What Does ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Host Pat Sajak’s Daughter Do for a Living?
It seems Wheel of Fortune has been a part of TV pop culture so long, no one would even know how to continue the show without Pat Sajak at the helm. That same sentiment applies to Jeopardy and host Alex Trebek who already talks (facetiously and seriously) about replacements. With Wheel of Fortune and Pat Sajak, perhaps any replacements will become more of a family endeavor. Recently, Sajak’s daughter, Maggie, made a guest appearance on Wheel of Fortune when her father was out recovering from intestinal surgery.
Maggie Sajak’s role was filling in as letter turner while Vanna White took over as host during Sajak’s hiatus. Now some question whether Sajak’s daughter has a future on the show.
Nobody knew much about Pat Sajak’s daughter until now
Pat Sajak seems to have deliberately kept his kids out of the limelight for most of their lives. Maggie was his second child with wife Lesly Brown-Sajak. Born January 6, 1995, Maggie is now 25, and she has an older brother (Patrick Michael James Sajak) who’s now 30.
Only a few pictures exist of the entire family together back in their younger days. Overall, Maggie kept a low profile, despite once trying out a country music career. She started a YouTube page for that back in 2013 with a music video. She appears to have abandoned any chance of going into music since she never posted another video again.
According to Oprah Magazine, Maggie went to Princeton University starting in 2016 to gain a degree in history. Perhaps this might look like an unfocused college category, but at least she managed to take time to get an education.
One has to assume she was just trying to find the right niche for herself. Appearing on Wheel of Fortune was possibly hitting the jackpot.
How well did Maggie Sajak do on ‘Wheel of Fortune’?
So far, she only appeared on a couple of shows as the letter turner, with big buildup on YouTube from her father himself. When she appeared, there was an old clip of Pat Sajak bringing young Maggie out on the show when just an infant.
In other words, she has a little experience there, even if it’s from many years ago. Based on her personality in front of the camera and her letter-turning ability, she could keep doing this job if Sajak or Vanna White ever want to retire.
Maybe she secretly wants them to hang around since she admitted her father’s blocked intestine surgery was a bit of a scary experience. Nevertheless, Sajak returned, including for the coming season, assuming they can with COVID-19 production shutdowns.
One thing to note is Pat Sajak is definitely into his routine. He never has missed a show, other than once when having laryngitis back in 1996, plus a brief 1989 hiatus when hosting his own late-night show.
Would Maggie Sajak ever take over as host of ‘Wheel of Fortune’?
Based on her brief appearance, Maggie Sajak probably will not be back on the show anytime soon. After all, reports are Pat Sajak’s contract goes through 2022, likely going longer if the show keeps being a hit.
In the meantime, Maggie Sajak is getting older and may want to move on to something else in TV if she chooses to start a career there. So far, she continues being mostly off the radar, which is perhaps for the best to avoid the chaos of stardom.
Should she ever take over for her dad (or White), it would become a first in a family member taking over a game show. After almost 40 years on the air, though, having someone familiar might be the best way to pass the torch.
With Maggie Sajak basically growing up on the set, it might be considered home No. 2.
