Vanna White knows she hit the jackpot when she signed on to Wheel of Fortune in 1982.
But as it turns out, the 66-year-old didn’t think she’d ever take a spin on the puzzle board.
“I wanted the job so badly.” she recalled to E! News in 2020, describing the nearly unbearable nerves she felt during her audition for the show. “I didn’t think I had any chance of getting it.”
But we all know how this story panned out. Forty years later—yes, you read that correctly—the game show and Vanna remain household staples. “It’s a family show that everyone of all ages can enjoy and there’s no drama,” she said. “It’s excitement. It’s fun.”
And while that fun currently includes Pat Sajak, come season 42, Ryan Seacrest will get in on the action as host.
“It’s been a privilege and pure joy to watch Pat and Vanna on our television screens for an unprecedented 40 years, making us smile every night and feel right at home with them,” Seacrest tweeted June 27. “I can’t wait to continue the tradition of spinning the wheel and working alongside the great Vanna White.”