Pat Sajak's Daughter Joins 'Wheel of Fortune' During His Absence Following Emergency Surgery
Nearly two months after “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak went under emergency surgery for a blocked intestine, he announced that his daughter was joining the game show to represent her family until he returns.
Longtime letter-turner Vanna White, who has been temporarily hosting the game show while Sajak recovers, presented his 25-year-old daughter, Maggie, as a “special letter-toucher” (in the words of her dad) in a video posted Monday.
Sajak was rushed to the hospital in November after he felt “horrific pain” in his abdomen.
“You couldn’t do anything. I was in [a] fetal position, lying on the bed,” Sajak told ABC’s “Good Morning America” last month. “They try to give you various drugs for the pain. And none of it — none — was working. And then they gave me something, I couldn’t even tell you the name of it, but suddenly, I wasn’t thinking about the pain. I just had these beautiful pastels and lovely faces coming out of it.”
“I didn’t know what it [was] — but within two and a half hours, I was in surgery,” he also said.
“It was that quick and intense.”
Thankfully, doctors pinpointed the source of his pain quickly and were able to perform life-saving surgery.
Not only was his intestine blocked, but his blood pressure had also drastically dropped.
Doctors were unable to determine the exact cause of the scary incident, but the surgery was successful and the game show host is back in the studio.
In a clip released on Monday, White celebrated Sajak’s anticipated return before noting that she has been “happy to fill in” during his recovery.
She then said she “could do this even better — hosting the show — with a Sajak” before introducing Maggie to the audience.
This wasn’t the first time Maggie has made an appearance on the show, however.
Maggie was only 1 year old when her father proudly introduced her to “Wheel of Fortune” fans in 1996.
“I’m walking a little better now and hopefully I’m a little more eloquent than last time,” she joked.
Sajak’s daughter assured fans of the show that her father was doing well.
“From the perspective of his daughter, it was a scary experience,” she said. “But he’s doing great, and I know he’s so excited to be back next week.”
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