Pat Sajak, along with his trusty sidekick, Vanna White, have been welcoming contestants to the “Wheel of Fortune” stage for decades.
For many, they are able to walk away with their dignity intact and a large check in their pocket. Others don’t have the same luck. Maybe it’s the pressure of the environment, the bright lights around them, or the large sums of money on the line. Whatever the case, some crack under the pressure, and experience a rather embarrassing moment on television.
There have been many memorable moments, good and bad in the history of “Wheel of Fortune.” Here are a few of the biggest blunders.
Pat Sajak announced that he will be stepping down from his hosting role in 2024. (Christopher Willard via Getty Images)
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- The mythological hero who?
- It’s a self-potato
- What play?
- The Johnny Cash mix-up
- “I’ll go with a … G”
- Not a fan of talk shows
1. The mythological hero who?
Unfortunately for Indiana University freshman Julian, he had one of the biggest blunders in “Wheel of Fortune” history.
This player was on the show in 2014. With the million-dollar wedge in hand, Julian had every letter of the puzzle filled out. All he had to do was read the answer aloud.
When Julian read out the puzzle, which was “mythological hero Achilles,” he pronounced the Greek war hero as “A-chillus.” After a slight pause, the buzzer sounded and the game continued on to the next player, who pronounced the name correctly.
Even though the contestant lost his chance at the million from this mistake, he was the overall winner of the game.
2. It’s a self-potato
You’ve probably heard of a self-portrait, but have you heard of a self-potato?
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Vanna White has been on “Wheel of Fortune” almost as long as Pat Sajak, joining just a year later. (Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images)
This mistake happened during a toss-up round in 2009.
The category was “thing.” “S _ L F – P O _ T _ _ _ T” was how the board read when contestant Lolita buzzed in with the answer “self-potato.” She immediately knew her mistake and apologized with a laugh once the words left her mouth.
Contestant Michael quickly buzzed in, providing the correct answer, “self-portrait.”
The mistake was laughed off by the contestants and Sajak.
3. What play?
“Wheel of Fortune” contestant Kevin’s unfamiliarity with the Tennessee Williams play “A Streetcar Named Desire” hurt him in 2017.
The whole puzzle was filled out, except for the letter “M” in “named.” Kevin went to solve the puzzle, but instead of guessing a letter “M” to complete the title, he ended up guessing a “K” to spell out “A Streetcar Naked Desire.”
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With a long history of “Wheel of Fortune” shows, there are sure to be some slip-ups here and there. (Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images)
The guess was met by gasps in the audience. Lisa spun the wheel next and correctly guessed an “M” to solve the puzzle.
Kevin later appeared on “The Ellen Show,” where he explained that he focused in on that one word and knew that it had to be either an “M” or a “K.” His wife was also in the audience and explained that she wasn’t familiar with the play either.
He was awarded $5,000 on “Ellen.”
4. The Johnny Cash mix-up
Many people are familiar with the famous Johnny Cash song “I Walk the Line,” but that title just didn’t come to Natasha in 2013.
With nearly $10,000 on the line and just a few letters missing, the contestant guessed, “I Have the Wine by Johnny Cash.”
One “Wheel of Fortune” fan made a mistake when attempting to guess the popular Johnny Cash song “I Walk the Line.” (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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At least she got the Johnny Cash part right.
5. “I’ll go with a … G”
This was a recent “Wheel of Fortune” fumble that happened during a “Teen Week” edition of the show.
In 2023, 10th-grader Khushi had just an “S” missing from a puzzle to spell out “fresh tropical fruit.”
“I’ll go with a … G,” Khushi said on the show, leading to a very audible “What?!” from an audience member.
Julianna was up next and correctly solved the puzzle, which was not “fregh tropical fruit,” as Khushi guessed.
6. Not a fan of talk shows
Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa spent many years as talk show co-hosts on “Live! With Regis and Kelly.”
During Armed Forces Week in 2010, contestants struggled to get the proper pronunciation of the hosts’ names.
The first to guess was Shane, who mispronounced Philbin’s name by saying “Philburn.”
The next player, Lee, guessed a “Y” but then spun a “Bankrupt” before it was George’s turn to play.
George first bought a vowel, the letter “I,” and an “A” before he took a shot at solving. Luckily, Shane was not alone in his mistake as George mispronounced the leading lady’s last name, pronouncing it “Reepa.”
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It took many rounds to finally correctly pronounce “Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa” in 2010. (Rob Kim/Getty Images)
The power went back to Shane, who took his second shot at solving but missed again. He pronounced Philbin’s name as “Philmin.”
It was back to Lee once again. After guessing the letters “H,” “B” and “K” to finish the puzzle, he read out the names but was wrong again, pronouncing Ripa’s name incorrectly, saying “ripe-a.”
After many mistakes, George was the one who finally got it right.
At least these three all share the blame for this blunder.
