Wheel of Fortune always acknowledges its big wins… usually with lots and lots of confetti. But for his final hour, Pat Sajak, the dependable captain of the celebrated game show, requested the chance to, more or less, sail quietly off into the sunset.
The host’s final installment was filmed on the first Friday in April, and it’s scheduled to air two months later, on Friday, June 7. Executive producer Bellamie Blackstone revealed to us that viewers would hear a few words of farewell from Sajak, as well as Vanna White’s thoughts on losing her longtime colleague.
But Sajak wished to keep his last episode focused on the game and, most importantly, its players, whom he has always kept at ease.
“I think it’s my most important role on the show,” Sajak told his daughter Maggie Sajak in an exclusive interview during his final tapings.
Pat Sajak hosting his final ‘Wheel of Fortune’ (Wheel of Fortune)
“I really care about them and they’re very vulnerable… When someone screws up my first reaction is ‘How do I make it better for them?’” Sajak tells us. “I’ve been pretty successful over the years, but everybody’s different. Some you joke with, some you playfully yell at, some you have to hug and get them through it. But it’s a big part of what I do, I think, and I’m proud of what I do and I hope they know how much I cared about them and how much I tried to make that experience one they’ll never forget.”
“Everyone has been together for such a long time, especially the people who have been here for decades, and yet, Pat was in a good headspace,” Blackstone recalls. “We had a few minutes of everybody enjoying a little drink and celebrating. There was a lot of positivity, and it was very nice.”
Cheers, Pat!
This is an excerpt from TV Guide Magazine’s Wheel of Fortune: Farewell, Pat Sajak issue. For more inside scoop on the long-running game show and Pat’s final episode, pick up a copy of the issue available on newsstands and for order online at WheelofFortuneMag.com.