Wheel of Fortune (2)/Wheel In Popular Culture


 * Wheel was given homage on an episode of the 1980s TV show Pee-wee's Playhouse; the show was instead called Wheel of Pizza. Gameplay was, for the most part, the same as the show it's spoofing; included is a puzzleboard made of ice cube trays. An asparagus with female features did Vanna's job.
 * A Wheel reference was made in the original 1990s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles film where it involves Donatello spinning around Michelangelo on his shell as he yells: "Hey Donny, Wheel of Fortune dude!" while knocking down several Foot Soldiers on the floor as Donatello responded: "Hmm, I guess they're not game show fans!" Then Michelangelo responded back to him by saying: "And I thought everybody loved Vanna!"
 * In a season two episode of The Real Ghostbusters, the Ghostbusters were trapped in an underworld game show. The first round was a Wheel-like round called Spikes, which was played under normal Hangman rules. Winston Zeddmore (voiced by Arsenio Hall) was asked to guess a 20-letter word in three tries. Each incorrect guess caused a stick under Ray Stantz to vanish. Missing all three tries would cause Ray to fall into pit of spikes. The first two tries, Winston guess wrong letters (both were vowels "I" & "O"). The third try was when Winston was caught in a swirl which caused him to guess the right answer and win the first round; although they somehow knew what it was beforehand.
 * A small tribute was made to Wheel in an episode of Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog. Sonic (voiced by Jaleel White) imitates Charlie O'Donnell, the show's veteran announcer as he runs over an open pit in Robotnik's escape-proof prison.
 * In the Animaniacs episode "Bumbi's Mom", Skippy and Aunt Slappy are seeing Bumbi (parody of Bambi). When Skippy sees that Bumbi's mom is dead, he cries and then wakes Aunt Slappy making her say, "Pat, I'd like to buy a vowel."
 * The Weird Al Show episode "Talent Show" was given a homage when Cousin Corky and Weird Al watched a parody of the show on their TV called, "Spin the Wheel" where the contestant spins the wheel in hopes for cash and prizes. The wedges on the wheel included a Sports Car, $1,000,000, $100,000, a Yacht, a Dream House, a Hawaiian Vacation, $50,000, an Island, $5,000, and a spin again wedge. Unfortunately, the contestant playing in that episode constantly landed on the "Spin Again" wedge and had to spin the wheel until she was tired and gave up.
 * It was also given homage on an episode of the popular Nicktoon Doug; the show was instead called Wheel of Snacks, but it had nothing to do with the actual format or play elements of the game. Instead, the host (Roger Klotz as Dr. Klotzenstein) was using the show as a means of making use of his hypnotic snacks (Zombie Chips, Greasy Puffs, etc.) that turn people into zombielike slaves when they eat them. Quailman (Doug in a faux superhero costume) stops Klotzenstein's plan and breaks the spell over the contestants and audience using beets, cancelling the show and bringing Klotzenstein to justice.
 * In the 4th episode of Mighty Max’s second season, titled The Missing Linked; Virgil, one of Max's sidekicks (Norman being the other), sends Max a message that appears on Max's TV as he watches a Wheel-like game show where a contestant is seen solving a puzzle. The puzzle (and message, for that matter) was MIGHTY MAX GO TO 4TH & ELM.
 * In a Sesame Street segment, there was a game show called "Squeal of Fortune" (parody of Wheel's name) and hosted by Pat Playjacks (portrayal of Pat Sajak) and Velma Blank (portrayal of Vanna White). The contestants were Prairie Dawn and Count von Count, rather than three contestants as normal. In the game, the contestant would have to guess how many times the pig (located in the wheel) would squeal while spinning. The contestant would spin afterwards and count the squeals from the pig. Count won the game because he guessed the right number of squeals. At the end of the game, the prizes are shown and the contestant would have to pick any prize in the studio (portrayal of the Shopping Round) but instead, Count chooses the pig.


