ONE teenage contestant put herself in jeopardy on an episode of Wheel of Fortune.
Luckily, longtime host Pat Sajak was in a forgiving mood.
ABCPat Sajak asked a teen contestant what her first word was[/caption]
ABCFranchesca sheepishly confessed it was “jeopardy”[/caption]
Friday was the final episode of the show’s annual Teen Week.
Among the three contestants was an 11th grader from Atwater, California named Franchesca, who turned red during the player interviews.
Addressing the young girl, Pat, 76, wrapped up his conversation by asking “What was the first word you uttered as a wee one?”
Franchesca embarrassedly replied: “Jeopardy,” referring to the sister show.
As the audience laughed, Pat was taken aback.
After a few tense moments, he joked: “Well, we forgive you for that.”
PAT ON THE BACK
Pat seemed to be in an especially forgiving mood on the final episode, as later in the same show he gave contestant Ross some leniency while stumbling to solve a puzzle.
The 10th grader from Ohio was ready to solve under the category: “Phrase.”
Ross was correct on “This is so exciting” but he did not say the puzzle correctly the first time, according to judgemental fans online.
“This is exciting. This so. This is so exciting!” he announced.
Pat allowed it, even though the host classically says before puzzles: “Say everything, don’t add anything, go ahead.”
The host turned to the camera after allowing it and said: “If a player goes off on a wrong track like that as long as they go back,” he awkwardly began.
“And finish when they run through it again they’re good!”
However, some viewers at home weren’t as apologetic.
“Yeah, he f*cked up on the phrase puzzle originally,” one person said on YouTube. “He shouldn’t have gotten the second chance to correct himself.”
“Yes I thought Pat always says we have to take what you first say,” wrote another.
A third shouted: “I couldn’t believe they let him have the puzzle round. They never give it when they mess up the answer. First time I have ever seen them do that.”
Ross went on to win the game, and a cool $30K.
GAME SHOW SHOWDOWN
Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! often engage in a good-hearted rivalry.
Last December, Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings threw some shade his rival’s way in a rare behind-the-scenes clip of the iconic game show.
Addressing the audience during a break, Ken told the crowd: “We love having you here. Jeopardy! fans, I assume. Anybody here enjoy Jeopardy!”
As the audience cheered, Ken then followed up with: “Who prefers Wheel?”
Ken erupted into laughter as one fan seemingly raised their hand.
“One brave person in the back!” Ken commented, before he added, “Well, you’re on the wrong stage, man.”
Ken concluded: “But thank you for being patient with our little show as well.”
Jeopardy!’s official social media accounts also captioned the clip: “[Just kidding] Wheel of Fortune, we love you.”
The longtime wheel game show was quick to respond with: “C’mon, we know you pay your audience to say that (just kidding, we love you, too.)
ABCPat ‘forgave’ the player[/caption]
ABCRoss eventually won the game[/caption]
NBCJeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune have a good natured rivalry[/caption]
