Here's how Cincinnati said farewell to Jerry Springer

Hundreds of people in Cincinnati sang folk songs and put on one final show for their friend, Jerry Springer.

They gathered in Memorial Hall to celebrate the life of the former Cincinnati mayor, talk show host and news anchor. Those having lunch at Fountain Square watched the memorial on the big screen there.

Springer, 79, died on April 27 near his home in Chicago after suffering from pancreatic cancer.

Many around the world know Springer from his over-the-top tabloid TV show.

But for those in Memorial Hall in Cincinnati, they remembered Springer for so much more, including his contributions to Democratic politics, his news commentaries as a local anchor, and his friendship.

Friday's memorial wasn't a funeral, as Springer was buried over a month ago in the Chicago area.

Rather, it was an emotional and sometimes amusing celebration of all things Springer.

Springer's longtime WLWT news co-anchor Norma Rashid told The Enquirer she wiped away tears during the performance of one of his favorite songs, "Blowin' in the Wind." Springer and Rashid, during their WLWT days in the 1980s, would often go to the Blind Lemon bar in Mount Adams after work. Springer would always request that song from the musicians playing there.

"That was his heart," Rashid said. "He was such a kind person. He wanted everyone to be kind. It got me. And my daughter. We were both wiping away tears."

Springer's longtime friend Louis Beck emceed the 90-minute event and vowed to keep it a "a light and fluffy one," as Springer would have wanted it.

Beck wore a t-shirt with Springer's signature catchphrase "Take care of yourself and each other." The t-shirts were given to the 550 people who filled the auditorium. Tickets for the event were hard to come by, offered to friends and family, with the rest snapped up within hours by the public over a month ago.

"We’re all here today, because, in our own way, we feel like Jerry was our BFF," Beck said. "He knew us. We knew him. He was our dearest and closest friend. He understood us, he connected with us."

The event began and ended with music. Springer loved folk music.

A folk music medley played on the Memorial Hall soundsystem as local dignitaries arrived. The celebration started with the song "Save the Union Terminal," a song Springer recorded in the early 1970s when he was a member of Cincinnati City Council. It was a time when the fate of Cincinnati's beloved train terminal seemed uncertain.

The program ended with 35 musicians on stage performing some of his favorite songs including "This Land is Your Land," "Blowin' in the Wind," and "Down by the Riverside." Noel Paul Stookey, the "Paul" of folk group Peter, Paul and Mary, also performed via video. Springer and Stookey had become friends in the past 20 years.

"We’re going to ask music to lift Jerry out of this place and fly him away on his wings," his friend Jene Galvin said before introducing the musicians.

Those that knew Springer wouldn't be surprised by the musical focus of the memorial. Springer possessed a good singing voice and could belt out a tune. One of his final TV appearances was on "The Masked Singer" where in October 2022 he was revealed to be the singer in the beetle costume. Springer, who came of age in the 1960s, loved folk music.

In fact, he would frequently fly back to the Cincinnati region to co-host a folk music-themed podcast with his friend Galvin. They would record the podcast in a coffee shop in the Northern Kentucky town of Ludlow.

His sister Evelyn Strauch told a story Friday about a family trip where they became stuck in traffic. Springer got out of the car with his guitar, climbed onto the roof and started singing. So did everyone else.

"That was his first audience," his sister said.

Strauch said the family knew Springer would become a showman early in his life. As a child, she said, he would often stand on a table in the hallway of the family home and "start pontificating."

Springer's political career took off when he moved to Cincinnati in the 1960s to take a job with a law firm.

Springer served on Cincinnati City Council in the 1970s and 1980s. He also ran unsuccessfully for Ohio governor in 1982.

Springer became a nightly fixture in Cincinnatian homes when he co-anchored the evening newscast for WLWT news with Norma Rashid. Each night, he gave commentaries on national or local issues, each ending with his signature line for the viewers to take care of themselves and each other.

His charisma and ability to tell a story made Springer a hit with the public and led to his national television show. And the rest is history.

People talked about Springer's generosity, particularly with the homeless and others in need.

"He had a soft spot for helping those who couldn't help themselves," said Marcia Spaeth, former CEO of Tender Mercies, a charity that finds housing for the homeless, in a video presented during the ceremony.

Those on Fountain Square having lunch weren't there to commemorate Springer. But they watched the services on the square's big screen TV and remembered him fondly. Among the crowd at Fountain Square was Sam Taylor, 52, of Fort Thomas.

"Jerry Springer was very humorous, but he actually cared about people, and their problems," Taylor said.

Cincinnati's Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney led the crowd at Memorial Hall in a rousing chant of "Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!" before proclaiming Friday Jerry Springer Day in Cincinnati. Upon leaving, sleaving Memorial Hall, she reflected on the afternoon.

"The whole thing, it was a lot of fun," Kearney said. "I loved hearing from his sister and daughter. It was the other side of Jerry. But that was the Jerry we knew. He was who we thought he was, a super-smart person who cared about people."