 * Vanna White also guest starred in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!. In the live-action segment called "Cyrano de Mario" she played Mario's (Captain Lou Albano) love interest Roxanne.
 * In an episode of 227, Mary Jenkins (Marla Gibbs) & Sandra Clark (Jackee Harry) played the game and lost to a fish-loving fisherman named Rusty Lewis (Jim Doughan). Rusty solved the first puzzle with just one letter; that would happen for real in the 28th season by a contestant named Caitlin Burke (in that same episode, there was an end-of-the-show tribute to late announcer Charlie O'Donnell who passed away that same week). More recently, a male contestant named Robert achieved the same thing, but during a Toss-Up round.
 * On The A-Team in which its episode was appropriately titled "Wheel of Fortune", "Howling Mad" Murdock (Dwight Schultz) uses his partner Templeton "Face" Peck's (Dirk Benedict) system to win. In between shows he was kidnapped by a group of criminals who wants to use that system for their own personal gains. When HM was free, he returned to the show, and by solving the bonus puzzle, he won a trip to Hawaii supposedly for him & Face, but instead he won it for him and a girl named Jody Joy (Lydia Cornell [of Too Close for Comfort fame]) whom HM ran into during the chase.
 * Wheel was given a mention in an episode of Knight Rider called "Circus Knights", but only the title was mentioned, not the format. It was the name of one of the carnival games at "Circus Major" where Michael Knight (David Hasselhoff) did his investigations.
 * The Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego? episode “Hot Ice” has C.H.I.E.F asking Pat for a vowel & consonant while trying to get Carmen to leave while she is hacking.
 * The Chimp Channel involved—you guessed it—Monkeys. Notably, one player tries to solve without spinning (which is normally allowed) although "Pat" Tells her that she has to spin.
 * On The Television did a Wheel sketch done sometime during the 1989-90 period called Wheel of Misfortune, created by a slightly alternate Merv Griffin. While the “roulette meets hangman” concept is mostly the same, some parts are taken very literally.
 * In 2011, The Disney Channel sketch comedy show So Random! (a spin-off of Sonny With A Chance) did two terrible WOF parodies. One of them is called All-Star Wheel of Fortune; in it the three teen celebrities Fred Figgelhorn (Chad Dylan Cooper [played by Sterling Knight]), Taylor Swift (Tawni Hart [played by Tiffany Thornton]) & Willow Smith (Nico Harris [played by Brandon Mychal Smith]) play the game but their personalities get in the way, with Fred being obnoxious, Taylor singing about everything and Willow whipping her hair around to the point that the game barely progresses. The sketch ends with Vanna tearing off a part of the puzzle board, hitting Fred Figglehorn unconscious. Another Wheel sketch was called "All Magic Students Wheel of Fortune" featuring Harry Potter (Shayne Zimbo [played by Shayne Topp]), Rebeus Hagrid (Grady Mitchell [played by Doug Brochu]), Gollum/Smeagol (Damien Johanssen [played by Damien Haa]) and the Twilight Trio: Edward Cullen (Matthew Bailey [played by Matthew Scott Montgomery), Bella Swan (Tawni Hart) & Jacob Black (Chad Dylan Cooper) competed. In addition to playing as Harry Potter in the 2nd skit, Shayne Zimbo played as Pat Sajak on both Skits. (Did You Know That...In the 2nd WOF skit Gollum played by Damien Johanssen references the NBC 2010-2011 primetime game show Minute to Win It.)
 * In Living Color contributed to the Wheel franchise, too. Here, it was called "Wheel of Dozens" in which the wheel was fully calibrated with "Yo Mama" jokes; it was where three contestants gave a punchline to complete the "Yo Mama" term landed on.
 * Saturday Night Live did a few spoofs of "America's Game", starting in 2006 with Tom Hanks playing as Pat Sajak. In the sketch, the contestants can't figure out the puzzle "By The Skin of Your Teeth". The sketch ends with Sajak (played by Hanks) hugging the three little "dum-dums" and quitting the show. Prior to this, another SNL Wheel parody debuting in 2013 just simply titled as Million Dollar Wheel featured guest host Melissa McCarthy playing as a replacement hostess who had less than no idea of her purpose. (NOTE: Interestingly, the Wheel layout for this parody uses $650, $850 and $950 spaces.)
