User:Daniel Benfield/Nighttime Video Archive

Suggested by TPH, I began this page by focusing on Seasons 1-6 due to A) the preservation of my sanity and B) the lack of returning champions during that period. Since then, Guint and John (and myself) have added episodes from afterward; while this "front page" remains focused on Seasons 1-6, videos of the current season are at the very bottom.

Player names are given where available, barring Friday Finals if at least one other episode of that week is present. Episodes and clips that fall into the same timeframe, such as "February-June 1985" or "March-June 1989", are ordered arbitrarily unless I know or have reason to suspect otherwise, in which case they're noted.

The timeline is here, daytime videos here, and international videos here. (If any video links don't work, remove or substitute as necessary. If you have things to add or correct on these pages, do so; I'm not always around, you know. :P)

LEGAL STUFF SO I DON'T GET SUED: I'm only linking to these videos, none of which were uploaded by me, for the purposes of research and as a public record. Footage ©1983-2013 Califon Productions/Merv Griffin Entertainment and associated entities.

AND ANOTHER THING: All opinions on this page and its subpages are my own (see my name above the door?), and as per the rules of the MOS I'm doing it within my userspace. Mind you, the fact you're seeing this means you're here for a reason, so please don't let my thoughts sour you in any way.

Season 1 (1983-84)
September 19, 1983 - June 29, 1984

Distinguishable primarily by the first iteration of "Changing Keys" and the squared-off contestant backdrops. At least the premiere (Jeff/Leslie/Linda), Cyn/Susan/Steve, and Laura/Lisa/Glenn have $750 as the top value in Round 1, which becomes $1,000 most likely after the first week of taping.

The original Merv Griffin Productions logo is replaced on November 28 by an animated one, whose griffin becomes static (along with a larger picture and smaller font) in February...although the logo changes appearance until about the April tapings. Also, the King World logo originally uses a blocky font, which changes (most likely on November 28) to a rounder font over the spinning Round 1 layout.

The trees behind Pat change from green to brown in late September or early October, then to light-up white ones by October 31 (no, seriously; contemporaneous daytime episodes are a big help :). Shortly after tapings begin, the outlines of the money graphic and subsequent logo become white, resulting in a brighter/cleaner appearance.

"Walls" replace the trees in February and remain until late 1986, although the trees still show up and the walls' decorations/foliage still help in dating. The Wheel flippers may become longer and thinner sometime between September 22 and October 31, but that could just be me going by some less-than-optimal video quality.

Summer repeats for this and the next few seasons can usually be determined by a sudden cut to another screen just after the fee plugs to show the replacement fee sponsors.

Road Shows: Ohio State Fair in Columbus (August 29-September 2).

Repeat Weeks: December 26-30, April 23-27.

GSN Repeat Dates: December 1, 1994-October 2?, 1998 (part of a rotation with Seasons 5 and 10).

1983


 * September? 1983 (WPVI promo of three puzzles being solved: BLOWING HOT AND COLD, SEND IN THE CLOWNS, and the bonus puzzle KENNY ROGERS {apparently from the first or second week WPVI aired})
 * September 19, 1983 (#S-001/Premiere: Jeff/Leslie/Linda, with the puzzle board's original chase light sequence {counterclockwise on the left, clockwise on the right}; taped from GSN's first day, prefaced by a history dossier by Peter Tomarken but begins slightly into chant and ends shortly after fee plugs {alternate copies: same day, no Tomarken intro, ends just before the above copy does; pristine copy from August 18, 2007})

White-outline money graphic/logo, top value in R1 becomes $1,000


 * September 22, 1983 (#S-004: Lou/Cindy/Karen, with the original chase light sequence and a three-minute voiceover by Jack Clark...but several cuts {begins after Jack's first opening line, no Round 1 prize plugs, several other brief portions cut out, no last segment})

Brown-leaf trees


 * September-October 1983 (Bob/Pearl/Carmen, with the original chase light sequence {apparently the first aired for WPVI, on 9/12}; repeat copy, video is a bit bright {alternate copies: #1, #2 {free registration required to watch})
 * September-October 1983 (Ed/Dawn/Ellen, with the original chase light sequence {taped 9/83, suggesting the latter end of this period; alternate copies: #1, #2; both are followed by the first 1:22 of the Michael/Penny/Ron Jeopardy! episode from 6/85})

Light-up white trees


 * October-November 1983 (Rick/Joan/Cecelia, with the original chase light sequence and really small Prize wedge letters...but no last segment)
 * December 1983 ("11 Alive" promo with Bonus Round winners from September-October 1983 {with the brown-leaf trees, one being Bob/Pearl/Carmen; alternate copy, taped from KOMO in 1984})
 * December 6, 1983 (WLS promo {by ABC's Ernie Anderson!} with clips from various episodes, including Theresa/Patti/Scott {with the $60,000 Rolls-Royce win} and a security guard opening a briefcase of money in front of the curtain {a very out-of-place clip I've never seen before}; date from here, with a copy dated 2/11/84 here)

1984


 * January 1984 (Lloyd/Linda/Debbie {aka "And now, here's your litterer: Pat Sajak!"}, with the original chase light sequence, no white outlines on the money graphic or subsequent logo, and Vanna White spinning the Wheel at the end; repeat from August, begins just after opening chant)
 * January-February 1984 (Thelma/Sam/Lisa {aka "And now he's parked, here's your host: Pat Sajak!"}, with the curtain screwing up, a reference to WPVI, and the reversed chase light sequence {clockwise on the left, counterclockwise on the right}; repeat from June {most likely in a pre-9/19-debut market}, audio lags about 2-3 seconds behind video after Round 2 puzzle is shown {gets considerably better after Segment 2})
 * January-February 1984 (Tom/Cindi/Velma, with the reversed chase light sequence; repeat from Summer with commercials)

