The show is remembered for its scripted logo, which was Geraldo's handwritten signature, making Rivera the 3rd talk show host to use their signature as a logo, the other two being Larry King and Sally Jessy Raphael.
Brawl
In November 3, 1988, an episode involving white supremacists, anti-racist skinheads, black activists, and Jewish activists was aired. A confrontation between John Metzger and Roy Innis led to Innis walking over to Metzger and forcefully grabbing him by the neck after Metzger stood up in Innis’ face, and subsequently, a full-scale brawl broke out. Audience members, several stage hands, and Rivera himself got involved. In the process, Rivera was struck in the face by a chair and wound up with a broken nose. He did not press charges, saying he did not wish to be "tied up with the roaches", and also claiming "if there ever was a case of deserved violence, this was it". The ratings for this show increased as news of the fight attracted attention to the episode even before it aired. In August 1992, Rivera would scuffle with KKK members again at a Klan rally in Janesville, Wisconsin. Rivera suffered cuts and a bite to one of his thumbs. Geraldo's symbol in the grand scale of talk shows became typified by what opened each show: the image of a fictional supermarket tabloidmagazine cover displaying images of the day's subject with a screaming headline. This practice later became popular, with talk shows using creative and somewhat drawn-out titles for their show topics. The brawl served as the inspiration for the Law & Order Season Four premiere "Sweeps"; also, the Beastie Boys mentioned it in their 1989 song "What Comes Around": "You're all mixed up like pasta primavera/Yo, why'd you throw that chair at Geraldo Rivera, man?"
As ''The Geraldo Rivera Show''
In the show's tenth season, it became The Geraldo Rivera Show, and changed from the established tabloid format to a more stubbed, serious show. Gone was the opening fictional supermarket tabloid graphic, replaced with a full opening sequence that played up Rivera's caring and sensitive nature. Summer 1996 promos for the new season showed Rivera also playing with his two young daughters. He was seen in a 1997 PSA about children. This was one of the shows that evidenced the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, at the start of the show's final season. In 1998, David John Oates starred on the show, playing reversals on Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
The Family Guy episode "Fifteen Minutes of Shame", which featured the Griffins appearing on a talk show, parodied the infamous 1988 brawl by having Peter shout "Who are you calling 'Uncle Tom'?!" and throwing a chair.
In a season five episode of Empty Nest titled "Dirty Harry", Rivera appears as himself and mocks the brawl. In the episode, Harry, Carol, and Charlie appear on the talk show; during their appearance, Harry inadvertently hits Geraldo in the nose with a coffee mug.
