Wheel of Fortune (2)

The long-running game show in which three contestants spin a giant wheel and solve Hangman typed puzzles to win thousands of dollars in cash & prizes.

Gameplay
In each round, a puzzle was revealed followed by the category to that puzzle. The player in control spun a large wheel which is fully calibrated with dollar amounts and penalty spaces (Bankrupt & Lose a Turn). When the wheel landed on a dollar amount, he/she then called a letter. If the letter is in the puzzle he/she earned the amount times the number of appearances of that letter and continued his her turn. Along the way he/she can buy a vowel which costs $250 each no matter many there are or if it appeared in the puzzle or not. If at any point the contestant in control picked a letter that was not in the puzzle, solved the puzzle incorrectly or if he/she hit Lose a Turn, that player lost his turn and control went over the next player in line; and if the player hit "Bankrupt", the player in control loses all his/her money and loses his/her turn. The first player to solve the puzzle won the round and kept all the money earned in that round with a minimum guarantee of $200 from 1983-1995, from 1995-2005 the house minimum was $500, and staring in 2005, the current house minimum is $1,000.

Special Wheel Spaces
In addition to the money amounts and penalty spots, the wheel also consisted of special spaces.


 * Buy A Vowel - In the pilot and early months of the series, one of the spaces marked "Buy A Vowel", gave the contestant who landed on it a chance to buy a vowel at its usual price of $250 provided he/she had enough money. But if it was landed on but with a total less than $250 or if there were no more vowels, it acted as a Lose A Turn space. It was not a successful space, so it was shelved in favor of the current vowel buying rules which still exists today.


 * Free Spin - When a player landed on that space he/she received a free spin token. The Free Spin can be used whenever a player is in a position to lose his/her turn. In 1989, the space was removed in favor of a single Free Spin covering the first number of one of the money amounts; when claimed he/she can call a letter for the amount under the Free Spin. Later he/she must call a correct letter to claim the Free Spin and since the 25th season also received $300 a letter. The Free Spin was finally retired after season 26.


 * Free Play - This is the replacement for the Free Spin. When landing on that wedge, the contestant in control can call any letter he/she wants. If the letter called is incorrect, that player does not lose his/her turn, his/her turn continued. When calling a vowel, the player in control does not have to pay anything for it. Like the Speed-Up Round, vowels are worth nothing, while the consonants are always worth $500.


 * Double Play - This was a special token in which the contestant can turn it in before a spin and double the value on that next spin. It also worked on the $10,000 wedge making it worth $20,000. If the player landed on a prize after turning in the Double Play token, the Double Play token was returned to that player.


 * Prize Wedges & Gift Cards - When landed on, the player must call a correct letter to pick up the wedge or card and place it on his/her triangle under his/her bank. Originally in early years, that player just picked up the wedge immediately and then call a letter for the value under the wedge. To keep the prize, that player must of course solve the puzzle.


 * Surprise - It worked the same as the normal prize wedges except the prize was not told until after the contestant solved the puzzle. It lasted from 1992 to 1998.


 * Jackpot (1) - This was a very special space which only existed in the daytime show for two seasons. It worked like the prizes wedges on the nighttime shows at the time, for when landed on the contestant in control picked it up, placed it under his/her bank, then called a letter for the value underneath it. If the contestant can avoid Bankrupt at all times and solve the puzzle, he/she collected the Jackpot which started at $1,000 plus that much more for every day it's not won.


 * Jackpot (2) - During the second round (originally the third round), one special wedge marked "Jackpot" is on the wheel. The jackpot started at $5,000 ($10,000 on Fridays during the Friday Finals era) and grew by the amount landed on for each spin. Whenever the Jackpot wedge is landed on, the player in control can win the entire jackpot by calling a correct letter and solving the puzzle. Since 2006, the Jackpot wedge is also worth $500 a letter regardless if the contestant wished to solve it or not.


 * Mystery Wedge - In the third round, two of the wedges were mystery wedges which are branded with question marks and a money amount. Behind one of them is a Bankrupt, and behind the other is $10,000 (originally a car). When a mystery wedge was landed on and if the contestant in control called a right letter, he/she can has a choice to make, either to take money for the correct letter or lift up the wedge to see what's on the other side. When lifting up the wedge, if the wedge had $10,000 behind it, it then acts as a normal prize wedge; but if the other side showed a Bankrupt, you know what happens; either way, the other wedge became a normal cash wedge. When the Mystery Wedge first premiered, its value was $500, these days its current value is $1,000. Since 2005, the home audience was shown the other side of the wedge.


 * Wild Card - Starting in 2006, a Wild Card was placed on the wheel. This card can be redeemed for an additional consonant for the last amount landed on after calling the right letter. But if the contestant can win the game without using or losing the Wild Card, the Wild Card was then used in the bonus round where the contestant can call a bonus consonant. Like the Free Spin, the Wild Card carries over into the next rounds, but if a Bankrupt is hit, the card is lost.


