‘Wheel of Fortune’ Star Vanna White Reveals Rare Photo With Her Dad

Wheel of Fortune star Vanna White marked Father’s Day Sunday by sharing a rare photo with her stepfather, Herbert White Jr. White’s mother Joan and her biological father Miguel Angel Rosich divorced when she was an infant, so White was raised by Herbert and Joan. White hosted Wheel of Fortune for the first time last winter while Pat Sajak was recovering from surgery, and filming on the show has been on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“Happy Father’s Day to all the great dads in the world, especially mine! I love you dad,” White wrote on Instagram, alongside a photo with Herbert at a restaurant. Herbert is 94 and lives in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. He is reportedly a former real estate agent.

White and Sajak have not been on the Wheel of Fortune set since March when all production in Los Angeles was put on hold. In a recent interview with PopCulture.com, White said she missed being on the set with her Wheel family. “You don’t realize when you’ve been working with people for 20-30 years that you do miss them when you don’t see them,” White said. “When we go to work it’s a happy place.”

White even struggled to pinpoint one single thing she missed the most about working on the show. “I miss it all: the people, the contestants and I miss my puzzle board,” she said, as well as Sajak, who has become a brother to her. She has been keeping busy by crocheting and playing games and puzzles with her family. White and ex-husband George Santo Pietro are parents to Gigi, 23, and Niko, 26. White is now in a long-term relationship with John Donaldson.

The Wheel of Fortune set has been a second home for White and Sajak for almost 40 years now. Before production was shut down, they finished several episodes and still have more to air. She told PopCulture.com that it is wonderful to see new episodes still entertain viewers at home during a difficult time.

“It is a happy place,” White said of the show’s place in American society. “Anybody that tunes in, you can tune out anything that has been going on in your life for that week or that month and have 30 minutes of family fun. You see people win, you see people happy, you solve the puzzles [at home] and you’re a part of the show. It’s just a great half-hour of escape and family time.”