 * Martin Short's alter ego Ed Grimley, a hyperactive manchild mostly is a big fan of Pat Sajak in particular.
 * Mad TV also did a few Wheel spoofs, with a Celebrity Couples Week with Freddie Prinze Jr. & Sarah Michelle Gellar, Will & Jada Pinkett Smith, & Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton. Another one is a special Goverment Workers episode where the contestants make incorrect guesses on purpose. The last one features Pamela Anderson as a hot contestant along with Jordan Peele and Nicole Parker as contestants.
 * Cartoon Network's Mad series did a Wheel spoof called Monkey Wheel of Fortune in the episode "Demise of the Planet of the Apes/The Celebrity Ape-rentice" in 2011.
 * In 2008, a series of commercials by Lexus for one of the car company's then-new line of hybrid models showed various places the letter H vacated in favor of the car models' tags. One of these was Wheel, using the then-current set and a puzzle that reads "_APPY BIRT_DAY". Pat and Vanna were not present, their positions blocked from view by a staffer and another contestant, respectively. The concept, however, falls flat due to the contestant (Andrea) trying to solve the puzzle immediately after spinning the wheel, a move which is against the rules and would hence merit the buzzer that sounds afterwards. Strangely, unlike other appearances that used the top dollar value, the space landed on is not the famous silver $5,000, but the blue $600 space nearby.
 * A 1986 Song by Dr. Dave (Dave Kolin) which was released on TSR Records #852 and frequently heard on The Dr. Demento Show. A parody of “The Letter” by The Box Tops, it describes a contestant on Wheel and mentions Bankrupt, Losa A Turn, the Final Spin chimes, The Bonus Round, the home game, and shopping for prizes. The song ends with the singer/contestant expressing shock at the fact that a black-and-white 5 portable TV set costs $500. (You got ripped off, man.) A partial rewrite of the song, believed to have been performed by Gerg Barhill, was used in a 1987 promo for CBS affliate WWL-TV in New Orleans. The ad includes footage from several early season 4 episodes (one of which has the third starburst backdrops), plus an answer of NEW ORLEANS being revealed.
 * Wheel was also given a homage in The Nanny, in the episode "Schlepped Away". The family was watching the show on the TV in Grandma Silvia's apartment while eating dinner.
 * In the first Open Season movie, Boog the Bear is watching Wheel of Fortune on his TV but his master and him fight over the on off switch until he decides to go to bed. It's obviously appropriate because Open Season and Wheel of Fortune are both owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment. The DVD of the movie also has “Wheel of Fortune: Forest Edition”, where instead of word puzzles, pictures videos & sounds are used; also, the wheel is 4 spaces instead of the usual 24. Also, as a result, Wheel of Fortune eventually gave away an Open Season prize.
