Marina H.

My unforgettable Wheel of Fortune experience was three years in the making! In 2020, I finally had the opportunity to audition for the show my family and I have loved for years. I submitted a short video clip of me talking about my passion for the show and puzzle-solving, and sent my audition tape off with high hopes. The weeks started passing, and the months, and the years, and I figured maybe I was destined just to be a Wheel of Fortune fan, not a contestant. But unexpectedly one day, I got the email that I had been waiting for, inviting me to audition with the contestant managers!

The virtual auditioning experience was fun and exciting, I got to meet many amazing people, learn more about the show and filming process, and practice my Pat Chats. I would have been content if the journey ended there, but again, to my surprise, I got a phone call one evening after work inviting me to be on the show! And as if that wasn’t enough, I was invited to be on during Disney Secret Santa Week! I had always been a big fan of Disney, some of my earliest memories were having fun in the kid’s club aboard a Disney Cruise ship, I chose to go to Disneyland instead of my high school prom, and my husband and I had an amazing honeymoon trip to Disney World. I hung up the phone and danced in my living room, in disbelief that I was going to be standing with Vanna and Pat on the iconic Wheel of Fortune stage.

I immediately got to practicing by watching older episodes, and I spent a huge amount of my time playing the Wheel of Fortune mobile game (although let’s be honest, I was doing that way before I got the call to be on Wheel of Fortune!). When I arrived on set for filming, I was in awe of how magical and wonderful the stage looked. My first time spinning the Wheel brought me close to tears. I also got to enjoy a sweet chat with Vanna before it was showtime, where she offered some encouragement as I stared at her in shock, mouth agape. One of my favorite memories of my day on set was bonding with my fellow contestants. We were all Disney lovers, so it was easy to find common ground to chat about, and I truly enjoyed their company throughout the day.

When it was time for us to film, I surprised myself by feeling more excited than nervous! I was with my friends and ready to play a game that I loved. My one goal going into the day was to win the prize puzzle: I had so many amazing memories on Disney vacations, and was looking forward to the opportunity to make some more. After Pat and Vanna came out on stage and the first toss-up appeared on the board, I shocked myself by solving the puzzle as soon as the empty boxes appeared on the board. I wanted to wait for a couple of letters to see if I truly had the correct answer, and once the second letter popped up, I was confident that I knew it! I buzzed it, answered correctly with The Nutcracker, and won some money! Ka-ching! This meant I also got to talk to Pat first, and I was buzzing with some news that I was happy to share with him: I wasn’t up there spinning by myself! In fact, I was pregnant with my first child, a boy! I couldn’t have been happier to share this once-in-a-lifetime-experience with my son.

As the game continued on, I was finding success with the Wheel, but I had my eyes on the prize: the prize puzzle that is! Once the prize puzzle started, my fellow contestants filled in a lot of letters for me on the board. In fact, there was all but one word completely filled out. I thought for sure my fellow contestant would be ready to solve the puzzle, but to my surprise, she miscalled a letter It was now my turn, and I knew the answer! I felt bad for my friend, but I wasn’t even going to risk a single spin of the Wheel, instead telling Pat that I would like to solve. In response, he told me that I would be going on a trip to Disney’s Polynesian Resort in Hawaii!! The biggest smile broke out on my face and I clapped excitedly to keep myself from crying! What a trip! What a moment! The rest of the episode went by in a happy blur: I got another quick solve on the toss-up, and as it was time for the final puzzle, my fellow contestant solved for the win and the lead. Although I wasn’t going to the bonus round, I could not stop smiling as Pat shook my hand and congratulated me, and that was more than enough for me!

After the show finished filming, I got to reunite with my sister, who was sitting in the audience. We wrapped each other up in a giant hug, jumping up and down with joy as we excitedly recapped what had just happened. Neither of us could believe it was real, so to document it, we headed to the lobby to take some photos to remind us of this magical moment. And as I was taking pictures with some memorabilia dedicated iconic voice of the show, Jim surprised us by walking down! My sister and I couldn’t believe it! It was the perfect end to a perfect day. I can’t wait to share this episode with all of my family and friends back home, and soon, I can’t wait to sit down with my son and show him the time that we were on Wheel of Fortune!