Current:Home > reviewsPat Sajak celebrates 'Wheel of Fortune' contestant's mistake: 'We get to keep the money!' -FinanceCore
Pat Sajak celebrates 'Wheel of Fortune' contestant's mistake: 'We get to keep the money!'
View
Date:2025-04-12 10:46:46
You won't be able to look away from the latest "Wheel of Fortune" flub.
On Monday's episode, the first installment of the long-running syndicated game show's 2024 fan-favorites week, the contestants started prematurely celebrating what they thought was a correct answer — only to find out the guess was wrong.
After Michigan's Cynthia King solved two phrases, she was stumped by the third and final phrase presented in that round: "_ _ n'_ l_ok aw_ _." Hawaii's Rufus Cumberlander rang in and guessed "Don't look away."
"No, no, no, no no!" Sajak said as Cumberlander fist-bumped King and Luidgi Altidor of Brooklyn, New York on either side of him. Even Vanna White was applauding the answer.
As the puzzle board filled in the letters, the last one revealed "Can't look away."
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
"Everybody is congratulating everybody," Sajak said as the contestants reacted in dismay. "And: We get to keep the money!" Sajak added victoriously.
What to know about the last episode:Release date, how to watch Pat Sajak’s last show
The contestants' over-confidence comes on the heels of a viral moment the show experienced last week, when Tavaris Williams saw "_ _ _ _ i_ t_e b _ _ t!" on the board and guessed "Right in the butt!"
As his fellow contestants and the audience reeled from an uncharacteristically crude guess, consummate professional Sajak replied: "No." As it turns out, the phrase read "This is the best!"
After four decades at the helm with White, Sajak is down to his final episodes of "Wheel." On June 7, the show will air its Season 41 finale, which will mark the host's last. The final week, whose theme will be "Thanks for the memories," will feature tributes to Sajak.
This fall, Ryan Seacrest will take the reins as host. He'll be joined by Vanna White, who in September extended her contract with the game show through its 2025-26 season.
Pat Sajak will continue working on 'Wheel of Fortune' as a consultant
Suzanne Prete, the EVP of game shows at Sony Pictures Television, honored Sajak's legacy in a statement issued shortly after announcing his impending retirement.
"As the host of 'Wheel of Fortune,' Pat has entertained millions of viewers across America for 40 amazing years," she said. "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."
Pat Sajak highlights:Look back at the best quotes from the 'Wheel of Fortune' host
Sajak "has agreed to continue as a consultant on the show for three years following his last year hosting," Prete revealed.
Sajak and White have hosted "Wheel of Fortune" in its current iteration since its debut in syndication in 1983, according to Sony Pictures Television Studios, which produces the show.
The concept was created in 1975 by Merv Griffin as an NBC daytime show based on the popular game “Hangman," per Sony Pictures Television.
veryGood! (65)
Related
- Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
- Gov. Kristi Noem touts South Dakota’s workforce recruitment effort
- Last undefeated men's college basketball team falls as Iowa State sinks No. 2 Houston
- Selena Gomez and Timothée Chalamet deny rumors of their Golden Globes feud
- Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
- Which NFL teams would be best fits for Jim Harbaugh? Ranking all six openings
- Olympic skater under investigation for alleged sexual assault missing Canadian nationals
- A teen on the Alaska Airlines flight had his shirt ripped off when the door plug blew. A stranger tried to help calm him down.
- Romantasy reigns on spicy BookTok: Recommendations from the internet’s favorite genre
- UN to vote on a resolution demanding a halt to attacks on vessels in the Red Sea by Yemen’s rebels
Ranking
- Moving abroad can be expensive: These 5 countries will 'pay' you to move there
- Kaitlyn Dever tapped to join Season 2 of 'The Last of Us'
- Olympic skater under investigation for alleged sexual assault missing Canadian nationals
- Sports gambling creeps forward again in Georgia, but prospects for success remain cloudy
- Who are the most valuable sports franchises? Forbes releases new list of top 50 teams
- China says it will launch its next lunar explorer in the first half of this year
- Shohei Ohtani's Dodgers deal prompts California controller to ask Congress to cap deferred payments
- Federal fix for rural hospitals gets few takers so far
Recommendation
Macy's says employee who allegedly hid $150 million in expenses had no major 'impact'
Virginia police pull driver out of burning car after chase, bodycam footage shows
Barry Keoghan reveals he battled flesh-eating disease: 'I'm not gonna die, right?'
Can my employer use my photos to promote its website without my permission? Ask HR
Military service academies see drop in reported sexual assaults after alarming surge
Israel taps top legal minds, including a Holocaust survivor, to battle genocide claim at world court
Researchers find a massive number of plastic particles in bottled water
A dinghy carrying migrants hit rocks in Greece, killing 2 people in high winds