"Walls" replace trees, "static" Griffin logo


 * February? 1984 (WCBS promo with some clips from the first few months or so)
 * February? 1984 (KCOP promo with a lot of clips from early in the season {before the walls were introduced}, bookended by shots of Pat in front of the walls)
 * February-September 1984 (WCBS promo with clips from two different episodes during this period)
 * April 1984 (Virginia/Bob/Norma, with the reversed chase light sequence but no last segment; has commercials, one promoting the 1984 Olympic Games {taped 2/14/84; alternate copy... thing, by the original uploader})
 * May? 1984 (Mark/Carol/Debi, with the reversed chase light sequence but no white outlines on the money graphic or subsequent logo {taped 4/84})
 * August 1984 (KMBC promo with clips from the brown-leaf and light-up white tree eras, including the "EARTH BIRD" mis-solve {alternate copy, same station})

Season 2 (1984-85)
September 10, 1984 - June 21, 1985

Distinguishable primarily by "Merv Griffin Productions" becoming "Merv Griffin Enterprises" (with a completely-static logo) and the King World logo adopting its familiar "star" motif (now over the Round 3 layout). Sometime between November 23 and January 17, the overhead Wheel shot for the King World logo is dropped; by about April, it becomes light blue and returns to its September-November 1983 position/use.

After at least the first week (September 10-14), the 1984 "Changing Keys" debuts; after at least another ten episodes, and definitely sometime in October, the second sunburst backdrops debut.

Sometime between the beginning of October and November 23, the $150 next to $1,000 in Round 2 decreases to $100; sometime between then and early December, the green $1,000 gets a wider font (most noticeably the $ and first 0).

At this point, the wide-font $5,000 is used at least twice (both after the wide-font $1,000 debuts) and leaves by early December; my best guess is that the wide-font wedges debuted on the same day, with $5,000 back to normal after at least two shows. The Winter decorations return again in early December and leave in late January or early February.

In early December, Round 1 adds $700 and $800; the aforementioned $100 is upped to $600; and the red $200 near Bankrupt in Rounds 2+ becomes a yellow $500. By the 19th (which is very clearly decorated for Christmas), Round 1 adds $900 and the aforementioned yellow $500 moves to the red $300 next to Bankrupt.

Episodes through about mid-January have the monospaced font (for the category displays and wardrobe plugs), no animated Wheel logo, and no Helvetica; there were at least eleven episodes in January before the changes.

Following this, the opening logo (over the Wheel) is altered to fill in the transparent wedges. At least four episodes aired during this period, in which the animated logo wasn't quite certain of itself. Just after the Helvetica chyrons get their shadow effect, the regular animated logo debuts (minus one glitchy instance in February or March).

The Helvetica chyrons are altered by February 8, with at least 12 episodes using them, and again by March 29; the regular $1,000 returns sometime between May 2 (or 13) and the June 21 season finale.

In late January or early February, after the Winter decorations are removed but before the second Helvetica chyrons debut, the eligibility display, wardrobe plugs, and full credit roll change from white to blue. Oddly, though, there's at least three episodes post-Winter that have the shadowed chyrons and two Winter ones with the second chyrons.

On matters that are a little less confusing, Summer/weekend repeats now cut to a shot of a set piece (usually a portion of the "wall" decorations) in blurred close-up for the replacement sponsor list. I'm reasonably sure this changed when the walls were ousted in October-November 1986.

(Massive thanks to Greg Brobeck and his huge Season 2 collection for noticing the stuff regarding "Changing Keys", the sunburst backdrops, and logo/category graphics {I remembered reading somewhere that the season began taping before the music/sunburst changes were made}. Further thanks to Chuck D. for the airdate of E.R./Casey/Stacey, which provided and remains an extremely-helpful "anchor" for the 1984 part of the season.)

(Problem: things only got more confusing.)

Repeat Weeks: December 31-January 4, April 8-12.

GSN Repeat Dates: October 5, 1998-July 2, 1999 (one near-complete cycle, despite being exactly 39 weeks, due to some pre-emptions for special programming).

1984


 * September 1984 (Bob/Ali/Debbie; somewhat-crackly audio {alternate copy})
 * September 1984 (Kersteen/Cinders {Cynthia}/Jack, with the reversed chase light sequence and full credit roll)
 * September 1984 (Anita/Paula/Wayne, with the first known use of Fictional Characters {alternate copy})

Second "Changing Keys"


 * September 1984 (Bill/Brilla/Teddy, with the reversed chase light sequence {alternate copy})
 * September 1984 (Larry/Diane/Howard, with the reversed chase light sequence, shorter Prize wedge letters, a full credit roll, and quite a few technical oddities; begins at "-une!" in opening chant)
 * September 1984 (Charmaine/Debbie/Janice, with Pat eerily foreshadowing all the crappy themed weeks at the beginning of Round 2; taped from GSN with commercials, ends during eligibility disclaimer {replaced by a very brief clip of The Joker's Wild})
 * September 1984 (Debbie/Suzanne/Dan; taped from GSN with commercials, ends during eligibility disclaimer)

