After 43 seasons and well more than 8,000 episodes, Pat Sajak is calling it a career. The 77-year-old will sign off his final “Wheel of Fortune” episode Friday evening, after a week of tribute episodes entitled “Thanks for the Memories.”
Unlike Alex Trebek, who also hosted numerous other game shows before (and during) his 37-year run as “Jeopardy!” emcee, Sajak has solely hosted “Jeopardy!’s” sister program for his entire television career. Sajak got his start on the network version of “Wheel of Fortune,” and remained with the program when it began its syndicated run in September 1983. In the time since, he topped the late Bob Barker’s record for the longest stint on a single game show by a single host.
Notable Conservative Celebrity
Sajak, who outside the game show realm briefly hosted a late-night talk show on CBS in 1989 and 1990, stands as one of the few Hollywood celebrities publicly recognized as conservative. During his tenure, he has served as a director of Eagle Publishing, of the Claremont Institute, and as chair of the Board of Trustees of Hillsdale College since 2019.
Ironically, Sajak’s predecessor as “Wheel” host, Chuck Woolery, also holds conservative views — an improbable coincidence in leftist Hollywood. In 1981, a salary dispute with Woolery prompted “Wheel” creator Merv Griffin to look elsewhere for a new host. He quickly settled on Sajak, then a local weatherman for NBC’s local affiliate in Los Angeles.
Over the decades, Sajak has entered millions of Americans’ homes five nights
