In early 2003, I had the pleasure of meeting a fellow by the name of Scott Hostetler, who has been a champion on many game shows. We became fast e-mail friends and have maintained it since. He even did an interview with me about his experiences on Press Your Luck and Whammy!, and you can read that interview here.
Soon after, in June 2003, we traded a couple of shows. Scott was looking for his appearance on Match Game in 1999, and I was able to provide that show with the help of Mike Klauss. In exchange, Scott gave me a special show that until this point had never been seen since its original airing: A pair of episodes from Wheel of Fortune back in 1978! These episodes were Scott's first game show appearance ever, and they have been a real treat to watch. I thank Scott once again for sharing these forgotten gems with me.
Here on this site, I have decided to provide a little synopsis on Scott's two shows, which aired in March of '78. I promise that this site will NOT spoil the events that took place in the episodes (mostly). If you would like to see them in full, buzz me for a trade, or anyone else that has these shows now, as they are quickly going around the circuit.
And now, sit back and enjoy the show...
(Cue "Big Wheels" theme music, Charlie O'Donnell announces.)
LOOK AT THESE EXTRAVAGANT PRIZES! FABULOUS MERCHANDISE JUST WAITING TO BE WON TODAY ON...
A WHITE CORAL & DIAMOND PENDANT!... A HOLIDAY IN MALLORCA, SPAIN!... A BARBECUE!... TOTAL RETAIL VALUE: OVER...
AND NOW, HERE YOUR HOST, CHUCK WOOLERY!
So began every episode of Wheel of Fortune in those days. Chuck Woolery and Susan Stafford came out to their classic intros. We were introduced to the contestants, and we were treated to the classic explanation of the Wheel that we grew to love for years...
Chuck: "Let's take a look at our Wheel of Fortune. *spins* Top dollar value on the Wheel for the first round is $500. But look out for this black space BANKRUPT, because if you hit it, you lose all your cash, but not your merchandise, because once you buy a prize, it's yours to keep forever and ever and ever."
In addition to the normal spiel, these shows in '78 had a special feature...
"Remember, if you land on STAR BONUS, you get a chance to play for a spectacular bonus prize later on in the show, and it is spectacular."
What Chuck said is correct. Similar to the Free Spin today, the Star Bonus was represented by a special marker on the lowest cash value on the wheel. And it was available in ALL 3 ROUNDS until it was hit. If hit, that player picked up the marker and laid it down just like the prize wedges we see today. Unlike today's prizes, though, the Star Bonus could NOT be taken away by hitting a Bankrupt.
In the final segment of the show, after the Round 3 puzzle was finished, an update of the scores were given. All attention then turned to the person with the Star Bonus.
"In just a moment, you're gonna play a special puzzle, all by yourself. And you're gonna have a chance to win one more prize. Now, you can select the prize, but remember, the more expensive the prize, the more difficult the puzzle."
4 prizes were shown, each with a difficulty attached - Easy, Medium, Hard and Difficult. The contestant chose their prize, and a puzzle was shown matching the prize chosen. The BIG difference from today's bonus round, however, was if the contestant solved the puzzle, the value of the prize was ADDED to your score for the day, and thus, COULD affect the outcome of the game. In other words, if you trailed the leader by $2500 after the final round, and you won a Star Bonus prize worth more than that, YOU were declared the champion! Granted, this sometimes forced players to go for certain prizes depending on where they stood in the game.
As for the puzzle itself, the format was similar to today's bonus round, but
with a couple of twists:
The contestant chose only 4 consonants and a vowel.
The category of the puzzle was NOT told to the contestant outright. It was only
revealed AFTER the letters chosen were revealed.
You had 15 seconds to solve the puzzle, displayed on screen by a timer
reminiscent of the 60 Minutes stopwatch.
Needless to say, I know of all this because it DID happen in one of the two shows. I won't spoil the results of it for those that have yet to see it, but in the episode where Star Bonus was hit, these were the prizes offered:
Charlie: "If you solve today's EASY Star Bonus puzzle, you'll fly from Los Angeles to LAS VEGAS for an exciting week's vacation for two: $675.
"Or you might choose the MEDIUM Star Bonus, for a gift certificate with which you may purchase this STERLING SILVER COFFEE TEA SET for two: $2,303.
"If you solve the HARD puzzle, you'll win a gift certificate with which you may purchase this rare lapis and diamond pendant. Furnished by Van Cleef & Arpels: $4,060.
"Or, solve today's DIFFICULT Star Bonus puzzle for a new sports PORSCHE 924. Sleek rides for a greater efficiency and handling stability. This hatchback offers exceptional visibility and roomy storage area. Retail value: $13,586!"
Just like other Wheel episodes we've seen from Woolery's era, Chuck was his usual laughing self. He often called what was passing by or coming up on the wheel as it spun, and occasionally threw a little spin on what the player landed on. One interesting example was when two contestants hit Lose A Turn back-to-back, Chuck said to the second player, "Just like a good soldier, you followed."
Then, as always, Chuck was at his best when it came time for the Final Spin. Chuck always eyed where the big $1500 was on the wheel, and with a lick of his thumb, spun the wheel trying to aim for it. Susan Stafford was of course rooting for Chuck to hit it as well. To see a clip from one such Final Spin, click over here to have a look.
Probably the most unusual items from this era of Wheel is the wheel itself. Several spaces on the wheel featured unusual values which have not been seen on the Wheel since. Round 1, as you can see above, had $125, $175 and $275. (The $175 stuck around for a long time after.) The weird values continued to $650 in Round 2, and even $850 in Round 3! Plus, the 2nd round wheel was even more oddly configured with the 2 Bankrupts only 6 spaces apart! Well, at least they changed the wheel between rounds unlike today...
And so ends this look at the classic early era of Wheel of Fortune. I hope you have enjoyed this little trip.
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Credit and thanks again go to Scott Hostetler for having the episodes to this day, and Wheel of Fortune is property of Merv Griffin Enterprises, with no challenge of ownership intended.