The original version of the American game show Wheel of Fortune was created by Merv Griffin and aired on NBC from January 6, 1975 to June 30, 1989. It moved to CBS from July 17, 1989 to January 11, 1991 and back to NBC on January 14, 1991 until September 20, 1991 when it was canceled for good. Nov 28, 2019 They’re differentiated by the obvious Wheel of Fortune game show theme and the even more obvious giant wheel. As a novelty, Wheel of Fortune slots are attractive to slot experiencers. The allure of spinning the wheel and having it quite literally dictate their fortune could definitely be enough to sway an experiencer to play. In Wheel of Fortune, Pat Sajak guides you on a fun-filled trip around the world with new puzzles from the hit TV game show! Play thousands of other fans, friends and family for a huge prize! The winner of these word puzzles will come out on top with the ultimate jackpot! Television hostess of Wheel of Fortune made her debut in 1982 when she was responsible for uncovering the letters on the show's large puzzle board. Wheel of Fortune 1975-1982 (Daytime) 1983-present (Nighttime) is a game show on television. It was created by Merv Griffin in 1975.It was first hosted by Chuck Woolery from 1975 until 1981. Pat Sajak has been hosting the show since 1981. The show has been aired in syndicated format since 1983.The show is currently in its 37th season (44 years overall). On September 9th, 2019.

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Wheel of Fortune
Genre	Game show
Created by	Merv Griffin
Presented by	Nicky Campbell Bradley Walsh John Leslie Paul Hendy
Starring	Angela Ekaette Carol Smillie Jenny Powell Tracy Shaw Terri Seymour
Voices of	Steve Hamilton
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	14
No. of episodes	746
Production
Running time	30 minutes (inc. adverts)
Production company(s)	Scottish Television Enterprises
Distributor	King World Productions The Walt Disney Company Limited and Action Time Productions (1988-1989) Buena Vista International Television (1991)
Release
Original network	ITV
Original release	19 July 1988 – 21 December 2001
Chronology
Related shows	Wheel of Fortune

Wheel of Fortune is a British television game show based on the American show of the same name created by Merv Griffin. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that contestants spin throughout the course of the game to determine their cash and/or prizes. The programme aired between 19 July 1988 and 21 December 2001 and was produced by Scottish Television in association with King World Productions^[a], and with for the ITV network - having effectively replaced Now You See It as STV's prime time game show offering for the ITV network. It mostly follows the same general format from the original version of the programme from the United States, with a few minor differences.

2Prizes
7Transmissions
- 7.2Specials
  - 7.2.1Regional transmissions information

Gameplay[edit]

Unlike the American version, where the numbers on the wheel correspond to the amount of money won by each contestant, the British version instead referred to these amounts as 'points' – they had no cash value, their only purpose was to determine the grand finalist, or to choose a winner for a particular round. There was a reason for this: between 1960 and 1992, the Independent Broadcasting Authority and for the last two years its successor the Independent Television Commission imposed caps on the top prize game shows could give away per week, and standardising the prize on offer per episode ensured the programme did not breach the set limits.

Points earned from all players carried on to proceeding rounds, and only scores for the current round were susceptible to Bankrupts, meaning a winner could be crowned that never solved a puzzle, but acquired a large number of points. This rule would actually encourage sacrificing a player's turn if he or she did not know the puzzle rather than risking his or her points by spinning again.

For the first three series, before the recording of each episode, each contestant spun the wheel; the contestant with the highest score would start the first round. In the programme proper, the contestant was asked a 50/50 trivia question, and if the contestant answered correctly, they spun the wheel. If the contestant landed on a number, they had to pick a letter. If the letter appeared on the puzzle board, the contestant earned the value multiplied by the number of times the letter appeared. A player was allowed to purchase a vowel for a flat rate of 250 points for any number of repetitions as long as that vowel appeared in the puzzle. The contestant would then spin the wheel again, but the contestant's turn would end if the contestant either (a) landed on a number but picked a letter that did not appear on the puzzle board, earning the contestant no points (but not deducting the number the contestant landed on); (b) bought a vowel that did not appear in the puzzle (still costing the 250 points); (c) landed on the 'LOSE A TURN' space; (d) landed on the 'BANKRUPT' space, losing the contestant's total score for that round (but not from previous rounds); or (e) attempting to solve the puzzle but giving an incorrect answer.

If the contestant landed on the 'FREE SPIN', the contestant would be given a 'FREE SPIN' token and would spin the wheel again. If the contestant landed on a number but picked a letter that did not appear on the puzzle board, or landed on the 'LOSE A TURN' space or the 'BANKRUPT' space, the contestant could give their 'FREE SPIN' loop to the host and spin again. They could alternatively hand over play to the next contestant.

If the contestant answered the 50/50 trivia question incorrectly, they would not spin the wheel; play would move on to the next contestant.

In the speed round, the host would spin the wheel with the centre player's arrow determining the point value for each contestant. Vowels were worth nothing, and consonants were worth whatever the value spun. The left player would go first. No more 50/50 questions were asked.

From the fourth series onward, the 50/50 trivia individual questions were dropped. Instead, at the start of each round, the contestants would be asked a general knowledge question and the first contestant to buzz in and answer correctly would gain control of the wheel (this included the speed-up round).

Also from the fourth series onward, from Round 3 to the end, the points on the wheel were worth double (although the wheel did not show the values at double points).

The yellow (centre) player's arrow determined the point value for each consonant in the speed-up round (and during the final spin both Walsh and Leslie employed the catchphrase 'No more spinning, just winning!' while explaining how the speed-up round worked). Vowels were worth nothing, and consonants were worth the value spun. In case of a tie, each player tied for the lead spun the wheel and the player who spun the higher number went through.

In the Grand Finale, the winning contestant chose from one of three bonus prizes to play for: a car, a luxury holiday, or a cash prize. The series in 1994 differed, in that the prize the contestant won for solving the puzzle was a car plus the cash prize of £10,000. In one episode in 1994, the prize was two cars and £10,000.^{[citation needed]} From 1995 to 1998, the player chose one of two envelopes, one with the car and the other with £20,000. The prize chosen, the Grand Finale continued with the contestant choosing five consonants and a vowel. The contestant had 15 seconds to solve the puzzle to win the prize. Unlike other versions, the player could solve any one word individually, and then work on any other word in the puzzle. For example, if the puzzle was 'A CUP

The First Wheel Of Fortune Game