‘Wheel of Fortune’: Vanna White Marks Amazing Anniversary

Vanna White is celebrating a very special occasion with Wheel of Fortune. As she shared on Instagram, she celebrated 40 years of being a part of the Wheel of Fortune family. She even marked the anniversary by sharing a throwback photo of herself and host Pat Sajak from four decades ago. 

White noted that on Tuesday, she celebrated her 40th anniversary with Wheel of Fortune. She wrote that 40 years ago to the day, she recorded her first episode of the series with Sajak by her side. To showcase just how far she and Sajak have come, White shared a throwback photo, presumably from their first season together as the host and letter-turner. She also included a more recent photo from her 40th-anniversary celebration, which saw the production honor her with a cake that came complete with various figures of White. 

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but 40 years ago today I taped my first episode of [Wheel of Fortune],” White wrote. “It’s been a wonderful 40 years, too! I’m so grateful to those of you who watch and everyone behind the scenes who make us look good. We wouldn’t still be here without all of you! (And the cake was delicious!).” The official Instagram account for Wheel of Fortune responded to her post with, “We love you.” Additionally, Sajak’s daughter, Maggie Sajak, commented three sparkly pink hearts. 

While White recently celebrated 40 years with Wheel of Fortune, she recently addressed a possible end to the series. She first opened up to PEOPLE about her and Sajak’s legacy on the game show, saying, “I think when Merv Griffin chose both of us, 40 and 41 years ago, he saw something between us – a brother-sister type relationship. And I think that is kind of what it is. He saw that we would be able to get along, and we do. We are like a brother and sister team.” She was then asked about Sajak’s own comments about their time on the show possibly nearing its end. 

“I mean, we’re a team,” she said. “That’s depressing. I don’t even want to think about it.” During an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Sajak said that he’s been thinking about a possible departure from the game show after all these years. He said, “In most television shows by this time, you would have said, ‘That’s probably enough,’ but this show will not die. It appears I may go before the show.” Sajak continued to say that the “end” may be “near,” adding, “It’s been a long [time]. We’re not gonna do this for another 40 years. The end is near. It’s an honor to have been in people’s living rooms for that long. People were out there welcoming us. We’re happy and proud.”