NEWSJerry Springer: "I Want to Apologize"
May 15 2008, Published 6:00 a.m. ET
Jerry Springer is probably most known as the trashy talk show host of The Jerry Springer Show. But when Springer tried his hand as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars, viewers got to see a whole new side of the TV personality.
Now the former mayor of Cincinnati, defense attorney and America's Got Talent judge is opening up about his reformed image to Parade.com's Jeanne Wolf. The first thing Springer wants to clear up is the motivation behind his self-titled show.
"I want to apologize for it," Springer says of The Jerry Springer Show. "Sometimes I think I should just have a show called 'I'm sorry.' My show could be a lot more successful if it were publically acceptable. Believe me, you make a lot more money if you're Oprah or Ellen."
Springer adds, "I get really stirred up when people call other people trash and I kind of almost enjoy it in a sick way. Obviously, I'm not the only one."
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When it comes to his job as a judge on America's Got Talent, Jerry says, "It sounds corny but it really is the All-American show because you don't have to be rich, you don't have to be famous, you don't have to live in Hollywood. It's just ordinary people living all over the country who did things like singing into a hairbrush in front of the mirror. They're just regular folks and it's refreshing."
As for his own talent, Jerry says he's definitely lacking. "I don't have any talent. There's no one who would pick me and say 'You should be in show business', and yet I've been lucky and successful at it. People can relate to me probably because I'm a schlub just like everybody else, just a regular person going to work in the morning."