 * Wheel's companion show Jeopardy! also had a few references and appearances as well. The first was in 1986; Wheel of Fortune was one of the Double Jeopardy! categories but only four of the clues were played (one of them was a Daily Double clue). The next, in the mid 90's (while the trilon based board was still in use) is mostly unknown. Notably, once the category was finished a clip was shown of Vanna next to the puzzle board that reads: THANKS ALEX! Despite this, there is no known record of the show using exclamation points on the show itself until May 13, 2004; a puzzle that reads "JEOPARDY PREMIERES" in September of 1995 did not use one. The second time, which debuted originally on October 4, 2001, the category was titled "Wheel of Jeopardy!"; unlike the other games, the correct responses were not shown. In June 2004, during Ken Jennings' historic winning streak, one of the first round categories was JEOPARDY! OF FORTUNE. The clues in this category were revealed by Vanna on the puzzle board in a manner similar to the Toss-Up Puzzles. WHEEL OF JEOPARDY! was a second round category for April 25, 2007 although the $1,600 puzzle "POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCES" uses the top three lines when it could have easily fit on two. Interestingly, none of the puzzles used all four lines, and the "solved" puzzles are shown in a cropped format reminiscent of the original three-line board. Other times on Jeopardy!, both Pat and Vanna have been featured as clue givers: When both shows taped in New York City's Madison Square Garden in the Fall of 1999, only one episode (airing on November 16, 1999) Vanna shopped at Christian Dior and gave a clue about Elizabeth Taylor wearing a Dior gown when she won her first oscar for the 1960 flim Butterfield 8. Another episode (airing on January 4, 2000) Bob Goen gave a clue about Edd Byrnes for a category about "TV Pilots", while mentioning both of their connections to Wheel in the process. (NOTE: Perhaps coincidentally, this episode in particular aired very close to Wheel’s 35th anniversary). During the College Championship Quarterfinals game 2 (airing February 2, 2012), Vanna demonstrated a clue about "planking" in front of the current puzzle board. During the Teen Tournament Finals game 1 from DAR Constitution Hall (May 10, 2012), the category "Wheel of Movie Taglines" was true to its name and involved taglines for clues, and movies for correct responses. On another episode (airing April 2, 2013) Vanna gave an $800 clue about Ocho Rios in Jamaica for their "World Capitals" category. (NOTE: the clue itself was most likely taped while Wheel was taping its Sandals Resorts Week of shows, as the resort is located in Jamaica.) For the "I'd Like to Solve the Puzzle...Fast!" category on April 23, 2013, each clue was shown normally but the correct response was revealed as if the puzzle had been solved on Wheel (i.e., the remaining letters were quickly filled in). For the July 1, 2013 game, most likely to commemorate the upcoming July 4th holiday, a category was solely dedicated to Pat's time on Armed Forces Radio; with Pat giving each clue as a soundbyte and each clue displayed as normal.
 * On a 1999 episode of Rock & Roll Jeopardy!, Bob Goen appeared as a celebrity contestant playing for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. (NOTE: His connection with the show was also mentioned in this episode.)
 * In 2001, TV Guide ranked Wheel #25 as one of The 50 Greatest Game Shows of All Time. Prior to this, in 2013, Wheel again was ranked #2 as one of The 60 Greatest Game Shows of All Time.
 * In 2006, GSN ranked Wheel #6 as one of The 50 Greatest Game Shows of All Time. This special was hosted by Bil Dwyer.
 * In 2002, Wheel was mentioned as a topic on VH1's nostalgic miniseries I Love The 80's 1986 episode.
 * In 2005, Wheel was a documentary on E! True Hollywood Story.
 * Wheel was mentioned in Billy Joel's 1989 hit song "We Didn't Start the Fire".
 * In the 1986 debut episode of the Showtime sitcom, It's Garry Shandling's Show called "The Day Garry Moved In", Shandling's character moves into a condo previously owned by Vanna White. At one point, he fantasizes about an episode of Wheel where a contestant calls and "R" and solves "I STOLE GARRY SHANDLING'S FURNITURE", then goes shopping in a showcase of the said furniture. Although Vanna White makes an appearance in the sequence, her partner in crime Pat Sajak does not as an off-screen host who is only heard takes his place.
 * In the Just Shoot Me! episode "A&E Biography: Nina Van Horn", a clip of Wheel is shown where Nina's name is the solution to the puzzle under the category of "PERSON".
 * In the King and Queens episode "Inner Tube" Doug, sick in bed, dreams that he, Arthur, and Carrie are on Wheel.  Arthur calls a 4 and then calls an H, in which that letter was already up there. Just as Carrie is about to solve the puzzle, calling Doug Hefferman a liar, Doug runs away from the wheel and touches the letters on the puzzleboard frantically. (Note: the LED screen behind the wheel is shown to have the player colors from Retro Week.)