 * Big Money Round - During the 25th season in the third round along with the Mystery Wedges, the wheel also had a special Big Money Wedge. The Big Money Wedge had a TV screen with rotating dollar amounts on it including Bankrupt & Lose a Turn. The money amounts were $5,000, $7,500 and $25,000. While Bankrupt and Lose a Turn worked the same way as always, if the contestant landed the Big Money wedge and there was one of the big cash amounts on it, the contestant can call a letter for it's face value (the contestant cannot receive the amount landed on times the number of times the right letter appeared). After that, the big money wedge became a regular $1,000 space. When the 25th season started, the amount from the big money wedge became a prize which can only be claimed if the contestant can solve the puzzle.


 * The $10,000 Wedge - This was a very special wedge in which $10,000 was in between two tiny little Bankrupt spaces. While the rule for hitting a Bankrupt remained the same, if the contestant in control landed on the $10,000 space and guessed the right letter, he/she picked it up and flipped it over to show a large $10,000 wedge. The $10,000 can only be won if he/she solved the puzzle.


 * The Million Dollar Wedge - This looked the same as the $10,000 wedge. It was the show's replacement for the $10,000 wedge starting in season 26. It was available for the first three rounds. While the rule for hitting a Bankrupt remained the same, if the contestant in control landed on the Million Dollar space and guessed the right letter, he/she picked it up and flipped it over to show a large Million Dollar wedge. If he/she solved the puzzle and win the game without hitting a Bankrupt at any time, that player had a chance to win $1,000,000 by solving the bonus puzzle. The $100,000 envelope was thus replaced with the $1,000,000 envelope. This format was originally used on the short-lived Australian version entitled Million Dollar Wheel of Fortune before being implemented into this version.

Special Rounds
Throughout it's history, Wheel of Fortune had several special rounds.


 * Toss-Up Puzzles - Since 2000, the game instituted Toss-Up Puzzles. In the Toss-Up rounds, letters in the puzzle would be revealed one at a time. The first player to buzz-in and solve the puzzle won money for that puzzle. When they first premiered, all Toss-Ups were worth $1,000 and two were played every day. These days, three Toss-Up Puzzles were played each show with the first one worth $1,000, the second is worth $2,000 and the honor of starting the first round, and the third is worth $3,000 plus the honor of starting round four.


 * Clue Puzzles - The contestant who solved the main puzzle earned a chance to solve the clue for bonus cash. In 1990 the bonus was $500, later it was raised to $2,000 in 1995, and currently the bonus is $3,000. During the $500 era, if the player who solved the puzzle couldn't come up with the right answer, the other two players one at a time had a chance to answer. There are several variations the of clue puzzles:
 * Megaword - An obscure category in which the puzzle was an obscure word, and if the player who solved the puzzle can use it in a sentence, he/she won $500.
 * Slogan - The puzzle was a slogan or a jingle to a popular product or place. If the contestant who solved the puzzle can come up with the right product, he/she won $3,000 (originally $1,000).
 * Where are We? - Several clue words to a common or well-known place were presented in a form of a puzzle. All the contestant who solved the puzzle had to do was to guess what place those things have in common.
 * Fill in the Blank - Question marks appeared in the puzzle to indicate missing words. The player's job after solving the puzzle was to guess the missing word.
 * Fill in the Number - Pound signs were shown to indicate a number (which appeared as a numeral) in the puzzle. The player's job after solving the puzzle was to guess the number.


 * Puzzler - During one season of the show, the player who solved the puzzle had a chance to solve a Puzzler puzzle related to the puzzle just solved. The Puzzler had a few letters revealed, then the contestant had five seconds to solve the puzzle for $3,000.


 * Prize Puzzles - The player who solved the puzzle not only kept the money, but also won a prize (these days a trip) associated with the puzzle.


 * Red Letter Puzzles - Some of the letters in the puzzle were highlighted in red. They make up a common word. The player's job after solving the puzzle was to guess the red letter word. It first premiered as a home viewer contest.

Shopping
From 1975 to 1989, contestants who solved the puzzle used their money to shop for prizes including the expensive ones. They can buy as many prizes as they want, but if they were low on money, they can put the rest of the cash on a gift certificate or on account. Upon putting the money on account, it was taken out of their score and placed on a backdrop behind the player(s) with "On Account" above. That was taking a risk because if at anytime the player hit Bankrupt not only the money from that round was gone, but the on account money was gone too. The on account money was also gone if the player failed to win the round. But if the contestant can solve the puzzle, the on account money was added to the player's round score and available for shopping.

When the show instituted the playing for all cash format in 1987, the shopping format was discontinued (though continued during the daytime version until 1989), and the game went faster than usual and a lot more fun.

Speed-Up Round
When time is running short, the host would give the wheel one final spin. Then the contestant in control was asked to give a letter. If the letter is a consonant and is in the puzzle he/she received the cash landed on (since 1999 $1,000 was added to the value landed on), but if the right letter was a vowel no money is earned. Either way, the contestant had three seconds (originally five) to solve the puzzle.

All players get to keep whatever they won, but the player with the most money at the end of the show won the game. Starting in 1981, the winning player went on to play the bonus round.

