<P> Wheel originally aired as a daytime series on NBC from January 6, 1975, to June 30, 1989 . After some changes were made to its format, the daytime series moved to CBS from July 17, 1989, to January 11, 1991 . It then returned to NBC from January 14, 1991, until it was cancelled on September 20, 1991 . The popularity of the daytime series led to a nightly syndicated edition being developed, which premiered on September 19, 1983, and has aired continuously since . </P> <P> The network version was originally hosted by Chuck Woolery and Susan Stafford, with Charlie O'Donnell as its announcer . O'Donnell left in 1980 and was replaced by Jack Clark . After Clark's death in 1988, M.G. Kelly took over briefly as announcer until O'Donnell returned in 1989 . O'Donnell remained on the network version until its cancellation, and continued to announce on the syndicated show until his death in 2010, when Jim Thornton succeeded him . Woolery left in 1981, and was replaced by Pat Sajak . Sajak left the network version in January 1989 to host his own late - night talk show, and was replaced on that version by Rolf Benirschke . Bob Goen replaced Benirschke when the network show moved to CBS, then remained as host until the network show was canceled altogether . Stafford left in 1982, and was replaced by Vanna White, who remained on the network show for the rest of its run . The syndicated version has been hosted continuously by Sajak and White since its inception . </P> <P> Wheel of Fortune ranks as the longest - running syndicated game show in the United States, with over 6,000 episodes aired . TV Guide named it the "top - rated syndicated series" in a 2008 article, and in 2013, the magazine ranked it at No. 2 in its list of the 60 greatest game shows ever . The program has also come to gain a worldwide following with sixty international adaptations . The syndicated series' 36th season premiered on September 10, 2018 . </P> <P> The core game is based on Hangman . Each round has a category and a blank word puzzle, with each blank representing a letter in the answer, and punctuation revealed as needed . Most puzzles are straightforward figures of speech that fit within a mostly static list of categories, and this list has evolved over the course of the series . Crossword puzzles were added to the rotation in 2016 . In such rounds, a clue bonding the words in the puzzle is given instead of a traditional category, and contestants win by solving all the words in the crossword . The titular Wheel of Fortune is a roulette - style wheel mechanism with 24 spaces, most of which are labeled with dollar amounts ranging from $500 to $900, plus a top dollar value: $2,500 in round 1, $3,500 in rounds 2 and 3, and $5,000 for round 4 and any subsequent rounds . The wheel also features two Bankrupt wedges and one Lose a Turn, both of which forfeit the contestant's turn, with the former also eliminating any cash or prizes the contestant has accumulated within the round . Each game features three contestants, or occasionally, three two - contestant teams positioned behind a single scoreboard with its own flipper . The left scoreboard from the viewer's perspective is colored red, the center yellow, and the right blue, with the contestants' positions determined by a random selection prior to taping . </P>

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