Pat Sajak, longtime host of ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ is retiring
Jun 12, 2023, 8:30 PM
FILE - Pat Sajak, left, and Vanna White, from "Wheel of Fortune," attend a ceremony honoring Harry Friedman with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Nov. 1, 2019, in Los Angeles. Sajak is taking one last spin on “Wheel of Fortune," announcing Monday, June 12, 2023, that its upcoming season will be his last as host. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)
Credit: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
(Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)
(CNN) — Pat Sajak is preparing to spin the wheel on television’s long-running game show “Wheel of Fortune” for the last time.
The host confirmed the news in a tweet on Monday, saying, “Well, the time has come. I’ve decided that our 41st season, which begins in September, will be my last.”
He continued, “It’s been a wonderful ride, and I’ll have more to say in the coming months. Many thanks to you all. (If nothing else, it’ll keep the clickbait sites busy!)”
Sajak gave no indication of who may replace him, but Suzanne Prete, executive vice president of game shows at Sony Pictures Television – the studio that produces “Wheel” – told CNN in a statement that Sajak will “continue as a consultant on the show for three years following his last year hosting.”
“As the host of Wheel of Fortune, Pat has entertained millions of viewers across America for 40 amazing years,” Prete’s statement read, going on to say “We are incredibly grateful and proud to have had Pat as our host for all these years and we look forward to celebrating his outstanding career throughout the upcoming season.”
Serving as the host of the Emmy-winning game show alongside co-host Vanna White for 40 years, Sajak and White stand as two of the longest-serving hosts of any television program in the game show category.
Sajak has hosted “Wheel” since it first aired on NBC as a network daytime television program in 1981 after having been hand-picked by show creator Merv Griffin. He continued his hosting duties as “Wheel” became syndicated in 1983, and has since hosted various spinoff shows including 2021’s “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune.” The show first debuted in 1975.
The Chicago native won a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement award in 2011 and has earned three additional Emmys for his work hosting “Wheel.”
“Wheel of Fortune” is a game show similar to “Hangman” where contestants spin a wheel to earn money for solving word puzzles, and has been a primetime TV mainstay that airs alongside “Jeopardy.”
