Phoenixville resident featured on upcoming ‘Wheel of Fortune’
Wheel of Fortune will be re-airing a week of episodes celebrating Philadelphia as one of its “Great American Cities” from July 6-10.
“The City of Brotherly Love” will be showcased with a custom set highlighting iconic landmarks including Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. The episodes will also feature segments and scenic footage shot on location during Pat Sajak and Vanna White’s visit to Philadelphia.
During this week of shows, which first aired in 2016, all the contestants will be from the Philly area. To find contestants, the Wheelmobile, the show’s promotional vehicle, held events at the Claridge Hotel in Atlantic City. Then final auditions were held in Philadelphia.
Here is where some of these contestants are now:
• On Monday, July 6, Jamie Hendel of Glenside will be a contestant on Wheel of Fortune. Since her show taped, she has moved to
Flourtown. Jamie works in career management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Philadelphia native and loves all the parks, going hiking, and playing in volleyball leagues. Jamie won $69,200 in cash and prizes, including a trip to Puerto Rico! She and her boyfriend got engaged on that trip. They have since gotten married in Ireland and had a baby. They used the cash winnings to buy their “dream car” and put a down payment on a house.
• Melanie Bowen of Phoenixville will be appearing on Wednesday, July 8. Melanie was a high school history teacher when her show taped, but now works as a librarian. She is married with one daughter who is the “light of [her] life.” Melanie won $63,644 in cash and prizes, including a trip to the Dominican Republic and a Ford Fusion! She took the trip with her family and used the cash winnings to take her daughter to Disney World for the first time.
• Rebecca Kline of West Chester will be a contestant on Thursday, July 9. Rebecca was a senior at the University of Delaware at the time of the taping. She has since graduated, become a high school math teacher, and gotten engaged. Rebecca won $46,600 in cash and prizes, including a trip to Belize! Her winnings helped her to buy a new car and pay for graduate school.
• On Friday, July 10, Emily Johnson of Penn Valley will be competing on America’s Game. Emily is a married mother of one who was pregnant when her episode taped. She worked as an assistant dean of students at Moore College of Art and Design at the time but now works in student affairs at Haverford College. Emily won $64,490 in cash and prizes, including a trip to Aruba! She took the trip with her husband and daughter and says it was “such a great family memory” for them.
The audience was filled with Philly locals for this week of shows as well. WPVI (6abc) conducted a sweepstakes in their newscasts for viewers to win a trip to Los Angeles to attend the tapings. From there, a group of lucky winners and their guests were flown out to Sony Pictures Studios to join the audience and cheer on their local Philadelphiaarea contestants.
About Wheel of Fortune:
Reaching more than 25 million weekly viewers, Wheel of Fortune reaches more viewers than any other program on television. Trademarked as America’s Game, it has earned seven Emmy Awards including a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game/Audience Participation Show. “Wheel of Fortune” is produced by Sony Pictures Television, a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company. It is distributed domestically by CBS Television Distribution and internationally by CBS Studios International, both units of CBS Corp.