Posted by chicagomedia.org on July 10, 2008 at 09:36:57:
The biggest freak show in town is about to get a little less freaky.
When "The Jerry Springer Show" begins production of its 18th season next month, it'll be missing many of the oddballs and bizarre characters who've been regulars on the Chicago-based syndicated gabfest lately.
Gone will be the legless man who walks on his hands, the guy dressed in a Big Foot costume, the plate spinner, the mime and the puppets, among others.
It's all part of streamlining the program and emphasizing the conflict among the main guests.
Richard Dominick, executive producer of the show, also plans to drop the multiple stories in each program and return to the old format of one story per show.
"We've always reinvented the show every couple of years," he told Television Week. "This time I felt that I wanted to go back to the basics of focusing on a single storyline over the course of a show instead of going in a bunch of different directions."
Production on the show, taped at NBC Tower, resumes Aug. 11.
(Feder)