Second sunburst backdrops


 * October-November 1984 (Dave/Joan/Kathy, with the reversed chase light sequence and shorter Prize wedge letters)
 * October-November 1984 (Father Rob/Betty/Maria, with the reversed chase light sequence and a camera appearing on-camera after Round 2 {alternate copy})
 * October-November 1984 (Janice/Faye/Marvin, with the reversed chase light sequence {alternate copies: complete #1, complete #2, Round 3/FRANKFURTERS AND SAUERKRAUT only})
 * October-November 1984 (Shirley/Dewey/Boone, with "once you buy a Sea Monkey it's yours to keep" and Pat stopping Dewey before the first spin of Round 2 so he can read the "People does not always mean Proper Names." disclaimer)

$150 in R2 (next to $1,000) becomes $100


 * November 23, 1984 (#S-250: E.R. {Elizabeth Renae}/Casey/Stacey, with the reversed chase light sequence and one of my favorite contestants :) {alternate copies: opening through Vanna's intro and full closing segment, both taped from WTVJ with commercials})

Wide-font $1,000 and $5,000 wedges debut


 * November-December 1984 (Sharon/DeeDee/Brent, with the reversed chase light sequence, smaller Prize wedge letters, and a full credit roll)
 * November-December 1984 (Laura/Bob/Rochelle, with a "MINI CAR" wedge in the style of Free Spin and the wardrobe plugs done over the spinning Round 1 layout for...some reason {alternate copy})

Normal $5,000 returns


 * November-December 1984 (Jeannette/Tim/Colleen, with the reversed chase light sequence and smaller Prize wedge letters {alternate copies: Rounds 1 and 3; complete #1, complete #2})

$700/$800 in R1, $100 next to $1,000 in R2 becomes $600, $200 near Bankrupt in R2+ becomes $500, Winter decorations added


 * Early December 1984 (Ken/Kathy/Bruce, with the reversed chase light sequence and a couple of very rare events; taped from GSN with a voiceover promo for the new season of Extreme Gong "beginning June 1"...but then that would put this around April-May 1999 and...)

Yellow $500 in R2+ moved to red $300 next to Bankrupt


 * Early December 1984 (Reiko/Ralph/Conrad, with the money graphic and subsequent logo in white{!} and a full credit roll with Mark Corwin as Director and Dick Carson not listed at all; taped from GSN, with commercials)

$900 added in R1


 * December 19, 1984 (#S-268: Kathe/Esther/Dennis, with wreaths and bows on-set plus the reversed chase light sequence {alternate copy})

1985


 * January 1985 (Mike/Renita/Laura, with the reversed chase light sequence; was listed as December 25, 1984 on the timeline {alternate copy})
 * January 1985 (Pam/Carmen/Michael, with the reversed chase light sequence; taped from GSN with commercials, begins during opening spiel with some playback issues for the first two seconds)
 * January 1985 (Rita/Lynn/Jonas, with $800 on $750 in Round 1 and the reversed chase light sequence; begins at "-une!" in opening chant, beginning of Bonus Round segment cut out {begins during Jack's description}, ends during Griffin announcement {alternate copies: #1, #2})
 * January 17, 1985 (#S-284: Cynthia/John/Susie, with the original chase light sequence; taped from WLKY with most commercials, bunch of missing bits {begins about two seconds before Pat introduces Vanna, audio drops out at times beginning just before Jack's Round 3 prize plugs, nearly everything between Rounds 2 and 3 is cut out} but has more commercials after the show, followed by most of an ABC Thursday Night Movie intro before changing channels to The Cosby Show {briefly} and several seconds of Magnum P.I.)
 * [Airdate clarification: the commercials, specifically one after the show, put this no later than the 21st. The Thursday Night Movie intro narrows it down to between the 3rd and 17th, but Wheel aired repeats the week of December 31 and the sponsor list indicates this wasn't a repeat. The movie, starring Ann-Margret and Frederic Forrest, was an encore of the 1983 TV movie Who Will Love My Children?. TV Tango says ABC showed an encore of The Thorn Birds Part 4 on the 10th and this on the 17th, so...]

Animated logo debuts, opening logo's transparent wedges become white, first Helvetica chyrons (no shadows)/Bonus Round totals/credits


 * January 1985 (Peg/Renee/Doc, with the red/green/yellow animated logo; tail end of Bonus Round, with a win ruled as a loss)

Green/yellow-only animated logo
 * January 1985 (Steve/Christina/Debra, with the original chase light sequence and shorter Prize wedge letters {alternate copy})

Regular animated logo debuts, first Helvetica chyrons get shadows


 * Late January-Early February 1985 (Milt/Fran/Stuart, with a huge chunk of money put "on account" and one of my favorite contestants :); taped from GSN in 1999, begins during Jack's opening spiel {"-hundred dollar ruby and diamond bracelet"} {alternate copy})

Winter decorations removed, eligibility disclaimers/wardrobe plugs/full credit rolls change from white to blue
 * Late January-Early February 1985 (Mary/Dick/Chris, with the reversed chase light sequence)
 * Late January-Early February 1985 (Steve/Kelli/Jim, with Pat skipping the entire rules spiel {"$1,000...you know the rules, let's get on with it."} and a full credit roll; taped from GSN on March 31, 1999 {with a voiceover promo for the premiere of Burt Luddin's Love Buffet "tomorrow night"}, first part of Round 4 missing {begins during Final Spin})

Second Helvetica chyrons (white around bottoms of letters)


 * February-March 1985 (Hal/Chris/Rita, with the reversed chase light sequence and shorter Prize wedge letters; audio/video seriously out of sync for the first four minutes {slightly off for the rest}, no last segment)
 * February-March 1985 (Denise/Gloria/Ron; taped from GSN, with commercials)

