Pat Sajak ( , born Patrick Leonard ; born October 26, 1946) is an American television personality and game show host. He is best known as the host of the American

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or demonstrative and are typically directed by a host, ...

Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or '' Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Art * ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-J ...

'', a position he has held since 1981. For his work on ''Wheel'', Sajak has received 19 nominations for the

Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host The Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host was an award presented annually by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) and Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It was given to honor the outstanding work of a ...

, winning three times.

Early life

Born in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, on October 26, 1946, Sajak graduated from Farragut High School in 1964, then went to

Columbia College Chicago Columbia College Chicago is a private art college in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1890, it has 5,928https://about.colum.edu/effectiveness/pdf/spring-2021-student-profile.pdf students pursuing degrees in more than 60 undergraduate and gradua ...

while working as a desk clerk at the

Palmer House The Palmer House – A Hilton Hotel is a historic hotel in Chicago's Loop area. It is a member of the Historic Hotels of America program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Palmer House was the city's first hotel with elevator ...

hotel. He served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

as a

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobil ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

for

American Forces Vietnam Network The American Forces Network (AFN) is a government television and radio broadcast service the U.S. military provides to those stationed or assigned overseas. Headquartered at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland, AFN's broadcast operations, which ...

. Sajak hosted the same ''Dawn Buster'' radio show that

Adrian Cronauer Adrian Joseph Cronauer (September 8, 1938 – July 18, 2018) was a United States Air Force Sergeant

Career

Sajak won a contest on WLS radio's '' Dick Biondi Show'' to be a guest teen deejay. While at Columbia College Chicago, his broadcasting instructor Al Parker told him that a local radio station ( WEDC) was looking for a newsman. Sajak applied for the job and was hired to work from midnight to 6:00 am. In 1968, he joined the U.S. Army and was sent to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

, where he served as a disc jockey on Armed Forces Radio. On

the Military Channel American Heroes Channel (formerly Military Channel and originally Discovery Wings Channel) is an American multinational pay television channel owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks unit of Warner Bros. Discovery. The network carries pro ...

's program, ''An Officer and a Movie'', Sajak admitted to botching

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

's 1969 Christmas broadcast to the troops; he accidentally cut the feed off prematurely. Upon realizing the error, Sajak decided it would be best not to resume the feed. In the early 1970s, he DJed for a year for a

Murray, Kentucky Murray is a home rule-class city in Calloway County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of Calloway County and the 19th-largest city in Kentucky. The city's population was 17,741 during the 2010 U.S. census, and its micropolitan area's p ...

radio station. Also in the early 1970s, Sajak began DJing at 50,000-watt WSM in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

; at the time, WSM was playing

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...

during the day, and he was the 2:30–5:00 pm afternoon personality. The radio station's television sister, WSM-TV (now WSMV), brought Sajak on screen, first as a voiceover artist making station identifications and anchoring the five-minute newscasts during

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's '' Today Show'', then as a weekend and substitute weatherman, where he became acquainted with anchor Dan Miller. In 1977,

KNBC KNBC (channel 4) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Corona- ...

-TV in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

was looking for a weather reporter and spotted Sajak working in Nashville. He accepted KNBC's request for him to be a full-time weather reporter for the station. In 1981, Merv Griffin asked Sajak if he would be interested in taking over the duties as host on ''

'' from

Chuck Woolery Charles Herbert Woolery (born March 16, 1941) is an American game show host, talk show host, and musician. He has had long-running tenures hosting several game shows. Woolery was the original host of ''Wheel of Fortune'' (1975–1981), the orig ...

. However,

Fred Silverman Fred Silverman (September 13, 1937 – January 30, 2020) was an American television executive and producer. He worked as an executive at all of the Big Three television networks, and was responsible for bringing to television such programs as '' ...

, the president and CEO of NBC, rejected his hiring, claiming Sajak was too local, and Griffin responded by imposing a moratorium on new tapings until Sajak was hired. The issue became moot when Silverman was dismissed due to repeated programming failures and replaced by Brandon Tartikoff. Sajak, who had already hosted two game show pilots in 1980, ''Press Your Luck'' for

Ralph Edwards Ralph Livingstone Edwards (June 13, 1913DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . Pp. 86-87. – November 16, 2005) was an American radio ...

