Wheel of Fortune timeline (syndicated)/Season 27

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A timeline for Season 27 of Wheel of Fortune, which aired in first-run from September 14, 2009 through June 11, 2010.

Season Changes

 * The opening graphic is now an illuminated logo atop a neon graphic of the Wheel, with a cityscape background and beams of light (like an illuminated billboard). The Final Spin graphic and Pat & Vanna talk backdrop reflect the opening, and the window for the Pat and Vanna post-game chat is bigger than before. Season27FinalSpin.png
 * The contestant railing is redesigned with LED lighting and Plexiglas.
 * The Prize Puzzle bug now says "PRIZE PUZZLE" again, in purple and yellow.
 * The Toss-Up graphic is changed to a purple wheel with a yellow center. TossUp.png
 * Some episodes begin using category strip wipes themed to the week.
 * If a contestant has friends and/or family in the audience on a Culver City episode, they are now shown from their seats, instead of at the railing in front of the audience. Road shows still have friends and family members stand at the front of the audience, although in both cases, they are no longer miked.
 * The practice of putting a gag title over Pat's name during full credit rolls appears to have begun this season.
 * The Wheel is altered:
 * The second Bankrupt is now present for the entire game, permanently replacing the purple $600 next to the top value. FreePlayWedge.png
 * Free Spin is retired, and Free Play is introduced. The latter is an electronic wedge (similar to the Big Money Wedge and the Jackpot Wedge) which replaces the yellow $400 near Lose A Turn.
 * The Jackpot wedge moves to Round 1. Nothing new is added to the Wheel in Round 2.
 * As a result of the above, Pat now makes a remark to Charlie before he begins the Jackpot plugs. On CBC airings, Charlie's response to Pat is edited out along with the Jackpot plugs, jumping directly from Pat's remark to Charlie's description of the Wheel Prize.
 * The Jackpot readout is now a blue rectangle.
 * One of the arches on the set now has a clear, vertical replica of part of the Wheel seen with the Million-Dollar Wedge's reverse.
 * Around this point, Before & After puzzles start putting the connecting word on its own line whenever possible, possibly to make the connection easier for contestants.

September 2009

 * Between September 14 and November 27, only cash is available in the Bonus Round.
 * On September 14, the SPIN ID copy is changed to "Tonight's winning SPIN ID number, [number], belongs to [first name and last initial] of [city, state]. You have 24 hours to log on to wheeloffortune.com to claim your [description of trip]." Also, a map of the U.S. zooms in on the town, and a "nameplate" graphic is shown with the contestant's name and hometown.
 * The weeks of September 14 and 21 are taped in Las Vegas: the 14th at the Venetian, and the 21st at the Palazzo. This is the first time since Season 16 that the season premiere is on the road, although in the September 14 post-game chat Pat and Vanna erroneously say that this is the first time the season ever opened on the road.
 * Nine of the first ten bonus puzzles are Thing(s). September 15's Occupation is the exception, and the last appearance of that category in the Bonus Round until May 2013.
 * On all of the Vegas episodes this season:
 * The frames of the puzzle board and Wheel are yellow and orange.
 * The yellow flipper is preset to Free Play at the start of the show.
 * No cars are available in the Bonus Round.
 * On September 16:
 * Anthony Crivello, who portrays the title character in the Las Vegas production of The Phantom of the Opera, makes an in-character guest appearance at the top of the show.
 * Nobody solves the $1,000 Toss-Up, CUTTING THE CARDS.
 * Bankrupt is hit five times in the Jackpot round.
 * Rounds 3 and 4 are very short answers (STAND-UP COMEDIAN and SWEET DREAMS respectively). This is likely due to the three events above causing the opening segment to run for an extremely long 9 minutes and 55 seconds.
 * On September 17:
 * The Prize is $5,000 cash, the copy for which includes a trailer for the Sony Pictures Animation film Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.
 * Contestant Dyana takes the Million-Dollar Wedge to the Bonus Round. She wins $40,000 and is only two envelopes away from the $1,000,000.
 * On September 18, the third-place and second-place contestants have $14,400 and $20,100, respectively.
 * During the week of September 14, all five winners come from the yellow position.
 * The week of September 21 is Palazzo Week.
 * On September 24, a contestant solves the bonus puzzle BRIEF PAUSE despite getting no help from her extra letters.
 * Starting September 28, the yellow flipper is preset to the top dollar value at the start of Rounds 1-4, barring the remaining Vegas episodes.
 * On September 30, Round 3's puzzle HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY is the longest known puzzle with no E; it is used again on November 4, 2013.

