Pat Sajak delivers emotional farewell in his final 'Wheel of Fortune' episode: 'Thank you for allowing me into your lives'
- Friday marks Pat Sajak's final episode as the host of "Wheel of Fortune."
- Sajak has hosted the show for 41 seasons in syndication, totaling over 8,000 episodes.
After more than 40 seasons as the host of "Wheel of Fortune," Pat Sajak is spinning the wheel for a final time on Friday's episode, airing at 7:30 p.m. ET.
According to a preview clip, Sajak will deliver a moving farewell address in the episode to the generations of fans of the show.
"I have a few thanks and acknowledgments before I go," Sajak says in the footage (via Variety), sporting a dark suit and navy-blue tie as he addresses the camera. "And I want to start with all of you watching out there. It's been an incredible privilege to be invited into millions of homes, night after night, decade after decade. And I always felt that the privilege came with the responsibility to keep this daily half-hour a safe place for family fun. No social issues. No politics. Nothing embarrassing, I hope. Just a game. But gradually, it became more than that."
Sajak continues: "A place where kids learned their letters, where people from other countries honed their English skills, where families came together along with friends and neighbors and entire generations. What an honor to have played even a small part in all that. Thank you for allowing me into your lives."
Sajak announced his retirement last June. He's hosted "Wheel" for its entire 41 seasons in syndication, beginning in 1983 — that's more than 8,000 episodes.
During his tenure, he's been nominated at the Daytime Emmys 19 times for outstanding game show host and has won three times. In 2019, he received the Guinness World Record for longest-serving game-show host of the same show, beating out the legendary "Price Is Right" host .
Ryan Seacrest is set to take over as host this fall.