Kym Johnson remembers her ‘Dancing with the Stars’ partner Jerry Springer

Kym Johnson is remembering her time as Jerry Springer’s dance partner on season three of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ back in 2006.

In a recent interview, Johnson also revealed the real reason that Springer agreed to do the show– he wanted to learn how to dance for his daughter Katie’s wedding.

Springer’s willingness to take on the dance challenge

“The reason he was doing ‘Dancing with the Stars’ was to learn to dance for his daughter’s wedding,” Johnson recently told PEOPLE of the late TV host, who passed away on Thursday after battling pancreatic cancer.

“They wanted to do a father-daughter dance,” she said. “He was so genuine in the reason why he wanted to do the show.”

Johnson said she felt nervous about meeting her celebrity partner for the show but was surprised when it was the familiar face of Jerry Springer.

“When I first met him, he looked at me and he said, ‘I’m sorry.’ I only knew him from ‘The Jerry Springer Show’. We instantly connected and he became like a father figure to me.”

Johnson admired Springer’s dedication despite his lack of dance experience, and his willingness to learn.

“He was really open to the experience,” she said of Springer. “He was willing to do anything I asked of him.”

Springer exited ‘Dancing with the Stars’ in fifth place

Throughout their time on the show, the couple danced paso doble to Charlotte Church’s song ‘Habañera’, and a waltz to Patti Page’s ‘Tennessee Waltz’.

And despite Springer’s performances averaging out to 20.8, his loyal fanbase kept him in the show, before he ultimately ended up leaving the show in fifth place.

“He was surprised we kept getting through each week, because we definitely weren’t the best dancers,” Johnson recalled of her time on the show. “I think America fell in love with him in a different way. He just connected with everybody.”

And although Johnson wasn’t able to see if her dance lessons paid off in the end at Katie’s wedding, Johnson and Springer performed a waltz dedicated to his daughter on the set of ‘Dancing with the Stars’.

“He went and hugged her at the end. The love they had for each other was so beautiful,” Johnson said of the touching moment. “It was great that I could be a part of that moment for him and Katie.”