| Wheel of Fortune | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Game Show |
| Created by | Merv Griffin |
| Presented by |
|
| Narrated by | Grant Walker |
| Country of origin | New Zealand |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 8 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 24 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | TV2 (1991-1996) TV ONE (2008-2009) |
| Picture format | 4.3 PAL 16.9 576i (SDTV) |
| Original release | February 1991 – 1996 14 April 2008 – June 2009 |
Wheel of Fortune was a long-running New Zealand television game show that was last hosted by television personalityJason Gunn and co-host Sonia Gray. It was broadcast on TV2 from 1991 to 1996 and on TV ONE from 2008 to 2009.
- 1History
History[edit]
Jan 06, 1975 Created by Merv Griffin. With Susan Stafford, Charlie O'Donnell, Chuck Woolery, Vanna White. Daytime version of the game show in which contestants. Sajak's rep, Bob Burton, confirmed the news to USA TODAY. 'Wheel of Fortune' has been Sajak's hosting home for the last 36 years, a Guinness World Record for the longest.
1991-1996 original[edit]
The original New Zealand version of the popular American game show Wheel of Fortune was first broadcast in February 1991, on TVNZ channel TV2, at 5:30pm. The show, which was heavily modeled after Australia's version, was originally hosted by Phillip Leishman with co-host Lana Coc-Kroft, along with Grant Walker (also doing New Zealand's version of Sale of the Century at the time) as announcer. The show was later hosted by Simon Barnett.During its time the show aired on various time slots and switched between TV ONE and TV2; at the show's peak it aired in prime time on TV ONE at 7:00pm, a time slot previously used to screen Sale of the Century, but moved off this slot in 1995 when TV ONE extended their news to a one-hour show followed by Holmes. After moving to TV2 in a 6:00pm time slot the show was ultimately axed in 1996 as the show could not compete with the 6pm news shows on TV ONE and TV3.
2008-2009 return[edit]
On 14 April 2008 the New Zealand version of Wheel of Fortune returned again to TVNZ channel TV ONE. The show returned with new hosts Jason Gunn and Sonia Gray. The show now airs at 5:30pm local time. At the conclusion of filming of the 2008 season TVNZ announced the show will return in 2009 bigger and better. Additionally Jason Gunn officially announced that his co-host Sonia Gray was pregnant with twins and that she would return to co-host the show after her pregnancy. Greer Robson temporarily took Sonia's role on the show until she returned in May, 2009.
It was announced on 2 May 2009 that the series was being cancelled after only one year on air. The reasons given by TVNZ for the cancellation were lower ratings than the previous season, decreased advertising revenue and the high cost of producing the show. Lower ratings may have resulted after reformatting of the show interrupted its flow due to an increased emphasis on 'Speed Digits'. The last show was screened in June 2009.
David Tua incident[edit]
One infamous episode which appears from time to time in blooper specials was boxer David Tua's game on October 10, 1992: at one point, he asked for P when buying a vowel; at another, he tried to buy a 'constonant'. He was also believed to have tried to call 'O for awesome', but in fact it was 'O for Olsen' (a reference to Olsen Filipaina), although the main problem is that he was supposed to call a consonant.[1]
References[edit]
- ^Hunt, Tom (5 October 2013). ''O for...awesome''. Dominion Post.
Pat Sajak is in his 38th year as Host of Wheel of Fortune. He joined America’s Game® in 1981, when the show aired on network daytime television. The top-ranked syndicated version made its debut in 1983, with Sajak at the helm.
Wheel Of Fortune Game Show Today
Since then, he has earned three Emmy® Awards, a People’s Choice Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In June 2011, Sajak was honored again by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences when he was presented with the Daytime Emmy® Awards Lifetime Achievement Award. In April 2018, he was inducted into the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame, along with Co-Host, Vanna White; Executive Producer, Harry Friedman; and Wheel of Fortune, itself. Most recently, on March 22, 2019, Pat Sajak was recognized by Guinness World Records® for having “the longest career as a game show host for the same show,” totaling 35 years and 198 days when presented.
“I was very lucky in that I always knew that I wanted to be in broadcasting,” says Sajak. “My early heroes were people like Arthur Godfrey, Dave Garroway, Steve Allen and, especially, Jack Paar. They helped shape what a television personality was, paving the way for so many others.”
Sajak was born and raised in Chicago, where he broke into broadcasting as a newscaster and announcer at a small radio station. He joined the Army in 1968 and was sent to Vietnam. There, he spent a year and a half with Armed Forces Radio in Saigon — and, like Robin Williams in the feature film of the same name, he started each day by shouting, “Good morning, Vietnam!”
Following his discharge, Sajak spent a year at another small radio station in Murray, Ky. He then decided to move to the nearest big city, Nashville, and enter the television business. Sajak was hired by WSM-TV as a staff announcer, eventually expanding his role to talk shows and weather reporting. There, he was spotted by a talent scout for KNBC-TV in Los Angeles and, in 1977, he joined that station as its weatherman.
Four years later, he was chosen by Wheel of Fortune’screator, Merv Griffin, to assume hosting duties on the series’ network daytime edition. In 1983, the nighttime version of the show was launched, and it has been one of the top-rated syndicated TV programs ever since.
Wheel Of Fortune Game Show Spin Id
Quick Bits:
“I was very lucky in that I always knew that I wanted to be in broadcasting,” says Sajak. “My early heroes were people like Arthur Godfrey, Dave Garroway, Steve Allen and, especially, Jack Paar. They helped shape what a television personality was, paving the way for so many others.”
Sajak was born and raised in Chicago, where he broke into broadcasting as a newscaster and announcer at a small radio station. He joined the Army in 1968 and was sent to Vietnam. There, he spent a year and a half with Armed Forces Radio in Saigon — and, like Robin Williams in the feature film of the same name, he started each day by shouting, “Good morning, Vietnam!”
Following his discharge, Sajak spent a year at another small radio station in Murray, Ky. He then decided to move to the nearest big city, Nashville, and enter the television business. Sajak was hired by WSM-TV as a staff announcer, eventually expanding his role to talk shows and weather reporting. There, he was spotted by a talent scout for KNBC-TV in Los Angeles and, in 1977, he joined that station as its weatherman.
Who Owns Wheel Of Fortune Show
Four years later, he was chosen by Wheel of Fortune’screator, Merv Griffin, to assume hosting duties on the series’ network daytime edition. In 1983, the nighttime version of the show was launched, and it has been one of the top-rated syndicated TV programs ever since.