Television Tuesday: "Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action," Paints a Fascinating but Incomplete Picture

I watched the two-part documentary, "Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action," as I've written before about my fascination with the surreal and twisted program that was, "The Jerry Springer Show." The docuseries does a solid job showing how the program went from a boring talk show to the edgy tabloid-style program we all remember. It also focuses a lot on the producers who worked on the show under Springer and the main producer of the show who pushed it to get edgy, Richard Dominick. This documentary does a fantastic job digging into Richard's reasonings and psyche (he is extensively interviewed) and paints him as a programming provocateur. Dominick was a man willing to do whatever it took for good ratings. The fact that a love triangle that aired on the show may have contributed to a murder is extensively covered as well, with those involved in the show sharing mixed feelings about how responsible the program was or wasn't in the tragic events. It's a great documentary series. My only big issue with this two-part documentary, however, is that Springer himself remains a bit of an enigma.

Jerry Springer died in 2023. He can't be interviewed for this documentary. There is old footage of him talking about the show and a mix of recollections from those who worked with him--most fond--but what exactly motivated Springer to, "Go along for the ride," with Dominick is left a bit distressingly unanswered. Springer felt the show was beneath everyone involved, but he kept at it. His quick wit and humor almost gave, "The Jerry Springer Show," an air of respectability it obviously didn't have--but hey, Jerry was laughing with us and making fun of it too! Springer's exact motivations beyond enjoying the attention and ratings seem unclear, so we're left with a bit of a shrug and half-guesses at why the titular personality behind, "The Jerry Springer Show," really let it become, "The Jerry Springer Show," that caused so much public commotion. This is not a slight at, "Fights, Camera, Action," as they can't dig up Springer and interview him now--although such a visual would be wild enough for one of the edgier pay-per-view episodes without a doubt. For a man who spent so much time in the public eye a lot of Springer seemed to remain shockingly private, this documentary doesn't change that, but it does paint a fascinating portrait of Springer's show from its rise to sort-of fall and eventual end.

5 out of 5 Stars.