History YMMV / WheelOfFortune

* PeripheryDemographic: Although the show is known for its popularity with elders, it is also fairly popular with young children, especially as a tool for learning the alphabet. Many contestants on ''Celebrity Wheel'' have recounted fond memories of watching the show as kids, often with their parents. It is also popular among the autism community, and in more recent years, has a solid LGBTQ+ following.

* TakeThatScrappy: Shortly before his retirement, Harry Friedman stated in an interview with ''The Hollywood Reporter'' that ''Wheel'' was not ready to have a same-sex couple on its couples' weeks and that they "take very measured steps". Some fans viewed these remarks as homophobic, especially with LGBTQ+ culture being celebrated on other game shows (even ''Jeopardy!'', which Friedman also produced). A gay contestant who appeared in Season 37 later confirmed the ban when recounting that producers would not let him audition with his husband as a team. Although team weeks were put on hold for a while due to COVID-19, the ''very first one'' after Friedman's retirement had a same-sex couple.

* AdaptationDisplacement: Sort of -- many people believe the show started in the early 1980s with Pat, which is only half right. This displacement is made more obvious in recent years, with the show's constant references to whichever ''nighttime'' season it's on, thus disregarding the long run that the daytime version had already built up come 1983.

** The UK version's 2024 revival is based on the current US version rather than the old 80s and 90s UK version, which means it has a Completely different theme tune and had made all the changes the US version has done in the 20+ years since the UK version was last produced. They also no longer have a LovelyAssistant, as TechnologyMarchesOn has made the role obsolete.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The UK version's 2024 revival is based on the current US version rather than the old 80s and 90s UK version, which means it has a Completely different theme tune and had made all the changes the US version has done in the 20+ years since the UK version was last produced. They also no longer have a LovelyAssistant, as TechnologyMarchesOn has made the role obsolete.

** Chuck Woolery was one-half of the OneHitWonder psychedelic rock duo The Avant-Garde ("Naturally Stoned"), and was a CountryMusic singer while hosting ''Wheel''. Later, of course, he'd be famous for hosting ''Series/LoveConnection'', ''Series/{{Scrabble}}'', ''Series/{{Greed}}'', and ''Series/{{Lingo}}''.

* WTHCastingAgency: In addition to the infamous Rolf Benirschke as mentioned above, Chuck Woolery was a debatable example at the time, as he was a struggling CountryMusic singer with minimal TV experience. However, he proved to be a great host right out of the gate, and has since become a genre veteran with several well-known shows to his credit such as ''Series/{{Scrabble}}'', ''Series/LoveConnection'', the late-1990s version of ''Series/TheDatingGame'', ''Series/{{Greed}}'', and ''Series/{{Lingo}}''.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: At the end of an October 2018 episode, as Vanna and the winning contestant continue conversing during the credits, Pat stares at the camera and slowly walks up to it. By the credits' end, the camera is so close to his face that it casts a shadow on him. Pat's nose reaches the lens just as they cut to the closing logos.

** Saying "I'd like to solve the puzzle" right after a spin is not allowed, except if Free Play was landed on. One 2017 contestant tried to do this, but Pat talked her into calling a consonant instead.
** Calling for letters by asking, "Is there a(n) [letter]?" is extremely discouraged by the show's producers, although this was common in the show's early years. Several ''Wheel'' parodies on other TV shows continue to use this phrasing. AI players in some of the video games do this as well.

*** A Thicke commercial outro cue used from 1979-83 sounded very close to The Guess Who's "Temptation Eyes".

** The Crossword Puzzles are often guilty of having one word that has no letters in common with the others, which often results in that word being the last one to be figured out. Because of this, rounds with Crossword puzzles are often solved for the house minimum due to the Wheel changing hands after the bulk of the work is done.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment:
** Throughout Season 23, shows based in Culver City used ZanyCartoon intros featuring people rushing to their television sets to watch ''Wheel''. Outside of the season premiere, such intros were never referenced on the show and had nothing to do with the game[[note]]And even then, the only comment we got about it in the premiere was an offhanded "I thought this was ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes''!" from Pat[[/note]]. In Seasons 31 and 32, a revamped version of one of the intros was re-used for America's Game episodes.
** At the end of an October 2018 episode, as Vanna and the winning contestant continue conversing during the credits, Pat stares at the camera and slowly walks up to it. By the credits' end, the camera is so close to his face that it casts a shadow on him. Pat's nose reaches the lens just as they cut to the closing logos.

* TheScrappy: Pat Sajak's daughter Maggie, who was introduced to the show in Season 38 as a social media correspondent, is unpopular among fans due to accusations of nepotism; not helping is that she's been seen as a favorite to succeed Vanna White as the co-host, despite her performance as a letter-toucher on Vanna's 2019 hosting stint and a 2023 ''Celebrity Wheel'' episode where Vanna played being unanimously seen as mediocre at best.