(no relation to the 1983 CBS game show of the same name) and ''Puzzlers'' for

Mark Goodson Mark Leo Goodson (January 14, 1915 – December 18, 1992) was an American television producer who specialized in game shows, most frequently with his business partner Bill Todman, with whom he created Goodson-Todman Productions. Early life and e ...

, accepted the position. Sajak hosted both the daytime (NBC) and syndicated evening versions of ''Wheel'' from 1983 to 1989 and continues to host the latter version. With Sajak returning for his 36th season in 2018–19, he became the longest-running host of any game show, surpassing

Bob Barker Robert William Barker (born December 12, 1923) is an American retired television game show host. He is known for hosting CBS's '' The Price Is Right'' from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American tele ...

, who hosted ''

The Price Is Right ''The Price Is Right'' is a television game show franchise created by Bob Stewart, originally produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman; currently it is produced and owned by Fremantle. The franchise centers on television game shows, but also inc ...

'' from 1972 to 2007. Sajak was officially honored as such by the

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

with the episode taped on March 28, 2019, and aired May 8, 2019 (two days before the primetime version's 7,000th episode). Sajak had a small role as a

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

newscaster in the 1982 comedy film '' Airplane II: The Sequel.'' When his late-night talk show on CBS premiered in January 1989, he left the daytime version of ''Wheel'' and was replaced by former

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

place-kicker

Rolf Benirschke Rolf Joachim Benirschke (born February 7, 1955) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the San Diego Chargers from 1977 until 1986. He is probably most kno ...

(who was later replaced by Bob Goen when the daytime show moved to CBS in July of that year). Sajak appeared on '' Super Password'' several times from 1984 to 1989, as well as '' Password Plus'' in 1981, shortly before taking on hosting duties on ''Wheel''. Other game shows on which he appeared as a celebrity guest were '' Dream House'', '' Just Men!'', and ''

Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour ''The Match Game-Hollywood Squares Hour'' is an American television panel game show that combined two panel games of the 1960s and 1970s – ''Match Game'' and ''Hollywood Squares'' – into an hour-long format. The series ran from October 31, ...

''. Sajak hosted a short-lived

late-night talk show A late-night talk show is a genre of talk show popular in the United States, where the format originated. It is generally structured around humorous monologues about the day's news, guest interviews, comedy sketches and music performances. It i ...

on CBS from January 9, 1989, to April 13, 1990. Dan Miller, Sajak's old friend and former anchor at WSM-TV in Nashville, joined him as his sidekick. Sajak later became a frequent guest host for CNN's ''

Larry King Live ''Larry King Live'' was an American television talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was the channel's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly. Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles ...

'' when King was unable to do the show. He became a regular substitute host for

Regis Philbin Regis Francis Xavier Philbin (; August 25, 1931 – July 25, 2020)Archived aGhostarchiveand thWayback Machine was an American television presenter, talk show host, game show host, comedian, actor, and singer. Once called "the hardest working ma ...

on the syndicated '' Live with Regis and Kelly''. Sajak also hosted ''Pat Sajak Weekend'' on

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is o ...

in 2003. From at least 2002, Sajak hosted ''The Pat Sajak Baseball Hour'', a syndicated weekly radio sports talk show that ended in 2006 due to scheduling conflicts. Sajak is an external director of

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

publishing house Eagle Publishing. He has served on the board of directors for the

Claremont Institute The Claremont Institute is a conservative think tank based in Upland, California. The institute was founded in 1979 by four students of Harry V. Jaffa. It produces the ''Claremont Review of Books,'' ''The American Mind'', and other publications. ...

. In 1983, Sajak portrayed Kevin Hathaway in the NBC daytime

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio drama ...

Days of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

.'' In 1993, Sajak appeared as himself on the children's cartoon show ''

Rugrats ''Rugrats'' is an American animated television series created by Arlene Klasky, Gábor Csupó, and Paul Germain for Nickelodeon. The show focuses on a group of toddlers; most prominently— Tommy, Chuckie, Angelica, and twins Phil and Lil, a ...

.''

In 1997, Sajak pulled an

April Fool's Day April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may ...

prank on fans when Vanna White and he were contestants on an episode of ''Wheel'' hosted by

Alex Trebek George Alexander Trebek (; July 22, 1940 – November 8, 2020) was a Canadian-American game show host and television personality. He is best known for hosting the syndicated general knowledge quiz game show ''Jeopardy!'' for 37 season ...

