Vanna White Reveals Reunion With Pat Sajak & ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Secrets

Vanna White and her son, Nikko, appeared on the Elvis Duran Show to talk all things Wheel of Fortune. She revealed how she auditioned for the game show, her recent reunion with Pat Sajak, and secrets of the show on the Tuesday, March 4 episode of Elvis’ show.

White told the hosts that she has never worn the same outfit twice on the show and never will. This means that she has had to come up with 8,000 outfits for 8,000 episodes. The hostess also said that they only film 34 days out of the year. Each day, however, is filled with six games being filmed. There are 250 to 300 people in each audience. White also revealed that a few years ago, the letters turned motion-activated, and all she has to do now is wave her hand in front of it.

Although there are no set rules for contestants, they are told not to scream and to speak clearly and slowly. “As long as they can hear you, you don’t have to yell,” she said. “I feel for them. They’re nervous to begin with. Most of them are from small towns and were never in the spotlight.”

Duran asked her if there was some adjustment going from Sajak to Ryan Seacrest, in which white replied, “Of course, not just for me, but for everyone who watches.”

“Pat decided to retire. I saw him a few weeks ago. He looks happy. He looks great. Ryan took over, and he’s doing a great job,” she said. “He told me, ‘No one could ever replace Pat Sajak. I’m just here to fill in.’”

“He’s doing a fine job,” White said.

After 42 years, White revealed how she got the job. “I went to a taping of Dance Fever, which was a Merv Griffin show. Janet Jones, now Janet Gretsky, was one of the dancers. I said to Janet, ‘Can you introduce me to somebody? This is a Merv Griffin show. I hear they’re looking for a replacement on Wheel. And she introduced me to Merv’s right hand man.”

“I said, ‘Can I come in for an audition? He said, ‘You call me on October 5 at 10 o’clock and we haven’t made a decision, you can come in.’ 10 o’clock I called him and I went in for the audition. Being at the right place at the right time,” she said.

White also revealed that she was on The Price is Right when she was younger, but “didn’t win a dang thing.” However, she said she wouldn’t want to be on a game show now because it would be turning her back on Wheel. “I’m loyal,” she said.