The longtime host of Wheel of Fortune will spin the wheel no more come the show’s season finale in 2024 but when, exactly, will that farewell episode air, and what will happen next?
Pat Sajak will soon retire from selling vowels, something he started doing way back in 1981 as the daytime host of the hugely successful ABC game show. Sajak became the Wheel’s nighttime host in 1983 and has been a mainstay there for 41 years, earning a whopping 19 Emmy nominations while taking home three. Despite departing from his hosting duties after this season, he will stay on as a consultant on the show until 2027.
This fall, Wheel of Fortune will air shows with their new host, the ever-busy Ryan Seacrest, who has seemingly hosted every type of show possible. Meanwhile, Vanna White — the only human to ever hold a job of letter-turner — will stay on in that role for the foreseeable future.
Pat Sajak’s final episode as host of Wheel of Fortune will air on Friday, June 7, 2024. To say it’s an end of era is an understatement. It’s unclear if the show will run any video tribute of Sajak or, for that matter, if any on-air celebration will take place, though one wonders if the final puzzle will somehow be tied to the moment. In case you’re wondering, no announcement has been made about a potential “best of” episode, which seems like would be an ideal send-off as well as a likely ratings success.
Sajak’s long-term employment on the show has made him so rich that not even a bad spin of the wheel can bankrupt him. In recent years, Sajak’s annual salary has been reported at about $15 million, while he makes almost that same amount licensing out his likeliness to things such as Wheel of Fortune slot machines. Because they tape a week’s worth of episodes in one day, Sajak only works 4 days per month. Thus, he makes more than $300,000 per work day. All things considered, this is undoubtedly the Deal of Fortune and makes many second-guess their respective careers.
Sajak’s daughter, Maggie, also works for the show as their social correspondent, posting behind the scenes footage and giving fans an inside look of the show. If her father’s final episode is lacking in any big celebration, her platform will certainly be the place to go for such footage.
In the very first Wheel of Fortune episode that featured the Pat Sajak-Vanna White combo, one of the puzzles was the phrase “Sign on the dotted line.” Sajak certainly did, and it certainly paid off. Now, he signs off on Wheel of Fortune for the very last time, and will likely go down as one of the most successful game show hosts in television history.