. The winnings of both Sajak and White were donated to charity (in this case, the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. Established in 1913, the society is organized into six geographical regions of both medical and lay volunteers operating in more than ...

and the

Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded in ...

). In return, Sajak hosted a regular episode of ''Jeopardy!'' in place of Trebek. Sajak also appeared at the beginning of a 2010 April Fool's episode, along with Jeff Probst and

Neil Patrick Harris Neil Patrick Harris (born June 15, 1973) is an American actor, singer, writer, producer, and television host. Primarily known for his comedic television roles and dramatic and musical stage roles, he has received multiple accolades throughout ...

. In 2001, Sajak appeared as himself in the episode "Inner Tube" on the

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

The King of Queens ''The King of Queens'' is an American television sitcom that ran on CBS from September 21, 1998, to May 14, 2007, a total of nine seasons and 207 episodes. The series was created by Michael J. Weithorn and David Litt, who also served as the show ...

''. Sajak began writing for the ''

National Review Online ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief ...

'' in 2010. In his first post, he questioned whether public employees should be allowed to vote on issues that would benefit them directly. He also has contributed to the

center-right Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and mer ...

sociopolitical Political sociology is an interdisciplinary field of study concerned with exploring how governance and society interact and influence one another at the micro to macro levels of analysis. Interested in the social causes and consequences of how ...

social networking A social network is a social structure made up of a set of social actors (such as individuals or organizations), sets of dyadic ties, and other social interactions between actors. The social network perspective provides a set of methods for ...

website Ricochet.com. Sajak is the author of several puzzle games, the first and best-known of them being "Lucky Letters", which debuted in 2007. The games, which Sajak developed with puzzle developer

David L. Hoyt David L. Hoyt is an American puzzle and game inventor and author.Tribune Content Agency Biography - David L. Hoy Retrieved 8 October 2018 He is the most syndicated puzzle maker in America.The Word Winder™ App, Adveractiv Retrieved 9 June 2012 P ...

, are syndicated through

Universal Uclick Andrews McMeel Syndication (formerly Universal Uclick) is an American content syndicate which provides syndication in print, online and on mobile devices for a number of lifestyle and opinion columns, comic strips and cartoons and various oth ...

. Sajak has appeared on episodes of

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN ...

's ''

The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz ''The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz'' is a syndicated sports talk show hosted by Dan Le Batard and Jon "Stugotz" Weiner broadcast out of Miami. It was also carried on many ESPN Radio Network affiliates nationwide and simulcast nationally on v ...

'', as well as Le Batard's other show, ''

Highly Questionable ''Highly Questionable'' (stylized as ''¿Highly Questionable?''; abbreviated ''HQ'') is an American daily sports talk television program on ESPN. Created as a vehicle for former ''Miami Herald'' sportswriter and ESPN contributor Dan Le Batard, who ...

''. Since 2020, Sajak has been credited as a Consulting Producer (since the start of Season 39) of ''

''. Since 2021, Sajak and White have hosted Prime Time ''Celebrity Wheel of Fortune'' on ABC. In September 2021, it was announced that both Sajak and White had signed on to continue as hosts of ''Wheel of Fortune'' through the 2023–24 season. In 2021, Sajak voiced a singing bust in a '' Muppets Haunted Mansion'' television special.

In popular culture

Sajak was parodied in a 1980s ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000 ...

'' sketch, with a Muppet named Pat Playjacks hosting "Squeal of Fortune". The goal was for the contestants ( Prairie Dawn and The Count) to guess how many times a pig in the center of the wheel would squeal before the wheel stopped. During the 1980s, comedian

Martin Short Martin Hayter Short (born March 26, 1950) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada. He ...

frequently portrayed a fictional character he called

Ed Grimley Edward Mayhoff 'Ed' Grimley is a fictional character created and portrayed by Martin Short. Developed amongst The Second City improv comedy troupe, Grimley made his television debut on the sketch comedy show '' SCTV'' in 1982, leading to popular ...

, a hyperactive manchild who is obsessed with banal

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

– Sajak in particular – on the

sketch comedy Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and ...

television shows '' SCTV'' and ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...

''. In 1986, Sajak and his ''Wheel of Fortune'' co-star Vanna White portrayed themselves on an episode of the NBC sitcom ''

227 Year 227 ( CCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Fulvius (or, less frequently, year 980 ''Ab urbe condi ...

