Big winners are all the rage on American game shows. Jeopardy! had two all-timers in the last six months alone: Matt Amodio and Amy Schneider, the latter who wound up being second only to Ken Jennings in terms of consecutive wins. Co-host Mayim Bialik even floated a theory on why that is. The trend has even seeped into Wheel of Fortune, the show that ether follows or precedes Jeopardy!, depending on the market, to the surprise of longtime host Pat Sajak.
As per People, Tuesday night’s episode saw something that’s never happened on the show over its 47-year history: Contestants won the much-coveted, super-rare $100,000 grand prize two nights in a row.
It all started on the episode that aired Monday, when Lisa Kramer ended the show not only triumphant but with a total haul of $116,700. Then it happened again. On Tuesday night’s show, Mark Baer surprised Sajak by nabbing yet another grand prize, bringing his cume to $126,550.
Whoa, did that just happen?! A Wheel of Fortune first! A second $100,000 winner in a row!
2 NIGHTS 2 HUGE WINS!
— Wheel of Fortune (@WheelofFortune) February 9, 2022
When Baer nabbed the prize, Sajak was genuinely taken aback. “It’s never happened. And wouldn’t you know it, I just sold all my confetti stock,” he joked. “There’s always something new around here, isn’t there? That’s incredible.”
This comes after the show celebrated another milestone: In December, Sajak celebrated his 40th anniversary of hosting the phrase-guessing show.
When I started hosting “Wheel” (with Susan Stafford) on this date 40 years ago, the top 10 TV shows included “Dallas,” “Three’s Company,” “The Jeffersons” and “The Dukes of Hazzard.” Ronald Reagan was in his 1st year as president. Number 1 song: Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical.”
— Pat Sajak (@patsajak) December 28, 2021
When the big day came, Sajak put it all into perspective. “When I started hosting ‘Wheel’ (with Susan Stafford) on this date 40 years ago, the top 10 TV shows included ‘Dallas,’ ‘Three’s Company,’ ‘The Jeffersons’ and ‘The Dukes of Hazzard,’” he tweeted. “Ronald Reagan was in his 1st year as president. Number 1 song: Olivia Newton-John’s ‘Physical.’”
(Via People)