Terry Watson walked away from Ryan Seacrest’s first “Wheel of Fortune” episode with more than $25,000 in cash, prizes and trips. He also missed out on an extra $40,000 in the bonus round, and it showed. Seacrest patted him on the back. “Thank you for being here on my first night,” he said.
The Monday night show opened season 42 and was the first in four decades with a new face greeting viewers. Seacrest and Vanna White came out together through a set of lit-up doors, new this season. The announcer had introduced them with the words “together for the first time.”
Seacrest spoke to the camera next. He said he had watched the show as a kid in Atlanta, and that “Wheel” had been in living rooms for 40 years. Then came the line that got the most attention: “I also know I’ve got some very big shoes to fill.”
The man he replaced
Pat Sajak hosted for 43 years and said goodbye on June 7. Two days before Seacrest’s debut, People reported, Sajak won his fourth Emmy for outstanding game show host, his first in 26 years. Seacrest told USA Today: “No one can beat Pat Sajak. I can’t be Pat, I can be me.”
Sajak, 77, is not gone entirely. He has one more season of “Celebrity Wheel of Fortune,” which starts October 7, and Deadline reported he will serve as a consultant for three years.
Hundreds of episodes
Seacrest put in months of practice. He told USA Today he ran mock games with contestants, and he went through hundreds of episodes of the show. He read the rule book and made flashcards. The show’s executive producer built him a miniature wheel to use while traveling, according to Variety.
His plan for the show was simple. “Don’t make any changes,” he told “Good Morning America” ahead of the debut. “This show works. All I need to do is keep it moving.”
After the final puzzle, he said what mattered to him. “What was great is that everybody got to walk away with some money,” Seacrest said. “I was really hoping that would happen on my first night.”
Sources
- Ryan Seacrest makes 'Wheel of Fortune' host debut, kicks off new era with Vanna White
- ‘Wheel of Fortune’ has a new host — how did Ryan Seacrest do?
