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Controversial TV host Jerry Springer's real cause of death revealed as family refused autopsy

Springer was branded as one of the forerunners of "trash TV" for airing banned topics on his legendary talk show.

Legendary talk show host Jerry Springer passed away on April 27, 2023, after a brief illness. With a new two-part documentary on Netflix titled “Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action,” hidden facts about his life have come to light. As per The Mirror, longtime publicist Rabbi Kopnick revealed the real cause of the late politician's untimely death. "He hasn't been sick for a long time. He died of cancer, and he didn't have cancer for very long," he said. Springer was suffering from pancreatic cancer, his family refused an autopsy.  

Kopnick continued, "There was much more to him than The Jerry Springer Show. He was very, very smart. He was a remarkable family man, and he was somebody who understood what it means to pay it forward. He always knew his good fortune. He never took it for granted." He added, "When he certainly could have moved on to another congregation after I arrived in this one, not only did he stay, but he did what he could to make it thrive." As per Screenrant, 'The Jerry Springer Show' debuted on NBC in 1991, it ran for 27 seasons but came to an unannounced end in 2018.

The show focused on political matters during its inception but soon started airing controversial topics. Discussions on incest and adultery led to violent interactions between guests on the sets. Springer was branded as one of the forerunners of "trash TV" for permitting such behavior on live TV, on July 26, 2018, the show ceased to exist. The show's rights were later purchased by CW Network, however, most of the remaining episodes were never broadcast. Meanwhile, reruns were aired on CW and CW Plus until 2024. It has been reported that the new documentary contains a few of the unseen footage from the talk show. 

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Springer himself didn't want to watch his show because it aired banned topics depicting cultural shock, “I would never watch my show,” he remarked. “I’m not interested in it. It’s not aimed towards me.” The New York Times reported that the late journalist declined to star in the documentary depicting his life. “I think that it obviously led to quite a dark place,” director Luke Sewell told the publication. "As the show leaned on hand-to-hand combat and outré sex topics (“Diaper Bob” was a fan favorite), it “pushed the envelope in ways that no one else had,” he added, “and gave permission for everyone that followed them to go there.”

As per The Guardian, Springer was a savvy politician who started as an advisor for Robert F. Kennedy's 1968 presidential campaign. He later ran for the Ohio seat but lost, after winning for Cincinnati’s city council he became the 56th mayor serving from 1977 to 1978. He told BBC in 2014, "You could decide only to put well-scrubbed, wealthy people who speak the Queen's English on television and just do that but that wouldn't reflect the whole society." He added, "If all shows were like mine, that would be wrong. But you can't just have a television that is like Friends, Seinfeld, all these wealthy people, good-looking people and you love it."