But Springer, an ardent Democrat and former Cincinnati mayor and council member, grew up embracing the legacy of New Deal politics. His parents escaped Nazi Germany fascism and settled in London before moving to the United States when he was 5 years old. In fact, Springer was born in London’s Highgate subway station in 1944, when it was being used as a civilian shelter during German air strikes in World War II.
Politically active all his life, and with a first-hand knowledge of the horrors that intolerance can produce, Springer is now on a quest to warn the country about what the election of Trump as its 45th president means.
Each week, Springer flies to Cincinnati from Stamford, Conn. to host Tales, Tunes and Tomfoolery, a liberal political podcast he created with longtime friend Jene Galvin and Megan Hils, a 30-something theater grad from Northern Kentucky University.
Tales, Tunes and Tomfoolery is a variety show, with Springer’s political commentary at its center, recorded every Tuesday evening before a live audience at the Folk School Coffee Parlor in Ludlow, Ky. (The show can also be seen in real time at facebook.com/jerrypodcast, and archived podcasts are available at jerryspringer.com.)
The podcast is punctuated by riffs and bits that have included Hils’ brilliant impersonations of Melania Trump. Each show ends with a live musical performance from a Roots, Bluegrass or Folk artist. Almost exclusively since the election -— and many times before Nov. 8 — Springer’s weekly political commentary has focused on Donald Trump.
“What’s your greatest fear with Trump now?” asks Galvin during a recent podcast.
“Simply that he doesn’t take the job seriously,” replies Springer. “And that is mainly an issue with national security. By his own admission, he doesn’t read books; he doesn’t read newspapers. He doesn’t have a particular philosophy or ideology. He’s just not that interested.
“But most scary, particularly with all the headlines that are going on in the world today, he doesn’t want the national security briefings that a president gets every morning. He says, ‘No, I know what all that stuff’s about and I’m a smart guy. If there’s a crisis, I’ll figure something out.’ ”
“Whoa,” Springer says to the rapt audience of some 30 people in the coffee house. “No one — ever — is prepared for their first year as president.”
In Springer’s eyes, Trump threatens core American values.
“America is first and foremost an idea,” Springer says in an interview with CityBeat. “We were an idea before we were a country. This is supposed to be a place where all humans are created equal with inalienable rights. That’s the concept. That’s the ideal.
“But Trump is against this,” he continues. “He’s a misogynist. He belittles people. He wants to ban, to deport. He sees America as white and male. If you try to find any consistency in his whole life, it’s that he likes rich white men. But there are not enough rich white men for him to win the election, so he had to bring angry white men with him.”
Unlike his predecessors, Trump is a master of dynamic communication tools like Twitter, Springer observes.
“He’s excellent in social media,” he says. “He convinced people to get out and vote with tweets that inspired fear, or real anger and hate.”
On his flight to Cincinnati from Stamford, where he still hosts The Jerry Springer Show — now in its 26th season — Springer sets out his thoughts on yellow legal paper. A voracious reader, Springer often draws historical parallels in his weekly analysis.
“Only when you have a sense of history can you know whether something makes sense or not, and where it’s going,” he says.
If Springer sees an upside to the 2016 election, it’s that more people are aware of civic affairs.
“We’ve had a shock to our system,” he says. “Everyone is paying attention because Trump could be dangerous. His tweets could be dangerous. We used to be scared to have his finger on the button. Now, we’re scared to have his finger on the iPhone.”
Since Tales, Tunes and Tomfoolery started nearly two years ago, its audience has grown significantly. Westwood One, one of the nation’s largest radio networks, now carries the show. Every Saturday, it’s broadcast on talkRADIO in the United Kingdom.
While the show’s reach is global, its venue is intimate. Why here?
“Cincinnati is where I started my career, met my wife, and where my daughter Katie was born,” Springer says. “I love this place.”
He was mayor of Cincinnati in the 1970s after serving five terms on city council, and also a nightly news anchor for WLWT until 1993. Cincinnati is also where he formed a life-long friendship with podcast producer and co-host Galvin.
The latter promotes Tales, Tunes and Tomfoolery as “Your beacon during the Trump storm.” It’s a calling Springer takes seriously.
“Being vigilant with our values is the single most important thing we can do right now,” Springer says. “We can argue about political policies — which is a better plan; who should pay for what. There’s a conservative point of view — not one that I agree with — that has a legitimacy. I get that. It has an intellectual basis.
“But we cannot accept an abuse of our value system in America,” he continues. “We need to pay attention and not let things happen to our country that are against our fundamental values. That’s one of the reasons we have this podcast. It’s one small thing people can latch onto to keep the conversation going.”
Jerry Springer’s TALES, TUNES AND TOMFOOLERY podcast is recorded 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays at the Folk School Coffee Parlor, 332 Elm Street, Ludlow, Ky. To reserve a free audience seat, visit folkschoolcoffeeparlor.com.
