Jerry Springer and My Regret

Back in 2012, I had an opportunity to work with Jerry Springer at the Lawrence Welk Theater in Branson, Missouri, on The Price Is Right Live game show.

When Jerry arrived, the crew went nuts. A lot of them wanted pictures and autographs. I did not.

In film school, I was taught that you are there to work, not get starstruck. If an opportunity comes later, after the show, then fine. But first, do the job.

If you are familiar with Jerry Springer, you will be the first to notice that a family game show in Branson is not exactly where you would expect to find the king of sleazy daytime talk shows. We did not have midget strippers or baby-mama drama. We had gray-haired women playing Plinko and guessing prices with hopes of winning a brand new car.

My job was production assistant and backup screen operator. It was pretty straightforward. I had to make sure we had the right number of chips for Plinko, dust off the car, and make sure Hans, the yodeling mountain climber, did not get lost.

During the game, I helped with the technical side, mainly making sure the video on the jumbotron worked, including cameras and graphics.

As part of the contract, Jerry basically showed up, did his thing, and called it a night. So aside from him waiting to go on stage, I rarely got to actually spend time with him until one moment when I had to escort him to his dressing room.

There I stood in the hallway waiting for him to come out. When he did, we chatted for a few moments.

“So, is this a lot better than midgets and mistresses?” I joked.

He chuckled. “Yes, it’s kind of nice to be around normal people for a moment,” he replied.

I pointed out that I really enjoyed some of his earlier, more serious work.

“Yeah, many people forget I can name all the presidents in a row backwards,” he said.

“Do it,” I said gleefully. He did. I was impressed. Then I escorted him to the stage.

A week later, I left that job for something closer to home, and it was in a cubicle.

As I sit at my desk now creating content for clients and for myself, I can’t help but wonder what Jerry would have said if I had asked him the real question: Why did he go from highbrow political commentator to ringmaster?

If you have been following my blog and the content I produce for Woodruff Media, you have probably figured out by now that I’m pretty smart, well-read, yada yada yada. I’m not flashy. I’m not the life of the party. I’m definitely not cool. I’ve always been a big lovable dork with a video camera in my hand.

I admit that in a world of noise and avant-garde trends, it is hard to keep up. With that said, I’m authentic. I understand people, and I don’t act like something I’m not.

Does that squelch creativity? No, not really.

When it comes down to it, I’m a storyteller who sells nouns.. If you want marketing that sounds like your business instead of someone else’s circus, give me a call. 918-830-3348.