Third Helvetica chyrons (white all around each letter)


 * February 1985-June 1986 (Faye/Joe/Mary, opening through most of contestant interviews, clips of Round 2, and clips of what I think is Round 4)


 * February-June 1985 (T.G.I.4 {local San Francisco series} report on the show)
 * February-June 1985 (Jerry/Joan {pronounced "Joanne"}/Elaine, with an unknown chase light sequence and a player who has "three children, one of each"; taped from GSN in 1999, rough video {especially at beginning; alternate copy})
 * February-June 1985 (Deborah/Cheryl/Robin, with the reversed chase light sequence; begins just before Jack's opening spiel)
 * February-June 1985 (Kim/Brad/Carla, with the reversed chase light sequence; GSN airing with no logos)
 * February-June 1985 (Kathy Jo/Tom/Beth {alternate copy})
 * February-June 1985 (Ron/Margot/Elaine, with an unknown chase light sequence and the blue King World logo; opening {ends just before player intros} and tail end of Bonus Round through credits from 9/27/86 weekend repeat, taped from WTVJ with commercials)
 * May 2, 1985 (#S-354: Diane/Linda/Ronda, with the reversed chase light sequence and a goofier-than-usual Pat; small cuts here and there, nothing too big {alternate copy}; airdate comes from a press photo and newspaper article stamp-dated "April 12 1986" about Ronda, which mentions her show having aired "last May 2")
 * May 13, 1985? (#S-361?: Gina/Cindy/Mike, with the reversed chase light sequence {airdate comes from a press photo and newspaper blurb stamp-dated "May 13 1985" that mentions Mike's episode airing "tonight"; it may not be right, but it's the best thing we've got})

Regular green $1,000 returns


 * May-June 1985 (Lori/Peggy/David, with the reversed chase light sequence and shorter Prize wedge letters)

Season 3 (1985-86)
September 9, 1985 - June 20, 1986

Distinguishable primarily by the green $1,000 becoming yellow, the nearby $800 becoming orange, and the Griffin logo using pacific-blue font instead of the previous silver. Likely at the beginning of the season, and definitely by the first week of December, the walls appear to change to a more "curtain-like" style.

Charlie O'Donnell fills in from October 21-November 1.

Repeat Weeks: December 30-January 3, March 31-April 4.

GSN Repeat Dates: N/A as of yet.

1985


 * Late 1985? (WCBS promo for their play-at-home game, available only to residents of the Tri-State Area {New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey})
 * Late 1985? (WCHS promo for a Friday episode, showing a partial Bonus Round)
 * December 5, 1985 (#S-454: Nikki/Tony/Terry; the THRILL OF VICTORY episode, with the reversed chase light sequence and no Winter decorations; repeat copy {alternate copy, same source})

1986


 * Early 1986 (WCBS promo)
 * Early 1986 (KPRC promo with a fictional contestant and {the debut of?} the two-row logo; parade portions taped 7/6/85)


 * February 11, 1986 (#S-497: ? {male}/? {female}/? {female}, with the green $1,000 in Round 1; taped from WFTV, preceded by the close of that night's Jeopardy! and a few commercials {link is timecoded to skip them}, ends just after Vanna's entrance)
 * March 14, 1986 (#S-520: Dick/Diane/Betty, with the reversed chase light sequence; has commercials {alternate copy})
 * May 5, 1986 (#S-551: Ken/John/Andra, with green $1,000 in Round 1 and $100 present in Round 2, reversed chase light sequence, and AT MY CAT'S END mis-solve {alternate copy... thing, by the original uploader})


 * May 1986 (KRON promo with another fictional contestant who recounts how she got where she is {although really, she didn't need to go on Wheel to be hit on...})

Season 4 (1986-87)
September 8, 1986 - June 19, 1987

Distinguishable primarily by the new Wheel colors (notably the pink $1,000 in Round 1), third sunburst backdrops (introduced sometime between mid-October and November 13), and aqua-blue King World logo (which remains through the end of Season 6).

Between November 13 and December 22, the Griffin logo changes to add "A unit of The Coca-Cola Company"; around Spring, the text "ALL RIGHTS RESERVED" is added below the copyright stamp. Sometime between mid-October and November 13, the walls introduced in February 1984 are removed.

Oddly, $900 is removed from Round 1 and the spin order there is altered, going from $900-$250-$400-LAT to $250-$400-$200-LAT. Sometime this season, the $200 between $500 and $550 in Rounds 2+ temporarily becomes $900 while the peach $900 temporarily becomes lime green.

The "Wheel of Misfortune" episode of 227 (using the third sunburst backdrops, post-"walls" setup, the red $300 instead of $500 next to Bankrupt and the tan/lime-green $900 wedges) airs October 4; an available copy of its press release has "AUG 26 1986" stamped on it.

Repeat Weeks: December 29-January 2, April 20-24.

GSN Repeat Dates: N/A as of yet.

