Jerry Springer Is Judging You: Daytime Vet Makes His Case for New Court Show

[Ubiquitous]

Jerry Springer is about to return to the daytime-TV ring, this time not as
the referee of a veritable talk-show circus but as a proper, gavel-wielding
judge. What is his early verdict on his adjudicating abilities?

As Judge Jerry (premiering Monday, Sept. 9 in syndication), Springer - who
worked as a lawyer for 15 years having received his law degree in 1968 from
Northwestern University - will settle actual disputes between real people.
(Co-executive producers Leah Ponce and Joe Scott previously worked on Judge
Judy, Hot Bench and Divorce Court.) Springer's venture behind the bench is
but one of several daytime-TV debuts arriving this fall, alongside The Kelly
Clarkson Show, Tamron Hall's talker, and The Mel Robbins Show.

TVLine spoke with Springer, who clocked in 4,000 episodes as a talk show
host, about tackling something brand-new at age 75.

TVLINE | So, how heavy are the shoulders that wear the robe?
Well, I've been eating a lot, so they're pretty heavy. No, honestly, this is
the most excitement I've had in doing a show. I mean, my [daytime talk] show
that I did for 27 years, it was fun, but it didn't require any brainpower.
But these are real cases, and I [tape] 35 cases a week, so it's like I'm back
practicing law again or back in law school. No one starts a show at 75!

TVLINE | When I was prepping for this interview, I had to think, "Look at
him, starting this new thing."
Yeah, that is not normal. But honestly, it's so challenging, it's great. It's
hopefully keeping me young.

TVLINE | How "colorful" will the cases you hear get?
Literally, these are real cases. The people that file them all around the
country, in all 50 states, have no idea they're going to wind up on
television. Out of the blue they get a call, "Would you like to have your
case adjudicated on national television," with me as a host? And that is a
shock to them. Obviously, we pick out the most interesting cases, but it's
not a food fight. People dress as if they're really going to court, because
it really is a court.

TVLINE | They're taking it very seriously.
Now, I'll joke around just because I can't help, but with the decisions I
finally make, I want to treat these people with respect because these are
serious issues for the people that bother to file the suit. And for some
people it's a lot of money, they want to be reimbursed 5,000 dollars, so I
have to be serious about it.

TVLINE | Has that respect been reciprocated?
Unbelievably so. I was not sure how this would be received, considering the
reputation of my other show, but it's unbelievable.

TVLINE | It's not Judge Morton Downey Jr., after all.
Oh, no, no.

TVLINE | Was this a case of you wanting to do anything different, or did you
want to do this?
I had nothing to do with this; it came to me at the last moment.
[NBCUniversal] apparently had been thinking about this as a follow-up to [The
Jerry Springer Show], whenever it would end. They walked into my office about
two months before that show was over and they assumed I knew about it, but I
really didn't. They said, "We think it's a great move because you've got a
daytime audience to begin with, and you have a fan base, and you are a
lawyer, so.."

TVLINE | And then you probably asked yourself the question I'm about to ask:
With all the court shows out there, what could you bring different to it?
What distinguishes each of these court shows - and I feel more strongly about
this than I did when I first started taping them - is the personality of the
judge. The conflicts are the same but our personalities are different. Me, I
guess I treat it as if I were their father or their grandfather. I can be
stern but in a hopefully kind way. I'm not yelling at these people.

TVLINE | You're a Wapner. Maybe a little kinder.
I guess so, yeah. In other words, it's just me. Like, if this were my
grandson or my daughter [as the defendant] and they did something wrong, this
is how I would talk to them.

TVLINE | Are there any recurring characters beside yourself? Is there a
Rusty-the-Bailiff type?
I have a bailiff, Najee Hinds, and he's great. He gets a bonus every time he
laughs at one of my jokes.

TVLINE | You ran for congress once, and you once considered running for
senate. Was the lawyer in you compelled to read The Mueller Report? [Special
counsel Robert Mueller testified before Congress after this interview was
conducted.]
Oh, yeah, I've read it. I do a weekly podcast, too, which is a bit comedy but
it's also a political rant. So, yeah, I stay active politically.

TVLINE | How good of a read is it?
The amazing thing about it is it's so detailed, and I would not even argue,
but just say, that the obstruction of justice charges are right there in
print. There's really not that much to debate. It's just that impeachment is
a political process and if you don't have the votes because of the political
party that's in power in the senate, you're never going to get [the
president] removed. Impeachment's easy; the removal is the tough part, with
two-thirds [vote] required, so that's not going to happen.

TVLINE | Lore has it that you decided against the senate run due to concerns
about the "baggage" that came with your TV talk show. Does it thus blow your
mind at all that the host of The Apprentice became no less than president? I
imagine you've probably met Trump once or twice.
I was a host of Miss Universe in 2008, the year we did that pageant in
Vietnam, so I was an employee of his and I met him a few times. And honestly,
he's been nothing but nice to me. I never had a bad word to say about him at
all. I just don't want him to be president; it's not personal. I told my best
friend, "You know, you're my best friend but I just don't think you should be
the president." I have family members I don't want to be president, and that
doesn't mean I don't love them. I don't mix the two up. I'm not going around
saying, "Oh, I wish him evil." I don't. I just don't think he should be
president.

TVLINE | Before we go, give folks one more reason to watch Judge Jerry.
I've got expenses, you know. [Laughs] No, I think it'll be not just
entertaining but interesting. If you think I'm a certain way because of the
TV show, I think you may be surprised - and mostly happily surprised - by
what you see with me as a judge.

--
Watching Democrats come up with schemes to "catch Trump" is like
watching Wile E. Coyote trying to catch Road Runner.