Steve Wilkos Really Got Me With His Tribute To Jerry Springer, And If You're A Millennial, You'll Know What I Mean

    "Other than my father, Jerry was the most influential man in my life."

    Matt Stopera
    by Matt Stopera

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Millennials of a certain age grew up with this big, bald-headed man: Steve Wilkos.

    Nbc / ©NBC/Courtesy Everett Collection

    You probably remember him always laying the smackdown on guests on Jerry Springer.

    Ralf-finn Hestoft / Corbis via Getty Images

    He was *the* main "bouncer" on the show.

    NBC Universal / Courtesy Everett Collection

    He was always kickin' some ass, or at least preventing ass-kicking from happening.

    NBC/Courtesy Everett Collection

    Anyway, Steve got his own show: The Steve Wilkos Show.

    NBC / ©NBC/Courtesy Everett Collection

    Yesterday, we learned that Jerry Springer died at the age of 79, and Jerry was obviously a *huge* part of Steve's life.

    NBC/ Courtest of Everett Collection

    The two were very close.

    Bruce Glikas / Getty Images

    And now, Steve has released his own statement about Jerry's death:

    Here's his statement:

    The statement says "other than my father, Jerry was the most influential man in my life. Everything I have today I owe to Jerry. He was the smartest, most generous, kindest person I've ever known. My wife and I are devastated, we will miss him terribly"
    @thestevewilkosshow/ Instagram: @thestevewilkosshow

    And the caption:

    "Take care of yourself and each other." —Jerry Springer
    @thestevewilkosshow/ Instagram: @thestevewilkosshow

    Well... 🥹