1986


 * October 13-17, 1986 (Julie/David/Nita, with the original chase light sequence; taped from WXIA with commercials {one mentioning the 18th}, ends during Pat's wardrobe plug {alternate copy, no commercials})
 * November 28, 1986 (20/20 report on the show, although despite the airdate the clips are from Charlie's substitution in Season 3; towards the end of the report, Hugh Downs gives a quip from his days as Concentration host)

1987


 * 1987 (WWL promo with a partial "Vanna, Pick Me A Letter" rewrite; mostly contains clips from early this season with one shot of the third sunburst backdrops)
 * 1987 (WCBS promo with no clips, but still really weird {they try for Vanna White and get James Brown; really, guys? alternate copy})
 * 1987 (WCBS promo asking "What will Vanna wear tonight?")
 * January 5-7, 1987 (Ann/Valerie/Helen, with the original chase light sequence; begins immediately before money graphic, ends a few seconds into the fee plugs, but includes commercials {alternate copy... thing, by the original uploader})
 * January 1987 (KHOU promo with clips from late Season 3 and maybe early Season 4)
 * January 13, 1987 (Mary Anne/?/?, with a full credit roll; taped from KHOU, begins at start of sponsor list)


 * February 12, 1987 (#S-694: LeGrande/?/?, with the reversed chase light sequence; partial Bonus Round {taped 1/18/87}, LeGrande later became an Oprah staffer/producer from 1990-97; by the way, if you're curious, the airdate is given here and the tapedate here)


 * March 30-April 3, 1987 (?/Nancy/Eleanor, with the reversed chase light sequence; full Round 2, with a very brief shot of a "Toyota Spring Break Event" logo at the end)
 * May 1987 (Mark/Barbara/Susan, with the reversed chase light sequence; Round 4 through end of show, fee plugs cut out, ends during Jack's closing spiel {"Wheel of-"})
 * June 1987 (Martine/Jim/Gerri, begins just before player interviews; has commercials, two mentioning Father's Day as upcoming and a third plugging a car giveaway on the 18th; Griffin logo still has "A unit of The Coca-Cola Company")

Season 5 (1987-88)
September 14, 1987 - June 24, 1988

Distinguishable primarily by the Big Month/Bonanza of Cash (October 5 through at least February 12); Free Spin is available in Rounds 1-2 until sometime between February 12 and maybe March 23, at which point it's replaced by an off-model $200. "A unit of The Coca-Cola Company" changes to "A unit of Coca-Cola TELEVISION" by October 30, then "A unit of Columbia Pictures Entertainment, Inc." on February 8.

To (most likely) celebrate the switch from shopping to all-cash, the stage is adorned with rugs and turntables with mostly non-existant Wheel layouts (some bizarre, some not). A move like this would most certainly boost the show's popularity.

Probably on November 2, the "only vowels remain" beeps are halved from eight to four.

Sometime in November, while "continue by popular demand" is used in the open and after both Geri/Chip/Betsy and Norm/Marci/Dean, the tan $600 in Round 1 becomes $900. Also, the $250 and $500 between Lose A Turn and Bankrupt in Round 3 swap positions, the spin order going from $500-$400-$250 to $250-$400-$500.

Sometime afterward, possibly on November 9, the opening is altered to replace "continue by popular demand" with "present". I know Norm/Diane/Linda uses this, along with the below.

"Big Bonanza" is dropped from the opening sometime between February 12 and March 23, with the money graphic returning to the center of the screen sometime between then and May 6.

Jack leaves on May 6, with Charlie returning for at least the following week. Other than the different-looking fee credits, Summer repeats are distinguishable by the fee plugs being read by Pat and/or Vanna.

Repeat Weeks: December 28-January 1, April 4-8.

GSN Repeat Dates: Early 1996-October 4, 1998 (apparently on weekends).

1987


 * September 1987 (Promo for an "all-new season" with Kool & The Gang doing "I'm A Wheel Watcher"; there's no mention of playing for cash {or even any hint of the switch}, suggesting it's from beforehand – and if so, it's likely the last promo done before some big changes...)
 * September? 1987 (Another promo with some clips of the above interspersed with some new ones, notably sans a "new season" graphic; taped from WTHR {alternate copy, dated 1988})

"Big Month of Cash" begins


 * October 5, 1987 (#S-796/Big Month of Cash, Day 1: John/Nancy/Peter, with the reversed chase light sequence; taped from GSN on August 18, 2007 {alternate copy})

"Big Bonanza of Cash", "Coca-Cola TELEVISION" replaces "The Coca-Cola Company"


 * November 1987 (Geri/Chip/Betsy, with the reversed chase light sequence and a dumb call in Round 1; contestant interviews and fee plugs cut out, for whatever reason)
 * November 10, 1987 (#S-822: Elliot/?/?, with the reversed chase light sequence; complete final segment, with Pat talking to a pair of mannequins on-set and full credit roll {albeit less "full" than usual due to an NBC technicians' strike}; don't know which period this fits into, sorry)

Tan $600 in R1 becomes $900, pink $500 and purple $250 near light-blue $400 in R3 swap positions


 * November 1987 (Deb/Art/Amy, with Pat acting like something's bothering him {taped 10/87})

"Present" replaces "continue by popular demand"


 * November 1987 (KJAC promo for the weekend feed {Season 4 based on the clips, possibly the first three weeks of Season 5, although one clip has the 1984-86 walls}, airing on Sundays at...10:30 PM?!}


 * November-December 1987 (Sheila/Greg/Dick, with the reversed chase light sequence and Pat dropping his pants; February 18, 1989 weekend repeat, taped from WOKR with commercials and Pat reading the replacement fee plugs {alternate copy})
 * December 1987 (Rick/Julie/Gretchen, with the reversed chase light sequence and first known nighttime tie; taped from GSN circa 1996 {taped 12/87})
 * December 17, 1987 (#S-849: Eileen/Peggy/Paul, with the reversed chase light sequence; has commercials, but ends just before King World logo {alternate copy})
 * December 1987 (behind-the-scenes report from KATU {the main behind-the-scenes clips are definitely from Christmas 1987, as the set is decorated for the holiday and the original $25,000 sign is present}; clips are also shown of Lois Wainer's nighttime appearance from October 1983-February 1984 {the light-up white trees are present})