*** Solving the puzzle incorrectly locks out that player for the rest of the round, a rule that only applies to Toss-Up Rounds, which are not used in any of the home games.

* TakeThatScrappy: Shortly before his retirement, Harry Friedman stated in an interview with ''The Hollywood Reporter'' that ''Wheel'' was not ready to have a same-sex couple on its couples' weeks and that they "take very measured steps". Some fans viewed these remarks as homophobic, especially with LGBTQ+ culture being celebrated on other game shows (even ''Jeopardy!'', which Friedman also produced). Although team weeks were put on hold for a while due to COVID-19, the ''very first one'' after Friedman's retirement had a same-sex couple.

** For most of the 2010's, ''Wheel'' was often the only major game show not nominated for the Daytime UsefulNotes/EmmyAward for Outstanding Game Show, sometimes even passed over for shows that were cancelled prior to the ceremony, such as ''Series/WhoWantsToBeAMillionaire'', ''Monopoly Millionaires' Club'', and the 2018 reboot of ''Series/DoubleDare1986''. It was suspected that ''Wheel'' was not even submitted for the award due to Sony (or former executive producer Harry Friedman) thinking that ''Series/{{Jeopardy}}'' had a [[AlwaysSecondBest far better chance of winning]] if nominated in the same category as ''Wheel''. However, ''Wheel'' ''did'' win the award in 2011 in a tie with ''Jeopardy!'', but only to tie into Pat Sajak and Creator/AlexTrebek both receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award that same year. ''Wheel'' returned to the nomination lineup following Friedman's departure, but still hasn't won since the tie.

** The yearly revelation that the Bonus Round minimum increases to match the season number times $1,000, while expected by now, is usually met with criticism due to the necessity of having harder bonus puzzles and less expensive cars to offset the effect on the budget, as well as the non-minimum cash prizes becoming rarer.

** Creator/CarlaHall's incorrect attempt at solving "MAYONAISE BY [[Music/TheSmashingPumpkins THE SMASHING PUMPKINS" as "...THE SMASHING '''DUMPLINS''']]" on the October 16, 2022 episode of ''Celebrity Wheel'' became a meme among Smashing Pumpkins fans. The band itself has openly embraced it. Also, after the round, Vanna says, "I like dumplins!"

** The Rolf Benirschke and Bob Goen eras of the daytime version are widely considered inferior to the Sajak and Woolery eras. Although fans agree that Bernischke was improving as his run went on and that Goen was a good host, the latter's tenure was tarnished by the ridiculously low budget compared to the syndicated version, to the point where it remains the only era of any American version of ''Wheel'' where vowels cost ''less'' than $250.

** October 1, 2012: When Pat mistakenly forbids a contestant from calling an E after a spin, not noticing he landed on Free Play, he called himself an idiot and jokingly hosted the rest of the round with an incompetent attitude. At one point, he said, "[[Creator/RyanSeacrest Seacrest is on speed dial." Fast forward to June 2023, and guess who's announced as Pat's successor?

** For most of the 2010's, ''Wheel'' was often the only major game show not nominated for the Daytime UsefulNotes/EmmyAward for Outstanding Game Show, sometimes even passed over for shows that were cancelled prior to the ceremony, such as ''Series/WhoWantsToBeAMillionaire'', ''Monopoly Millionaires' Club'', and the 2018 reboot of ''Series/DoubleDare1986''. It was suspected that ''Wheel'' was not even submitted for the award due to Sony (or former executive producer Harry Friedman) thinking that ''Series/{{Jeopardy}}'' had a [[AlwaysSecondBest far better chance of winning]] if nominated in the same category as ''Wheel''. However, ''Wheel'' ''did'' win the award in 2011 in a tie with ''Jeopardy!'', but only to tie into Pat Sajak and Creator/AlexTrebek both receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award that same year. ''Wheel'' returned to the nomination lineup following Friedman's departure.

** Pat jokingly putting contestant and wrestler Fred Fletcher-Jackson in a hold after winning the Bonus Round (capping a total clean sweep of the game) on the March 21, 2023 episode.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Throughout Season 23, shows based in Culver City used ZanyCartoon intros featuring people rushing to their television sets to watch ''Wheel''. Outside of the season premiere, such intros were never referenced on the show and had nothing to do with the game[[note]]And even then, the only comment we got about it in the premiere was an offhanded "I thought this was ''WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes''!" from Pat[[/note]]. In Seasons 31 and 32, a revamped version of one of the intros was re-used for America's Game episodes.