# Vanna White steps in to host Wheel of Fortune after Pat Sajak's surgery.aj **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 9, 2019, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194 "2019-11-09T00:49:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/1 "2019-11-09T00:49:39Z")
Sending Best wishes and a speedy recovery to Pat. Does anyone know what the taping lead time is for Wheel? Is it similar to Jeopardy and a couple months? I’d like to see how Vanna does hosting the show. > **[Pat Sajak has emergency surgery, Vanna White to host ‘Wheel of Fortune’ in...](https://nypost.com/2019/11/08/pat-sajak-has-emergency-surgery-vanna-white-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-in-his-absence/)** > > The show will be in good hands while he’s out. > [@](#): > > “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak will be off the show temporarily after a blocked intestine sent him into emergency surgery — but he’s leaving the show in able hands. > > Co-host and puzzle model extraordinaire Vanna White will host the show in Sajak’s absence as he recovers from his operation, the 37-year-strong game show announced Friday. > Sajak, who’s hosted the show since 1982, was hospitalized Thursday for the blocked intestine, but the 73-year-old is now resting and is expected to recover. > . ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/2 "2019-11-09T00:58:24Z")
Who’s going to reveal the letters? :dubious: 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/3 "2019-11-09T01:09:57Z")
I don’t know what the lead time is for WoF, but they tape a week’s worth of shows in a day. And then the next day they do another day’s worth. And so on, for four days, and then they get the rest of the month off. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/4 "2019-11-09T01:28:07Z")
> [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](#): > > I don’t know what the lead time is for WoF, but they tape a week’s worth of shows in a day. And then the next day they do another day’s worth. And so on, for four days, and then they get the rest of the month off. So they tape five plus four shows in a week? Or did you mean to say five shows every day of the week? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/5 "2019-11-09T01:51:07Z")
Talk about being thrown in the deep end. They should give her a little experience on the set first. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/6 "2019-11-09T02:00:41Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > So they tape five plus four shows in a week? Or did you mean to say five shows every day of the week? 😕 I won’t say which show, but I was at a taping of a quiz show where the entire first round of 16 shows was shot in a weekend (Saturday & Sunday). The actual quizzing was a total of about 10 minutes out of the 30 minute show. So they actually got a show shot in about 45 minutes. Including a bunch of retakes where the host stumbled on a question or mispronounced a word. The host had a change of wardrobe between each show. Or at least shirt, jacket and tie. The quarterfinals were the following weekend, then the semifinals and finals on a third weekend a few weeks later. I only watched one contest, but we were hanging out in the lobby for hours where there was a sort of geek carnival on. The audience was switched over each game. Every hour on the hour. No break for lunch or anything. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/7 "2019-11-09T17:30:24Z")
So who will they have standing next to the puzzle and pointing at it? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/8 "2019-11-09T17:42:19Z")
I give Vanna White credit. There was a period back in the late eighties when it looked like she might become a major star. A lot of people in the same position would have quit their job turning letters on a game show. White didn’t; she kept working her “day job” while she took advantage of the opportunities her increased popularity offered. As it turned out, White never made it to the next level. But unlike most people in the same situation, she didn’t disappear. She still had a job - which I guess at this point has been a career - on Wheel of Fortune. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/9 "2019-11-09T18:07:53Z")
Plenty of actors would kill for a “day job” co-hosting a long-running game show. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/10 "2019-11-09T19:24:16Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Plenty of actors would kill for a “day job” co-hosting a long-running game show. I can vouch for this. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/11 "2019-11-09T19:42:41Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > So they tape five plus four shows in a week? Or did you mean to say five shows every day of the week? 😕 Jeopardy did five shows Monday and five shows Tuesday, and I guess worked on production for the rest of the week. My show had a time lag of about two months before it was broadcast, but it was the second week of the new season so later ones might be longer. Jeopardy and Wheel are filmed next door to each other, and so I’d assume they are similar. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/12 "2019-11-11T00:17:04Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > So who will they have standing next to the puzzle and pointing at it? Chuck Woolery? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/13 "2019-11-11T00:51:06Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Plenty of actors would kill for a “day job” co-hosting a long-running game show. Only until they have it. A lot of actors seem to feel they’re destined for greater things. So whatever success they currently have, they only see it as a stepping stone. They’re eager to move on to the next bigger success. They don’t seem to consider that their current success might be the peak of their career and it’s all downhill from now on. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/14 "2019-11-11T06:46:32Z")
I’m waiting for a contestant to have a Freudian slip and ask to buy a bowel. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/15 "2019-11-11T06:58:55Z")
\ last time I watched it looked like they used touch screens and she just tapped them as she walked by or they just lit up as she pointed and i might be wrong but i think shes filled in at least once before for pat ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/16 "2019-11-11T08:33:42Z")
It’s hard to poke fun at someone who works 35 days a year and pulls down $10 million. What’s so great about being an actor anyway? ---
**Author:** ![jonesj2205](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecc23a/32.png) [@jonesj2205](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jonesj2205)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/17 "2019-11-11T13:12:11Z")
The Vanna hosted shows are slated to begin airing the week of Dec. 9. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/18 "2019-11-11T13:34:16Z")
I believe that a lot of the same production people who work on _Wheel_ also work on _Jeopardy!_ They are both taped at Sony Studios in Culver City. When I was on _Jeopardy!_ a couple of years ago, it recorded a week’s worth of shows in a single day, recording on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. My impression was that _Wheel_ did the same, but recorded their shows on Thursday and Friday. I don’t know if this schedule has changed since then, or if Alex Trebek’s illness has had any affect on it. I can tell you that on the Thursday morning after my day of recording, while I was waiting at the hotel for the Uber to take me to the airport, I saw a group of _Wheel_ contestants waiting in the lobby for the van to take them to the studio. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/19 "2019-11-11T13:34:16Z")
Who’s aj? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2019, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194/20 "2019-11-11T13:56:59Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > So who will they have standing next to the puzzle and pointing at it? > [@notfrommensa](#): > > Chuck Woolery? What’s Susan Stafford up to these days? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vanna-white-steps-in-to-host-wheel-of-fortune-after-pat-sajaks-surgery-aj/843194.md?page=2)