1988


 * January-March 1988 (Marj/Paula/Denia, with "squished" Prize wedge lettering and a "How did that get past the censors?!" moment in Round 4 when Pat says "Vanna will show you her hyphen."; has brief bits of commercials, but begins as Jack says the value of the last item and no last segment {taped 1/88})
 * January 31-February 6, 1988 (Promo for Acme's Wheel scratch-off tickets, with a "Changing Keys" that's similar to...the 1994 version?! {alternate copy})
 * February 12, 1988 (#S-885 {"Are they sweetening this, Jack? Gosh, I hope so."}: Hank/Nancy/Becky; taped from WPVI with some bits of commercials {including the tail end of a People's Court episode likely from around this point}, begins at "-filled with glamorous prizes" with no last segment {alternate copy, same source})

Off-model $200 debuts in Round 2, "Big Bonanza of Cash" dropped


 * March 24-May 6, 1988 (Gerri/Maria/Kevin, with the off-model $200 present through the opening spin, a thin-font $3,500, and Vanna getting her dress soaked; repeat from June 28, with Pat and Vanna reading the replacement fee plugs and Rod Roddy plugging the upcoming Family Feud revival)

Jack leaves


 * May 9-June 24, 1988 (?/?/?, with a full credit roll; begins just after fee plugs {a comment says it's May due to the season ending May 27, which I doubt because that's the 37th week})

Season 6 (1988-89)
September 5, 1988 - June 16, 1989

Distinguishable primarily by M. G. Kelly announcing and the more familiar $25,000 sign. $2,500 becomes darker this season, while $3,500 adopts the same font. $5,000 does the same by October 3.

The New York Contest is held from September 5-26, with the winners attending a special set of tapings in October. The 10-second/three-and-a-vowel Bonus Round debuts October 3, and the 1,000th nighttime show (Maureen/Morris/Howard) is that Friday.

M.G. leaves after February 17, with Charlie returning on the 20th.

(Massive thanks to Greg Brobeck and his huge Season 6 collection for sorting out the September-October and May-June episodes. Further thanks to Chuck D. for the airdate of Fred/Fran/Betty, verifiable here.)

New Categories: Same Name on September 6, Before & After on February 27.

Road Shows: Radio City Music Hall, New York City (November 14-25; Don Pardo announces).

Repeat Weeks: December 26-30, March 27-31.

GSN Repeat Dates: October 1, 2001-August 22, 2004 (three complete cycles).
 * Probably around June 2003, and definitely by mid-November, the credit crunch promo went from being on the right side to the left.
 * On March 15, 2004, Game Show Network rebranded itself as GSN: The Network For Games, the logo changing from "GAME SHOW" (which it had in some form since about September 1997) to "GSN" (which remained, with minor changes, until about November 2008).

1988


 * August 1988 (Promo for the New York Contest, posted by the male actor of said commercial; features Don Pardo {alternate copy})
 * September 5, 1988 (#S-976/Season Premiere: Ann/Constance/Jan; taped from GSN, with commercials {alternate copies: #1, albeit dated 9/6; #2a and #2b, #3a and #3b})
 * September 6, 1988 (#S-977: Sharon/Nathalie/Peter, with M.G.'s first nighttime on-camera appearance)
 * September 8, 1988 (#S-979: Mitchell/Diana/Colin)
 * September 14, 1988 (#S-983: Terri/Debra/Mike, with the New York Contest)
 * September 27, 1988 (#S-992: Marianne/Jon/Kathy)

"Three-and-a-Vowel" Bonus Round


 * October 4, 1988 (#S-997: Rick/Renee/Chris)
 * October 11-December, 1988 (Emerald{?}/Chris/Janice, partial Round 3 and Bonus Round {WHICH OLD WITCH and CANADIAN BORDER}; video is accidentally slowed down slightly)
 * October-December 1988 (#S-10??: Shari/Tom/David, with the bonus puzzle THE RED BADGE OF COURAGE and some particularly-short contestants; taped from GSN with commercials, but no fee plugs {alternate copies, same airing: #1a and #1b; #2a and #2b})
 * October-December 1988 (#S-10??: Diana/Judy/Dan {clearly the same week as above; the stage looks exactly the same}, with more short players {the riser is pretty obvious in these two shows} and a full credit roll; taped from GSN in January-February 2002, with a "ticker" promo for For Better or Worse: The Best of The Newlywed Game on February 10 {source here} and intact fee plugs{!})
 * October 25, 1988 (#S-1012/Wipeout Week I, Day 2: Allan/Shirley/Peggy; taped from GSN in early or mid-November 2003 {there's a "ticker" promo for the Feast of Favorites on the 27th})
 * November 2, 1988 (#S-1018: Louanne/Ann/Walt)

