Everybody knows Vanna White as the letter turning on the long-running nightly game show, Wheel of Fortune, but many don’t know a lot about her outside of that. Many people in the entertainment industry have multiple talents, and Vanna White was a beauty pageant contestant and model before landing her big gig. Can Vanna White sing?
Vanna White used to lip-sync her hymns in church, and when she made her singing debut on television she sang a brief intro and was surrounded by professional singers. Though she has taken some singing lessons, she’ll be the first to tell you she’s not a singer.
While she attended Atlanta School of Fashion and modeled, Vanna White’s ambition was to be an actress and that was what she moved to California to pursue in 1979. She had a couple of bit parts before making her big break by turning letters. At first, she wasn’t even mic’d up as she wasn’t supposed to really talk, her job was to turn letters, clap, smile, and wave goodbye.
Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune debuted in 1975 as part of daytimes gameshow lineup, with Chuck Woolery as host, and Susan Stafford as the original letter turner. In 1981 Pat Sajak took over as host and in 1982 Vanna White joined him as the letter turner, and the two have been on the show since.
The show has seen some changes over the years, including switching networks, having daytime and nighttime episode, eventually switching to just nightly, and seeing over 60 international versions emerge.
The biggest changes have been to the gameplay. At one point, after each round, the winning contestant would ‘spend’ their money on a showcase worth of merchandise. These days contestants play for a mix of cash and prizes and get to accumulate their cash throughout the show, keeping whatever they won. Also, Vanna no longer turns letters as they’re all done electronically now, but she continues the tradition.
Vanna White Hosting
After having to cover hosting duties for Pat Sajak in 2020, after he needed emergency surgery, it looks like Vanna’s acting abilities haven’t really improved over the years. Or at least her comfort in front of a camera when the spotlight is on her.
During her time as host, she had several different guest letter touchers (no longer turners) to help her out. One special guest was Pat Sajak’s daughter, Maggie Sajak, to help keep the White/Sajak team alive. And, while this was Maggie’s first time as a letter turner, it wasn’t her debut on the show. Pat introduced her to the world in 1996 after she had just turned a year old.
Either as host, or letter turner, it’s still a pretty good gig as she only has to work about four days a month. At least for the tapings, then there are dress fittings and such they need to do, but still, she gets a lot of time off.
Vanna’s Other Job
Vanna White is more than just a game show celebrity, she is also a mom. She has a son and a daughter and by all accounts was a very attentive mother while they were growing up. The three of them are extremely close, and you can often find pictures of them together on Vanna’s Instagram account.
Wheel of Fortune continues to remain strong, already taking the top spot for the longest-running game show, and Pat Sajak as longest-running host of a game show, surpassing Bob Barker, the original host of The Price is Right.
Vanna has no plans of switching careers, or retiring, any time soon. After taping more than 3700 episodes, and wearing just as many dresses, she still loves her job every day. And no, sadly, she doesn’t get to keep any of the dresses. Most of them are borrowed from the designers and have to be given back.