 * In The Big Bang Theory episode "The Zarnecki Incursion", Howard's mother, Mrs. Deborah "Debbie" Wolowitz (played by the late Carol Ann Susi) has a knack at solving puzzles on Wheel by using only sparse clues.
 * A short-lived 2001 USA Network game show called Smush shares its similar gameplay elements with one of Wheel’s most long-running and popular category called "Before & After".
 * A short-lived 2002-03 NBC primetime game show called Dog Eat Dog (based on the British show of the same name) has one of the challenges called Celebrity Three-Way which also shares its gameplay elements with one of Wheel’s long-running popular category called "Before & After".
 * A short-lived 2011-12 NBC primetime game show called Who's Still Standing? (based on the Israelian show called Lauf al Hamiliyon) has a gameplay element that's similar to Wheel’s "Toss-up" round.
 * A short-lived 2007-08 remake/revival of Sale of the Century called Temptation: The New Sale of the Century has a reboot of the "Fame Game" round that also shares a similar gameplay element to Wheel’s "Toss-Up" round.
 * A short-lived 2011 reality show on CBS called Same Name somewhat shares its title with one of the categories from the show.
 * A 2013 episode of Fox & Friends featured the cast playing a Wheel of Fortune-like mini-game called Wheel of Fun along with its props and software provided by The Game Show Source as part of "The Great American Game Show" week. In Addition, original Wheel host Chuck Woolery was scheduled to host in that particular episode, but got stuck in an airport and could not make it in time; therefore, Steve Doocy took his place.
 * In "The Rainy Day Numbers Show", an episode from Golden Step Ahead in 1986, there was a game show called Count on Fortune (parody of Wheel's name) hosted by Bob Bunny (portrayal of Pat Sajak and Bob Barker; played by Jumpin' Jack Rabbit) and Vanna Lamb (portrayal of Vanna White, played by Lamb). The contestants were Ralph Raccoon and Henrietta (played by Rock Raccoon and Meggie (a chick) respectively), rather than three contestants as normal. The cash values on the wheel are replaced with numbers 1-9 [dubbed "The Wheel of Numbers"], while the puzzles are replaced with math problems.
 * A 2014 episode of the Comedy Central series Tosh.0 hosted by Comedian Daniel Tosh features a "web redemption" sketch parody of Wheel where real-life contestant Julian Batts shows clips of his gameplay while joking about the show. In the sketch, Tosh plays as the host of the said parody who recruits Julian as a contestant for the highly-exaggerated version of the show against "Katie" and "Lenny". "Vanna" (parody of Vanna White) is a skeleton who collapses halfway through the round and is replaced by a much more attractive and busty model. Julian ultimately solves the puzzle (under the category of "FACT") "HILLARY CLINTON HAS A CL*T RING", which contains an obscenity for $48,030,010.97. In the bonus round, Julian is given the category "THE GAME SHOW YOU ARE ON RIGHT NOW" given the help letters RSTLNE as the three consonants "WHF" and the one vowel of "O" as he solves "WHEEL OF FORTANE" causing Tosh to utter two more obscenities before declaring that Julian has won the actual prize envelope.
 * A 2015 episode of the Netflix series called Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt titled "Kimmy Goes to the Doctor", Lilian (played by Carol Kane) is seen watching Wheel at one point. However, no scenes of any gameplay are shown.
 * Other shows that featured Wheel of Fortune as part of their plots are South Park, Gimme a Break!, Friends, L.A. Law, and Santa Barbara.

In addition, Chuck Woolery & Pat Sajak appeared as guests on each other's short-lived talk shows, and Pat himself made a cameo on the premiere of Bob Goen's version.

Other game shows that share a similar format to Wheel of Fortune include:
 * The $1,000,000 Chance of a Lifetime
 * Caesar's Challenge
 * Gambit (1979 pilot)
 * Headline Chasers
 * Money in the Bank (local 1980s pilot for Portland, Oregon's KOIN-TV)
 * On a Roll (1986 pilot)
 * Scrabble
 * That's the Question