Radio City Music Hall


 * November 12, 1988 (CBS special on the Radio City tapings, recorded prior to them {except the closing segment, taped the day of})
 * November 14, 1988 (#S-1026: Meg/Dave/Matt, with a "$337,000" money graphic; taped from GSN on August 18, 2007 {alternate copy})
 * November 15, 1988 (#S-1027: Andy/Shari/Sonia, with a "$306,000" money graphic, the Round 2 Prize wedge initially on Lose A Turn, and an overhead shot of the opening spin{?!}; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * November 16, 1988 (#S-1028: Regina/Donna/David, with a "$342,000" money graphic and the APRICOT bonus puzzle; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * November 17, 1988 (#S-1029: Amy/Bill/Mary Lou, with a "$328,000" money graphic; begins at newspaper graphic {alternate copies: #1; #2, by the original uploader})
 * November 18, 1988 (#S-1030: Alan/Karl/Nikki, with a "$312,000" money graphic)
 * November 21, 1988 (#S-1031: Jason/Denise/Jane, with a "$271,000" money graphic, an angled view of Radio City Music Hall in Don's opening announcement, and two Rockettes performances after Round 3 (RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL ROCKETTES puzzle) and the Bonus Round; taped from GSN in April-May 2002, with commercials {including a debut promo for Friend or Foe?, which premiered in June})
 * November 22, 1988 (#S-1032: Tim/Steve/Sharon, with a "$291,000" money graphic; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * November 23, 1988 (#S-1033: Joseph/Charlie/Leslie, with a "$276,000" money graphic and the GOING BANANAS bonus puzzle; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * November 24, 1988 (#S-1034: Rubin/Father Joe/Lorraine, with a "$292,000" money graphic; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * November 25, 1988 (#S-1035: Martha/Linda/Willie, with a "$268,000" money graphic)

Back to Burbank


 * November 29, 1988 (#S-1037: Pamela/Robin/Chet, with Pat's comments suggesting this is the debut of the Shipboard Party; taped from KTBS with commercials, ends during Pat's wardrobe plug {alternate copy of open and close, same source but begins during intro {"-t this studio..."})
 * December 19-22, 1988 (#S-105?: Marilyn/Sandi/Jon, with the $25,000 sign inactive during the opening; taped from GSN circa 2002 {there's a "ticker" promo for the Connect & Collect Sweepstakes, namedropping Whammy!, Friend or Foe?, Russian Roulette, and Greed; near the end, there's a brief plug for The Hollywood Squares})
 * December 23, 1988 (#S-1055: Jan/Don/Eric, with Pat singing an off-key "White Christmas")

1989


 * 1989 (KJAC promo for the weekend feed, with clips from Season 5 {hard to miss the original $25,000 sign...})
 * January 2-February 10, 1989 (Bill/Gail/Carolyn, with the mispronunciation of MILAN ITALY; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * January 2-February 10, 1989 (Eileen/Irene/Ray {same week as below; alternate copy-ish... thing})
 * January 2-February 10, 1989 (Arnie/Judy/Valerie, with "I was getting ready to tell him about Vanna!"; taped from GSN in early 2004, small portion of Bonus Round cut out {possibly same week as Joy finding a Free Spin on a car seat, as the His-and-Hers signs are Hers-His; alternate copy})
 * February 15, 1989 (#S-1088/Wipeout Week II, Day 3: Ken/Chris/Eugene, with two prizes {the $25,000 and a white car} already won)
 * February 16, 1989 (#S-1089/Wipeout Week II, Day 4: Lynne/Carol/Eugene, with direct mention that they'll be wrapping up the week "tomorrow")

Charlie returns


 * February 20, 1989 (#S-1091: Renee/Carol/Damon {taped 1/89?}, with Marla Gibbs making an appearance {alternate copy})
 * February 21?-June 16, 1989 (beginning of sponsor list through most of the full credit roll, followed by a KCCI "Don't be Cruel" special report preview {which the station used to replace the last part of the credits}; tape fuzz throughout, but still audible; might be from Family Week, since there's two people onstage with Pat and Vanna)
 * February 27, 1989 (#S-1096: Barbara/Lisa/Larry, debut of Before & After; taped from GSN, with commercials)


 * February-March 1989 (Donn/Rachel/Jackie, with a very audible Wheel in the opening chant and a detailed explanation of "our newest category" Before & After; taped from GSN, with commercials {alternate copy, same source})
 * February-March 1989 (Michelle/Bettye/Andy; montage of Rounds 1-3 and Bonus Round, prefaced by Andy's brother Jeff winning a car in October-December 1986 {third sunburst backdrops, post-"walls" backdrop, late-1984 Griffin logo})
 * February-May 1989 (Karen/?/?; clip of the FANCY THAT Bonus Round where Karen says a word that has to be censored by the Pyramid cuckoo)
 * February-June 1989 (? {female}/Paula/? {male}, clip {possibly whole} of Round 4 or 5...oh, and there's no sound)


 * March-June 1989 (Yvonne/Stephanie/Joy; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * March-June 1989 (Maxie/Penny/Steve, with a "goofy hat" contest; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * March-June 1989 (Lori/Dianne/Teri; most of contestant interviews and small portion of Bonus Round cut out)
 * March-June 1989 (Callie/Semaj/Sterling, with the audience machine drowning out Charlie in the opening)
 * March-June 1989 (Liz/Victor/Leo {same week as below?}, with the CHARLIE AND AMERICAN PRIDE mistake; taped from GSN, with commercials)
 * March-June 1989 (Robin/Franklin/Tom {same week as above?}, with a full credit roll; most of contestant interviews cut out)
 * April 18, 1989 (#S-1127: Fred/Fran/Betty, with Pat briefly calling Before & After a new category; taped from WPVI with most commercials, begins at animated logo but audio only begins after Pat walks out {and it's pretty low throughout})

