Despite Wheel of Fortune being a game all about spelling, the long-running game show still makes its own mistakes sometimes. Host Pat Sajak was without his usual co-host during the latest Teacher’s Week eps, due to Vanna White being out with COVID, but it wasn't anything he specifically did or said that garnered so many grammar-centric comments. Rather, the very logo for Teachers’ Week itself was spelled wrong, with Wheel specifically noting it as “Teacher’s Week,” implying there could only be one lone educator vying for big prizes. There may only be one Highlander, but that's not how the game show runs things.
Fans on social media noticed the glaring mistake and couldn’t help but to point it out in a variety of different and amusing ways. And it was lost on no one that the week-long tribute to teachers around the country got off to quite a sour note for language sticklers. Making it all the more amusingly frustrating is that this is far from the first time that Wheel of Fortune has made that technical snafu, as it actually happens EVERY YEAR, and it's the kind of thing that viewers definitely point out with pitchforks when it pops up. Sajak did address the issue during last season's run, explaining it away with:
We’ve chosen to honor a teacher as a being, kind of like Father’s Day. There’s more than one father, but we treat it as a singular possessive. That’s all I’ve got!
The explanation does make sense in a vacuum, of course. However, it seems like that explanation needs to be attached to every episode produced for each “Teacher’s Week,” as a way to combat so many fans pointing to the gaffe. That, or just change the thing alreayd.
With Pat Sajak retiring, he presumably won’t have to deal with the complaints anymore. So if Teacher’s Week continues after Ryan Seacrest takes over, he'll be the one needing to defend the choice each year. They could also put a little disclaimer at the beginning of the episode, even if it wouldn't stop the majority of viewers from complaining.
Wheel of Fortune fans are not ones to hold back, from sharing thoughts on Seacrest replacing Sajak to railing on potential contenders for the worst guess in the show’s history, and everything in between. They can definitely be a brutal bunch, but it’s even worse in a situation like this where everyone is in agreement about something being ill-conceived.
Teacher’s Week was already a tough week for Pat Sajak, on top of the criticism for the title. It was reported over the summer that Vanna White had to miss some episodes after falling ill ahead of Teacher’s Week. Since the producers couldn’t be very flexible with the schedules, due to the fact that it was around the time that they would be going back to work, the deicision was made to film the episodes as is without White. Sajak addressed the absence in the Oct. 2 episode, noting he “can’t find my mark without her.”
As Wheel of Fortune continues to air on the 2023 TV schedule, it’s likely this won’t be the last time viewers point out a mistake or speak their thoughts on puzzles that make otherwise intelligent people appear to be completely mindless.
