“Wheel of Fortune” Launches 30th Season on September 17th with More Money, Categories, Contests, and Apps
Edit: We’re bumping this back up to the top to remind you that the 30th season of Wheel of Fortune debuts today, September 17th. Check your local listings. If you’ve got any feedback or thoughts for this 30th season premiere we’d love to hear. Be sure to comment and let us know. Inside you can read about all the new features, prizes, and contests in store for the 30th anniversary as well.
Wheel of Fortune, one of those very few shows that seems like it could run forever, begins its 30th season on Monday, September 17th, in syndication (check your local listings). The same great game you’ve known and loved for an impressive three decades returns with a few added tweaks, updates, and surprises to keep it fresh.
When you tune in Monday, you’ll get to see a classic clip from the show’s long history. The wheel will be getting an upgraded look this year with the help of a new surrounding screen. The seamless screen wraps from Pat Sajak’s base around all three players. You’ll also see the new “Ask Pat & Vanna” segment at the end of select show, where hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White will answer questions written by fans.
The game is being updated slightly as well. The new puzzle category “Decades” is being added. ”Decades” will quiz people on highlights from the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Wheel of Fortune is now giving contestants a chance at more cash in the main game. Any time a contestant correctly calls a letter on a featured prize, a gift tag, or the one of the two “1/2 Car” spaces required to win the car, he or she will win $500 for each consonant.
Home viewers will also get the chance to pick up some extra cash from Wheel in the new “$5K Every Day” Cash Giveaway. Every night a new SPIN ID will be announced. That person has 24 hours to claim the $5,000 prize at Wheel‘s website. In addition, throughout the season will be several “Tweetstakes” where, during the show, a partially revealed puzzle will be featured. Viewers need to Tweet the answer to @wheeloffortune to be entered in a prize drawing.
If you want to play and interact with the game, Wheel is giving you two new chances in its 30th season. A new Wheel of Fortune Yahoo! application is launching on Sony Bravia televisions. The interactive entertainment experience gives fans access to all the Tweets from @wheeloffortune during the show, video clips, information on how to become a contestant, and more. A new 30th Anniversary Wheel of Fortune iOS and Android app will be coming soon as well. The app, which builds upon the very successful already-released game, gives users a new experience themed on the rich history of Wheel.
Looking forward to the new season?
Photo courtesy Sony Pictures Television.
Just what we don’t need. More in-game promos and commercials to reduce the amount of time the contestants get to play the game. Are you ready Fonzie? The water is warm, and we got a bigger boat.
Which is exactly why I turn on my TV at 7:30 for Jeopardy! and not 7:00 for Wheel. J! seems to be the only real game show titan, besides Feud and Millionaire, that knows fans want the same game every season, instead of all these changes. Plus, The Aleve consolation money is nothing compared to the amount Wheel advertises.
Its position at the top of its category for 30 years indicates the fans are, on the whole, quite accepting of the minor tweaks from year to year.
They’ve done this a million times before; I haven’t been bothered in the least by it. It’s still the same show that it has been ever since its syndicated premiere in 1983, albeit a few cosmetic changes to the gameplay and the set. It’s still the #1 syndicated game show; I don’t see it fading into oblivion anytime soon. ;)
“WHEEL,” “JEOPARDY!” “TPIR,” and “FEUD” haven’t ALL merely jumped the shark; they’ve outlived their usefulness.
How have they outlived their usefulness either? People still watch, and I know of many people who want to be on one or more of those shows. They are here to stay, whether you like it or not.
Now wait, Mr. Quiz.
Not that it’s…..you know…true…or anything like that, but what if I said that “PYRAMID” had outlived its’ usefulness, too? Wouldn’t you be out of a gig?
As always I like to see the money roll in on Wheel Of Fortune! However, after all these years, I still like the original duo of Chuck and Susan the best!
And let not forget the update of a wheel layout, especially the $650 makes it return since the late 70s. I can’t wait for the new season.
And don’t forget the return of the $700 space.
What will the new wheel look like?
