Media

Pat Sajak Says He Is Leaving ‘Wheel of Fortune’ After 41 Seasons

END OF AN ERA

The longtime host announced his retirement from the popular show on Monday night.

GettyImages-1244124840_vsahe7
Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images

Pat Sajak will be retiring from Wheel of Fortune after the show’s 2023-24 season, the longtime host announced in a tweet Monday night.

“Well, the time has come. I’ve decided that our 41st season, which begins in September, will be my last,” wrote Sajak, 76. “It’s been a wonderful ride, and I’ll have more to say in the coming months. Many thanks to you all. (If nothing else, it’ll keep the clickbait sites busy!)”

A former Los Angeles weatherman, Sajak hosted a daytime edition of the game show on NBC from 1981 to 1989. He began hosting the syndicated evening version of the show with Vanna White in 1983.

ADVERTISEMENT

Sajak, 76, won three Daytime Emmy Awards in the 1990s, has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and in 2011 was presented with a Daytime Emmy Lifetime Achievement Award alongside Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek.

After his hosting duties are complete, Sajak will be a consultant to the show for three years, according to The Hollywood Reporter, however Sajak has not yet confirmed his next move.

Sajak and White currently host Celebrity Wheel of Fortune on ABC, which is set to air its fourth season this fall.

“As the host of ‘Wheel of Fortune,’ Pat has entertained millions of viewers across America for 40 amazing years,” Suzanne Prete, executive vice president of game shows at Sony Pictures Television, told the Associated Press. “We are incredibly grateful and proud to have had Pat as our host for all these years and we look forward to celebrating his outstanding career throughout the upcoming season.”