NOTE: May 5 is Barbara/Tom/Ed, Family Week is May 8-12, and College Week is May 15-19. The episodes below are confirmed to have aired afterward.
 * May 22-June 1989 (Cynthia/Scott/Jeff, with a blown Bonus Round; taped from GSN in Summer 2003, with commercials {including a promo at 9:16 for the finale of Chuck Woolery: Naturally Stoned "this Sunday at 9:30", a graphic promo for an all-day/all-night Match Game marathon on Monday, and a promo for new episodes of Cram!})
 * May 22-June 1989 (Gina/Gordie/Rob {same week as below}; taped from GSN around Summer 2003, with a "Sunday Night Buzz" promo graphic and an uncrunched full credit roll!)
 * May 22-June 1989 (Arlene/Tina/Bill, with a huge win {same week as above}; taped from GSN sometime between June 2003 and March 2004 due to a Funny Money promo {alternate copy})
 * June 13, 1989 (#S-1167: Theresa/Pat/Roland; begins at Round 2, but has commercials {alternate copy, no commercials but has a couple of extras before the given timecode: namely, a promo from WDIV and a brief weather report from Pat's days at KNBC})

Post-Season 6
Originally created by me for the episodes that contain a bunch of clips (marked as "CLIPFEST"), Guint and John (primarily, but I've also chipped in) started adding episodes from various seasons...but then there started getting to be way too many episodes, so we needed sub-subpages.

Seasons 7-12 (1989-95)
The move to CBS Television City and all the new stuff, the $10,000 Wedge debuts, Megaword stinks up the place for 6½ months, Slang stinks up the place for three years, the rise of Friedman, and other notable events: 7, 8-11, 12.

Seasons 13-18 (1995-2001)
The show moves to its permanent home at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, the Jackpot debuts, the backdrops become randomized, themed weeks appear every single week, the puzzle board is given an (honestly needed) overhaul, the Wheel's automation is discontinued for good as are the multiple templates, the decision that Merv's music is good enough to keep on Jeopardy! but not Wheel, and more: 13, 14, 15-18.

Seasons 19-26 (2001-09)
The Bonus Round kicks out all not-a-car-or-cash prizes (look ma, no variety!) and changes to the Bonus Wheel, the Mystery Wedges debut, "Happy Wheels" temporarily pays lip service to "Changing Keys", and many other things: 19-22, 23-26.

Seasons 27-30 (2009-13)
Far more mis-solves and obviously-bad letter calls than prior seasons, barely-responsive Culver City audiences, nonsensical puzzles (mostly Trip Puzzles), decisions by the staff that give off a general feeling of "We really don't care anymore.", massive(ly-unnecessary) post-production, a half-decent anniversary season, and other stuff: 27, 28, 29, 30.

Season 31 (2013-14)
September 16, 2013 - June 13, 2014

The logo again returns to the traditional style, although the Wheel inside the logo is removed and the words "WHEEL OF FORTUNE" are placed on a Wheel consisting of colored wedges (in orange, purple, green, red, yellow, and blue) with "OF" in the center and the dots on the sides (all inside the Wheel, of course). It somewhat resembles the long-gone overhead logo shot, which I loved, so kudos for reminding me of the 1974 logo; opposite-of-kudos for removing the Wheel in the center, though the "classic" traditional logo is still present on the generic set.

The Wheel is altered again: the purple $550 becomes $500, the Million-Dollar Wedge moves to the pink $500, and the Gift Tag moves from said wedge to the aforementioned purple $500.

Oh, and the Jackpot is retired because 1) it had an unusually-high season last year and 2) something had to be done after that $1,000,000 win last season and it definitely wasn't going to be "lower the top prize" – although in fairness, I think Friedman knows he can't touch said top prize because it'd make the show look cheap. Way too late for that, but hey...

Alternately, if the New York shows were any indication, Harry should actually get insurance for said Million this time. Not having that goes beyond Thunderdome inane and into "Dafuq are you thinking?!" territory.

Still, the Express debuts and it's a pretty good idea (and the complete opposite of "saving money") except for being in Round 3...which is still Trip pin' Puzzle territory. I've got the bad feeling said puzzles are going to get a lot worse (because hey, they weren't bad enough, right?) to keep the Express winning down...

Putting away the snark and negativity...long-time director Mark Corwin dies on July 25 due to cancer, and from what I gather it was a long battle. The 12 episodes recorded prior to this will air early in the season, as originally scheduled. On September 4, Wheel puts a tribute into that day's repeat, replacing the original ending of May 29; while the tribute is great, I have my suspicions about why it was put into that particular repeat...

$5K Every Day returns for a second year, now with a "Plus": if the winner is an active Sony Card holder, they'll get $10,000 instead. Isn't that also the opposite of "saving money"?

Jeopardy! director Kevin McCarthy is temporarily brought in for the Vegas tapings (see below), although I've heard nothing about the subsequent Culver City tapings...and by all indication, the show doesn't know who the new permanent director will be or even if there's going to be one.

If they're auditioning directors on-air, though, allow me to make a suggestion since I know somebody at the show has been looking at this Wiki since at least mid-2012: consider Rich DiPirro (as in "Let him direct about 4-5 taping weeks and keep him in mind if you want a permanent director."), but stay far away from Bart Eskander.

New/Returning Categories: N/A as of yet.

Retired Categories: N/A as of yet.

Road Shows: The Venetian and The Palazzo in Las Vegas, Nevada (September 16-27, October 21-25, December 30-January 3, February 10-21).

GSN Repeat Dates: N/A as of yet.

2013


 * September 17, 2013 (#S-5852/Season Premiere from The Venetian, Day 2: Paul/Luis/Melissa; montage including Rounds 1 and 3)

2014


 * (When 2014 comes around, something will be here. Until then...no.)