Celebrity Friends Remember Jerry Springer

The daytime talk show icon passed away on Thursday at his home in Chicago at the age of 79.

Rikki Lake paid tribute to her once rival and friend. Ricki – who hosted her show for more than a decade – told Entertainment Tonight: “Jerry was a colleague, a rival and a friend for many years. Jerry’s persona was the polar opposite of what many remember of his show. “He was a mensch, brilliant, hilarious, and what I remember most, absolutely devoted to his daughter.”

Ricki took to Twitter to pay tribute to the TV star, describing him as a “lovely man.”

Alongside a throwback photo, she wrote on the micro-blogging platform: “Just waking to the very sad news of the passing of my longtime talk show rival and friend @jerryspringer. A lovely man. Here is the time he kicked my a** on @DropTheMicTNT. May he rest in peace. (sic)”

Springer began his talk show in 1991 which quickly became a must-watch daytime show; 4000 shows under his belt, ending in 2018.