Like this, barring the red $500 wedge, which is just a likely assumption for now. Every other wedge is confirmed: http://i.imgur.com/mvSrH.png
Love seeing the yellow $900…just like back in the day.
OK, like this. It’s $700, not $500. http://i45.tinypic.com/wstmok.png
Call me old-fashioned, but I miss the days of being able to choose your prize at the end of the show, with all the money you had won.
Whoever won that round will then pick any prize depending on the amount of money they won from that round. You can then choose if you want the rest of the amount of money won On Account or Gift Certificate. About 90 percent of the time the contestant would have the remainder of their money won on Gift Certificate.
“Decades” is not a “new” category. It’s a “revival” of an old one. The show had used it quite often through the 1990s and 2000s, before pretty much abandoning it around 2008. It made one comeback in 2011, and hasn’t been used since until this season. “Decades” isn’t the literal category name, either. It will be called either “The 70s”, “The 80s”, or “The 90s” (though earlier decades going back to the 20s were used early in its life).
Will Wheel show a classic clip just on Monday or will it be a regular thing? Because Monday night I will be missing Wheel sue to a prior commitment.
Will Wheel show a classic clip just on Monday or will it be a regular thing? Because Monday night I will be missing Wheel due to a prior commitment. Alas, I am looking forward to the changes.
each show will open with a classic clip
The $500 on the “1/2 Car” spaces isn’t new; they’ve been doing that since introducing the “1/2 Kia” spaces this season. The money on the Prize and Gift Tag however IS new and long overdue. BTW, will this include the WILD CARD Tag?
Yes.
$650′s comin’ back?!?! NICE!!! :-D
one can hope the $5000 every day is an attempt to take the Prize puzzle down a notch in terms of value so he who wins the prize puzzle doesn’t automatically win the game.
this way wheel watchers get the same value and a 2,500-3k prize is given instead.
I miss the $1500 space
Will there be new theme music this season?
Geebus viewer mail… that’s going to suck, let’s just hope they are smart enough to ignore the letters pertaining Vanna’s dresses. We should all know by know that she doesn’t keep them.
$650?! That’s so 1976!!! How about bringing back $750? Maybe even $1500? $2000?!
Why stop there? Bring back “FREE SPIN.” (I know it’s been replaced with something else; but somehow, it’s just not the same.)
Wheel Of Fortune is my favorite word game!!! Tonight’s show was AWESOME! You guys at Wheel are the BEST!
When are we going to see another $1,000,000 winner?
When someone does the nearly impossible.
The odds actually say there’s going to be one this season, since there have been around 20 to 30 million dollar bonus rounds since the last million dollar win.
I saw the season premiere today. We’re off to a great start so far, but I’m still puzzled at why the Jackpot round was moved to the first round. There are a couple of unnecessary features that can omitted on the bonus round like the light strobing when the bonus wheel is spun. Another pet peeve of mine is that blue border that surrounds the contestant’s face in the circle. Is that supposed to be the 10-second timer? This isn’t Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Sony.
One more thing, why does CBS still own WoF and J! when most ABC affiliates air it, including ABC O&O’s? ABC should snag the rights to both shows from CBS. Just my opinion.
Sony owns Wheel. CBS syndicates it, thanks to its acquisition of King World back in ’99 or so.
Pat said the same thing he said on the 20th season premiere ten years ago “We’re in color”.
The new season is, for me, decidedly unimpressive. The few changes / additions are nicely implemented, but nothing of any real interest. They say “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it,” but I still think that after this long, the show could have really done something different — especially for the 30th season.
A couple dollar amounts changed on the wheel and a couple wedges changed color — big deal. The mini-wheel is more interesting to look at, with the “multicolor” effect (changes colors as it spins). The big wheel’s green center (once used for chroma-key) does nothing.
I might have expected a change in the bonus-prize envelope values. Seeing 30K 90% of the time is dull. As are many of the contestants, I might add.
I just wanted to coment on 12/19/12 a contestant went to solve a puzzle seven swans a swimming and was rejected for pronouncing swimming “swimmin”, then on 12/20/12 a contestant solved a puzzle hickory-smoked country ham and said smoke instead of smoked .