It also had two $0 spaces plus one each of Free Vowel and Your Own Clue, the latter of which gave clues via an on-set telephone to the players.Īt the end of each round, the money earned by all three players was applied to prizes they had chosen prior to the taping (denoted by an Accounting Department) if a contestant covered her lowest prize's value, she would win it upon solving a puzzle and subsequent earnings were applied to the next item on her list. The puzzle board and Wheel were very different: the former used pull cards, while the latter stood in the center of the stage and had no Bankrupts, two (later four) Lose A Turn wedges, and one each of Buy A Vowel and Free Spin. With Chuck Woolery as host and Mike Lawrence as announcer, the show had contestants (all female) who solved Hangman-style puzzles, but their winnings were determined by a vertical mechanical Wheel stopped by Woolery. The first pilot, taped in September 1973, put more emphasis on shopping for prizes at the behest of NBC boss Lin Bolen, who had commissioned the pilot to boost network daytime ratings among women 18-34.

Kelly, and Jim Thornton.' You are at the Shopper's Bazaar! And now, here is the host of the Shopper's Bazaar: Chuck Woolery!'

Has also had four announcers in its history: Charlie O'Donnell, Jack Clark, M. Have hosted the nighttime version since its inception in 1983. Remained on the network show for the rest of its run. Stafford left in 1982, and was replaced by White, who Sajak was replaced in daytime by Rolf Benirschke, who was in turn replaced by Bob Goen Sajak left the network version in January 1989 to host his own late-night talk show, while remaining as host of the nighttime Wheel. Woolery left in 1981, and was replaced by Sajak. The network version was originally hosted by Chuck Woolery and Susan Stafford. The original version of Wheel was a daytime series on NBC from January 6, 1975, to June 30, 1989, then on CBSįrom July 17, 1989, to January 11, 1991, and again on NBC from Januaryġ4, 1991, until it was cancelled on September 20, 1991, therebyĬo-existing with the nighttime version from 1983 to 1991. It stars Pat Sajak and Vanna White as host and co-host. The current version of the series, which airs in nightly syndication, premiered on September 19, 1983. To win cash and prizes determined by spinning a giant carnival wheel. The show features a competition in which contestants solve word puzzles, similar to those used in hangman,

Wheel of Fortune (often known simply as Wheel) is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin that debuted in 1975.

Wheel of fortune logo season 17