer - Daughter
Micki Velton - Ex-wife
College:
Tulane University, New Orleans, LA (BA in Political Science, 1965); Northwestern University Law School, Chicago, IL (JD, 1968)
Photo courtesy Jerry Springer TV
Videos - Jerry Springer (1 total Videos)
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Oct 26, 2006 12:30 PM
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Wow,Tootsie2,thanks for that! I didn't know a lot of those things about him.And karcher151,I have two men in my family who watch and love this show:my dad and my brother.And they don't think this is a "chick" show.I also happen to be from the Dallas area and know for a fact that the whole team of the Cowboys and all of Emmitt's friends from the past team as well as male staff at the Dallas Morning News have been watching every week,too.And I definitely wouldn't wanna get caught callin' any of 'em "chicks"!
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Oct 26, 2006 10:54 PM
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You have to like Emmitt's chances of winning this thing. Don't forget, his partner is Cheryl Burke. Drew Lachey won last season, and guess who HIS partner was?
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Oct 27, 2006 9:56 AM
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You're right, WatchesEverything, Emmitt has a great chance of winning this thing. I love Cheryl and she is obviously a great teacher. I think the final 2 will be Mario and Emmitt. I love Joey and he is a good dancer. However, I think that there is probably some cross-over in Mario and Joey's fan base. Emmitt's fan base is going to be different. I'm not talking about fans of them on the show, I mean their built-in fan base before they set foot on the dance floor. Honestly, eventhough it's obvious that Mario is a talented dancer, I personally enjoy Emmitt and Joey more. I guess maybe Mario is too talented, if that makes sense. To me, I'd much rather see Emmitt win. He started out with zero dance experience and has developed into quite a remarkable dancer.
So, GO EMMITT!!!!!
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Oct 27, 2006 10:36 AM
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Tootsie2,I forgot to ask.Do you by any chance know what specifically is wrong with Jerry's daughter? I'm not maudlin,just curious.
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Oct 27, 2006 3:06 PM
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p.s. I'm also rooting for Emmitt & Cheryl, 'cause I adore them both.
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Oct 27, 2006 3:08 PM
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I believe that Jerry's daughter is legally blind.
I have never been able to tolerate the Jerry Springer show, but if I happen to flip by during his Final Thoughts, I have always found them to be profound. Seeing the true man behind the persona has been great.
I started out with no clue who Emmitt Smith was, but his charm and talent have won me over. I would love a showdown with Emmitt and Joey.
I understand completely the comments that Mario is 'too' good.
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Oct 29, 2006 12:39 AM
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