Ties
If the game ended in a tie during the daytime version, all three players returned the next day.

Tiebreakers
In the nighttime version whenever the game ended in a tie, the tied players played one final Toss-Up puzzle in which the first player to solve that puzzle won the game. Before that time, the tied players played (another) Speed-Up round for the right to go to the bonus round.

Bonus Round
In the bonus round, the contestant was shown one final puzzle in which he/she must solve for a prize selected at the start.

Prize Selections
Prize selections were different throughout the run.


 * Normal Prize Choice - During the Shopping era, The winning contestant selected a prize branded with a gold star on it. Later after Shopping was removed, the contestant had a choice of five prizes. One of them being $25,000 which was mostly chosen every time. That mostly led to an augmentation in 1989.


 * Five Envelopes - Starting in 1989, the five prizes (including $25,000) were concealed inside five envelopes (one for each envelope) behind five letters in the word "WHEEL". The concealed prize was revealed after the bonus round was done win or lose. Bonus prizes at that time can only be won once each week. In 1998, the $25,000 grand prize was always available win or lose. For the first two months of the 19th season, the five envelopes concealed three cars and two $25,000 prizes. The cars were always available as well as the $25,000, so therefore the contestant always had a choice of five envelopes.


 * Bonus Wheel - In November 2001, a new bonus wheel was added to the Wheel of Fortune family. The wheel had 24 sections with a prize envelope in each one. Several of them had $25,000, several of them had new cars, while only one had $100,000. In later years, extra cash amounts increased in $5,000 increments were added to the bonus wheel (from $30,000 to $50,000). During the 26th season, if the winning contestant had the Million Dollar Wedge, the $100,000 envelope was replaced with the $1,000,000 envelope (it was won once by Michelle Lowenstein).

Main Bonus Round
Once the prize was chosen, the puzzle was revealed and the contestant was given six letters to start, they are R, S, T, L, N, E. After all instances of those letters were revealed, the winning contestant is asked to give three more consonants (four if he/she has the Wild Card) and one more vowel (before that time he/she was asked to give five consonants and one vowel which were usually the letter previously mentioned, which probably led to the current rules). Once the contestant's letters were revealed, the contestant had 10 seconds (originally 15) to solve the puzzle and the contestant was always told to talk it out.

Trivia
The original name for Wheel of Fortune was called Shopper's Bazaar. It featured altered rules, a stand-up wheel without Bankrupt, and a flimsy motorized puzzleboard. They were all scrapped in favor of the more traditional rules, an on-the-floor wheel, a hand-operated puzzleboard, and the addition of hostess Susan Stafford.

The Puzzleboard
For the first 22 years of existence, the show used a mechanical puzzleboard in which the trilon boxes had to be turned by hand. A letter would light up whenever it was called. Vanna White had to wait for the letter to light up before turning, while Susan did not have to wait for the letter to light up. The old puzzleboard originally had three rows, but in 1981 it was upped to four rows to make room for larger puzzles.

In 1997, the old puzzleboard was retired and moved to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., the last puzzle on the old board was "POUND SIGN" which was not solved, and at the end of that day's show which was taping in Arizona at the time, Vanna did one last turning and revealed the letters in "FOR SALE". The following Monday back in their normal studios at Culver City, a new electronic puzzleboard was revealed to the viewing audience. On this puzzleboard Vanna would touch the letters instead of turning them. When a right letter was called, a monitor would turn blue allowing Vanna to touch on the right side for that letter to appear. When it first premiered, the lines of the board were black blending in to the monitor borders, quickly they changed to green. It even made taping go faster because before that time with the old board, puzzles were loaded in by hand causing taping to slow down. The first puzzle on the new board was "VALENCIA SPAIN".

1997
In 1997 a few months after the new puzzleboard made its debut, the show had a special April Fools Day show in which Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek did the hosting duties while Pat Sajak's wife Lesly Sajak did the letter touching. This is all because Pat & Vanna played the game themselves for charity.

2008
Pat played a nasty joke on Vanna when he revealed that he was actually bald headed after Vanna took his hair off. A later episode revealed the April Fools Day joke was just that, a joke. For a behind the scenes clip showed how the prank was pulled.

Music
Pilot - "Give it One" by Maynard Ferguson 1975 - "Big Wheels" by Alan Thicke 1982 - "Changing Keys" by Merv Griffin & Mort Lindsey 1989 - by Merv Griffin & Mort Lindsey 1992 - by Merv Griffin & Mort Lindsey 1995 - by Steve Kaplan 1997 - by Steve Kaplan 2002 - "Happy Wheels" by Steve Kaplan 2006 - by Frankie Blue

Inventor
Merv Griffin - he based the game off of Hangman which he played a lot as a kid.

Spin-Offs
Wheel 2000 - Kids' version aired on CBS from 1997-1998

Links
Official Site

YouTube Videos
Professor White explaining how the old puzzleboard worked The last day of the old puzzleboard and the grand revealing of the new puzzleboard