''. In the fourth-season episode of ''

The A-Team ''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court ma ...

'' called "

", Sajak makes a cameo along with co-star Vanna White. In the episode, Murdock wins big at ''Wheel of Fortune'' due to

Face The face is the front of an animal's head that features the eyes, nose and mouth, and through which animals express many of their emotions. The face is crucial for human identity, and damage such as scarring or developmental deformities may aff ...

's system of guessing the letters correctly. In 1992, Sajak was a special guest star in the TV show '' The Commish''. The episode first aired on November 7, 1992, and was called " The Two Faces of Ed". He played psychologist Brian Brandon. In the fourth episode of season three of Comedy Central's '' Brickleberry'', " That Brother's My Father", Sajak gets kidnapped and becomes a hostage to the wheel of fortune.

Personal life

Sajak is married to Lesly Brown-Sajak, a photographer, with whom he has a son, Patrick Michael James Sajak (born September 22, 1990), and a daughter, Maggie Marie Sajak (born January 5, 1995). The couple lives in

Severna Park, Maryland Severna Park is a census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. Severna Park is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area, and is located approximately north of Annapolis, south of Baltimore and east ...

, with a second home in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. In 2005, Sajak became an investor in the

Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League was an independent baseball league based in San Ramon, California, with teams located in the western United States, western Canada and northwest Mexico. The GBL was not affiliated with Major League Baseball or the orga ...

, an independent professional baseball league with teams in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

, and

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

. During a guest appearance in the broadcast booth at a March 2012

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

–

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ...

spring-training game, Sajak acknowledged that he had called some baseball games in the past. Sajak is featured in a brief film shown at the visitor's center at

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...

, the residence of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...

, where he explains to tourists the attractions of the site. Sajak, since 1998, owns Maryland-based

AM radio AM broadcasting is radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions. It was the first method developed for making audio radio transmissions, and is still used worldwide, primarily for medium wave (also known as "AM band") transmis ...

station

WNAV WNAV (1430 AM) is a radio station located in Annapolis, Maryland. It first went on the air on April 22, 1949, from studios at 89 West Street in Annapolis. Its first president and general manager was Albert H. MacCarthy. The full-service outle ...

in Annapolis. Sajak is a Republican, and has written a number of columns for the conservative magazine ''

Human Events ''Human Events'' is an American conservative political news and analysis website. Founded in 1944 as a print newspaper, ''Human Events'' became a digital-only publication in 2013. ''Human Events'' takes its name from the first sentence of the U ...

''. He is also a regular poster and podcast participant on the conservative blog Ricochet.com. Sajak rejects the overwhelming

scientific consensus on climate change There is a strong scientific consensus that the Earth is warming and that this warming is mainly caused by human activities. This consensus is supported by various studies of scientists' opinions and by position statements of scientific org ...

. He is also a financial supporter of the Young America's Foundation, which sponsors conservative speakers on college campuses. In 2019, Sajak began serving as the

Hillsdale College Hillsdale College is a Private university, private Conservatism in the United States, conservative Christian liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan. It was founded in 1844 by Abolitionism, abolitionists known as Free Will Baptists. Its missio ...

board of trustees chair. He previously served as vice-chair for 15 years. Sajak is an avid fan of the

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

NHL team. He is a longtime season-ticket holder and made an on-ice appearance before game three of the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals.

Health

Sajak underwent emergency intestinal surgery to remove a blockage on November 8, 2019. While Sajak recovered, co-host Vanna White hosted in his place. The first taping day in which he was incapacitated was a

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

-themed Christmas episode week. Disney characters took over White's role at the puzzle board for that week. Sajak's daughter Maggie also helped White for a week. Sajak returned to work on December 5, 2019.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sajak, Pat 1946 births Living people 21st-century American essayists American bloggers American game show hosts American male bloggers American members of the Churches of Christ American people of Polish descent American radio DJs American television talk show hosts California Republicans Columbia College Chicago alumni Conservatism in the United States Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host winners Daytime Emmy Award winners Farragut Career Academy alumni Illinois Republicans Late night television talk show hosts Maryland Republicans People from Severna Park, Maryland Philanthropists from Illinois Television personalities from Chicago United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War United States Army soldiers Wheel of Fortune (franchise)