Wheel of Fortune audiences came out in droves to bid farewell to Pat Sajak earlier this month.
07.06.2024 - 19:09 / variety.com
Daniel D'Addario Chief TV Critic With Pat Sajak’s final appearance as host of “Wheel of Fortune,” the makeup of a daily hour of television that structures the days of millions of Americans is shifting once more. “Wheel of Fortune” is the low-pressure option of the two famous game shows invented by the late superproducer Merv Griffin.
Unlike “Jeopardy,” it’s intended to be not aspirational but accessible, with simple word-puzzle games and a department-store glamour that comforts but doesn’t dazzle. And Sajak, along with Vanna White revealing the letters, has been at its center since relatively close to the beginning; he took over from Chuck Woolery in 1981, six years into the show’s run, and has since been honored by the Guinness Book of World Records for the longest continuous stint hosting a single game show.
His departure won’t leave a vacuum, exactly; his replacement, Ryan Seacrest, was announced in June 2023 — nearly a year before Sajak’s final show, which airs June 7. Perhaps that news was meant to forestall “Jeopardy”-style indecision: The 2020 death of Alex Trebek — an event mourned by “Jeopardy” fans who prized the host’s cerebral, witty manner — gave rise to a seemingly endless search for his replacement, one that Sony Pictures Television bobbled first by naming producer Mike Richards to the job, then by splitting duties, confusingly, between Ken Jennings and Mayim Bialik.
(Today, Jennings is the sole host of nightly “Jeopardy.”) This transition is obviously different from Trebek’s — the chaos of replacing the “Jeopardy” emcee can be read, in part, as a sort of protracted mourning for a figure whose health struggles played out in public. Just plugging someone new in behind the podium might have read as
.Wheel of Fortune audiences came out in droves to bid farewell to Pat Sajak earlier this month.
Pat Sajak has officially handed off “Wheel of Fortune” to Ryan Seacrest in a new promo. The famed host’s final episode of the iconic game show aired on June 7.“Well, this is it, Ryan. What do you think?” Sajak, 77, says in the clip as he gives Seacrest, 49, a tour of the studio with Vanna White.“Impressive, Pat,” Seacrest replies.“Ryan, I know the contestants are going to love you,” White, 67, chimes in.As Sajak announced his retirement in June 2023, White extended her contract through the 2025-26 season.
Zack Sharf Digital News Director Pat Sajak has officially passed his “Wheel of Fortune” hosting baton to Ryan Seacrest in a new promo for the long-running game show that touts Seacrest’s hosting debut this fall. Sajak signed off as “Wheel of Fortune” host after more than 40 years on June 7.
Pat Sajak has officially handed off Wheel of Fortune hosting duties to Ryan Seacrest. The longtime host, whose final episode aired Friday, June 7, has welcomed Seacrest to the game show, alongside co-host Vanna White. You can watch the promo above.
record-breaking four decades hosting “Wheel of Fortune,” Pat Sajak already has his next gig lined up.Although Sajak, 77, said that he’s stepping back from the long-running game show to retire, he’s set to be in a play at the Hawaii Theatre Center in Honolulu, for a community theater production called “Prescription: Murder.” Sajak will play a psychiatrist who hatches a murder plot. Sajak’s friend, local KHON newscaster Joe Moore, will play the lead detective.The mystery-themed play will be on the Hawaii Theatre Center’s main stage.“Pat has a good relationship with [co-star] Joe Moore; Their friendship spans since the military days,” Hawaii Theatre Manager Justin Jenks told the U.S. Sun in an article published Monday.
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After 41 seasons as the host of Wheel of Fortune, longtime host Pat Sajak retired from the gig Friday June 7. He made the announcement that Season 41 would be his last in the summer of 2023, and Ryan Seacrest is set to take over.
emotional tribute to Pat Sajak on Instagram after Sajak’s final episode hosting “Wheel of Fortune” aired Friday.Seacrest, 49, is taking over for Sajak, 77, in September. His Instagram post featured a photo and a soundless video clip of the pair and letter-turner Vanna White spending time together on the game show’s set.“Pat, congratulations on an incredible run with ‘Wheel of Fortune!’ ” Seacrest wrote.
Ryan Seacrest is honoring Pat Sajak.
Ryan Seacrest paid tribute to Pat Sajak today on social media following the broadcast of Sajak’s final episode as host of Wheel of Fortune.
The contestants on Pat Sajak‘s final episode of Wheel of Fortune were all gifted some extra money!
Pat Sajak bid farewell to “Wheel of Fortune” Friday night after hosting the legendary game show for more than 8,000 episodes across 41 seasons. The episode featured footage from Sajak’s 1981 debut, and revealed “Chicago, Illinois” as the first puzzle answer — a possible nod to his hometown. A round was cut from the program to make room for Sajak’s goodbye message, but he gave each contestant $5,000 to make up for it.“Well, the time has come to say goodbye,” Sajak said on-air.
Pat Sajak, 77, ends his legendary run – spanning over four decades – hosting “Wheel of Fortune” on June 7.Sajak makes history as the longest-running host of any game show (beating Bob Barker, who hosted “The Price Is Right” for a 35 year tenure, from 1972 to 2007). Sajak told USA today about “Wheel of Fortune,” that the show is “sort of a safe-haven half-hour where nobody gets hurt, and everybody has fun.
considered retiring from the show after Sajak announced that he was stepping away as host last year. But White ultimately decided that she’s staying on the show beyond Sajak’s final episode that airs Friday, June 7.“I feel happy for him,” White said after the news of Sajak’s departure from the game show.
host Pat Sajak has captivated viewers with his charismatic charm, quick wit and overall likable demeanor. Now, years after he created “a perfect storm” with the show, he’s taking one last spin and saying goodbye.Sajak became one of the most beloved television hosts in game show history, with one expert telling Fox News Digital his appeal is “like humidity.
his final episode that airs Friday. While some viewers are excited for Ryan Seacrest to step in as host, the show will not be the same without Sajak.
Vanna White is bidding her pal farewell.
After more than four decades, Pat Sajak has bid farewell to Wheel of Fortune. The longtime host expressed his gratitude to viewers Friday in his final episode on the game show.
J. Kim Murphy It was all just a game at first to Pat Sajak, but then it became something much more meaningful. The longtime “Wheel of Fortune” host’s final episode heading the game show airs in just a few hours — and the production has released a first look preview ahead of the broadcast, in which Sajak expresses gratitude to his audience.
Pat Sajak assumed that he and Vanna White would retire together, but that won’t be the case when he takes his final bow on “Wheel of Fortune” when his last episode airs on Friday.Back in 2019, Sajak predicted that he and the famed letter-turner, 67, would walk of the ABC stage together.“There’s a pretty good chance that when one of us leaves, we’ll both leave, because it would be odd for either of us to work with somebody else,” he said, per USA Today. “I always say that I want to leave while the show is still popular and before people tune in and say, ‘Ooh, what happened to him?'”“I’m not quite there yet, but I don’t know,” he added at the time.