Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak delivered an emotional farewell speech during his final episode on Friday.
The longtime host, 77, said that he was 'privileged' to hold the position for 41 seasons, and pointed out that the game show's lack of 'social issues and politics' made it a 'safe place for family fun.'
'Well, the time has come to say goodbye,' he said.
'I have a few thanks and acknowledgments before I go, and I want to start with all of you watching out there. It's been an incredible privilege to be invited into millions of homes night after night, year after year, decade after decade.'
Sajak continued, 'I have always felt that the privilege came with the responsibility to keep this daily half hour a safe place for family fun.No social issues, no politics, nothing embarrassing I hope, just a game.'
Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak delivered an emotional farewell speech during his final episode on Friday
The longtime host, 77, said that he was 'privileged' to hold the hosting position for 41 seasons (pictured with Vanna White)
Patwent on to say that over time, Wheel of Fortune became 'more than that.'
'A place where kids learned their letters, where people from other countries honed their English skills, where families came together along with friends and neighbors, and entire generations,' he said.
'What an honor to have played even a small part in all of that. Thank you for allowing me into your lives.'
Speaking in an interview back in 2019, the beloved TV host seemed certain that his longtime co-star Vanna White would leave the show with him when the time came.
'There's a pretty good chance that when one of us leaves, we'll both leave,' Sajak had claimed, according to USA Today. 'Because it would be odd for either of us to work with somebody else.'
He continued: 'I always say that I want to leave while the show is still popular and before people tune in and say, "Ooh, what happened to him?"'
Indeed, Sajak stayed true to his word andannounced in June 2023 that he was stepping down from the show after more than four decades and 8,000 episodes, with Ryan Seacrest taking his place.
However, White - who has been a fixture on the beloved game show for more than four decades - has chosen to remain on the show after Sajak ends his 41-year run at the helm.
The beloved TV host seemed certain that his longtime co-star would leave the show with him when the time came
White - who has been a fixture on the beloved game show for more than four decades - has chosen to remain on the show after Sajak ends his 41-year run at the helm
She will continue with her duties on the show at least through the 2025-2026 seasonafter inking a contract extension last fall.
Though White has chosen to stay on the show, the famed letter-turner has made it clear that she is finding Sajak's departure very emotional.
In a tribute posted on YouTube on Wednesday, the teary-eyed star stated:'I don't know how to put into words what these past 41 years have meant to me, but I'm going to try.'
She continued: 'As the years have gone by, we've grown up on television, but we've also shared so much more behind the scenes.
'And as much fun as we had on camera, those memories, milestones and life events we shared with our families outside the studio are my favorite.'
It was recently revealed thatSajak will now head to Hawaii to reunite with his old friend Joe Moore, a broadcaster from KHON-TV, to star in an adaptation of the play Prescription: Murder, via Variety.
White joined the show in 1982, a year after Sajak began his tenure on the program
The play will run at Honolulu's Hawaii Theatre, running from July 31, 2025 to August 10, 2025, with KHON-TV airing a commercial Friday announcing the news during Sajak's final Wheel of Fortune episode.
Prescription: Murder was a 1962 play written by William Link and Richard Levinson, who, six years later in 1968, adapted it and turned it into the first pilot of what would become the TV series known as Colombo, which debuted on NBC in 1971.
In this regional theater version, Sajak plays Roy Flemming, played by Gene Barry in the original pilot, described as, 'a brilliant psychiatrist, who hatches a plot with a perfect alibi to murder his neurotic and possessive wife.'
Moore will play Lt. Columbo, the seemingly bumbling detective who engages the psychiatrist in a cat-and-mouse battle of wits right up to the play's surprising climax.
The cast of the play also includes Moore's son Bryce (also a KHON reporter)Therese Olival, Amy K. Sullivan and Aiko Chinen.
This will be the ninth play Sajak will star in alongside Moore, whose friendship dates back to 1968 when they served at the American Forces Vietnam Network in Saigon.
Earlier this week, Sajaksat down for a Good Morning America interview with his daughter Maggie and explained why now is the 'right time' to leave.
Maggie, 29, who serves as the show's social media correspondent, asked: 'What made you decide that this is the right time for you to leave the show?'
'I have always said, you heard me say this dozens of times - I'd rather leave a couple years too early than too late,' Pat replied.
'Could I still do it? Yeah. I think I could for a while. [But] there's also some other things in life we'd like to do.'
He continued: 'I'm enjoying this last year. It's been a great 40 years. I'm looking forward to whatever's ahead.'