October 2009

 * On October 1:
 * The $2,000 Toss-Up is only the second known instance of Rock On! being used in a Toss-Up. Charlie misses Pat's prompt to say the category name, causing Pat to say it before Charlie repeats it.
 * The third-place contestant has $13,700.
 * On October 2, the SPIN ID reveal changes again. The hometown is no longer mentioned, and the U.S. map is changed to a smaller, less detailed one. When the state is mentioned, it "pops out" of the map, with the home viewer's name and the name of the state written on it.
 * On October 5, likely as a call-back to October 1, Pat introduces Round 2's Rock On! puzzle in a deadpan voice instead of letting Charlie announce it.
 * On October 8, contestant John hits the Mystery Wedge next to Lose A Turn three times in a row. It has a Bankrupt on the reverse (which is shown all three times), and he does not flip it.
 * October 12 is Wheel Around the World week. Each week's episode begins with a greeting from the host(s) of an international version: Spain on Monday, Brazil on Tuesday and Friday, Turkey on Wednesday, and Italy on Thursday.
 * Beginning on October 12, and barring April 12, 2010, the show begins using Before & After or Same Name in every episode, usually four of the former and one of the latter.
 * The week of October 12 is Wheel Around the World.
 * On October 12:
 * The $3,000 Toss-Up BUDAPEST HUNGARY is accidentally categorized as Place instead of On the Map.
 * The second-place contestant has $35,000, which may be the highest second-place total in the show's history. Interestingly, none of it comes from touching the Wheel directly: $5,000 comes from the second and third Toss-Ups, and the rest from the Speed-Up.
 * On October 15, contestant Jayne wins no cash, as she solves Round 1 for only the Gift Tag, and no other puzzles.
 * On October 16, contestant Karyn's letter choices (including the fourth consonant from a Wild Card) reveal the bonus puzzle CHOSEN FEW entirely. This is the first time since December 14, 2004 that a bonus puzzle is completely filled in, and the only time that a Wild Card has assisted in doing so.
 * The week of October 19, Welcome Aboard, has a sky-blue background on the set.
 * On October 19:
 * Rounds 1-3 are played entirely by the person who began them.
 * Neither Bankrupt nor Lose A Turn is hit.
 * On October 20 and 23, six rounds are played.
 * During the week of October 26 (Halloween Week), the Mystery Wedge chord is replaced with the sound of a wolf howling.
 * On October 27, Pat and Vanna show off some of the on-set gag tombstones during their chat. Most of them declare various trends and objects "dead", such as Free Spin, the Macarena, common courtesy, and Alex Trebek's mustache.
 * On October 28, the contestant area is not shown during the $2,000 Toss-Up.
 * On October 29:
 * Contestant Eric wins the Mystery Round with only the Mystery prize.
 * A "null" cycle is not edited out of the Speed-Up.

November 2009

 * The weeks of November 2-16 are taped at the Boston Convention & Exhibit Center.
 * On November 2, the $3,000 Toss-Up is a redundant answer of BABY DUCKLINGS.
 * On November 3, the bonus puzzle BUY NOW is the only six-letter bonus puzzle since HOT WAX on February 27. From this point onward, all bonus puzzles are seven letters or longer, with three exceptions in 2011, 2015, and 2018.
 * On November 6, a contestant tries to call L and E in the Bonus Round.
 * November 9 is College Week.
 * On November 9, two males play.
 * On November 10:
 * Two males play.
 * The $2,000 Toss-Up, BATMAN'S BATCAVE, is the third known instance of Fictional Place being used in a Toss-Up.
 * On November 12:
 * Two males play.
 * Round 1 is a very rare instance of a Proper Name puzzle that is not a person's name, sports team, or college name: THE INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE.
 * There is a $13,150 Jackpot win.
 * During the week of November 16 (Boston's Got Game), the intro segment starts with several sports-related images done in the style of a comic book. Afterward, the "Boston's Got Game" logo appears on a graphic of a Jumbotron, followed by various sports-related photos. Charlie's intro is "And now, from Boston, one of America's great sports towns, here are the stars of our game, Pat Sajak and Vanna White!"
 * On November 16:
 * Two males play.
 * I'D LIKE TO SPIN is the $2,000 Toss-Up.
 * On November 17:
 * Two males play.
 * The $2,000 Toss-Up TONIGHT IS THE NIGHT is incorrectly categorized as Rhyme Time instead of Phrase.
 * The week of November 23 is America's Game.
 * On November 25, Bankrupt is hit eight times.
 * On November 27:
 * There is a $7,400 Jackpot win.
 * In the last segment, a letter from 2006 winner Linda Buford is shown.
 * The week of November 23 has four Landmark puzzles: the $1,000 Toss-Up on the 23rd and 26th, Round 1 on the 24th, and the $2,000 Toss-Up on the 27th. As a result, the category has appeared five times in November 2009 alone, an abnormally high usage rate for that category.
 * The week of November 30 is Pet Lovers' Week. During this week, the category wipe is a barking dog running across the screen, and said dog stays on the category strip throughout.
 * On November 30:MDW_on_Red_$800.png
 * The Million-Dollar Wedge is accidentally placed on the red $800. This ends up affecting the game twice: contestant Todd hits the Bankrupt on the wedge's right edge in Round 1, and contestant Jerissa hits one side of the orange $800 in Round 2.
 * Also in Round 2, Jerissa spins $3,500 four times in a row, meaning that the spin mentioned above would have caused her to lose $27,600 to Bankrupt had the Million-Dollar Wedge been in the correct spot.
 * No wrong letters are called.
 * Rounds 2, 3, and 4 (which ends as a Speed-Up) are played entirely by the person who began them; the Bankrupt mentioned above is the only lost turn of the game.
 * Cars are once again available in the Bonus Round. However, they are no longer available to Wheel Watchers Club members. Weekend repeats of Season 26 episodes with car wins are edited to fade out just before the SPIN ID drawing before fading back in to the post-game chat.

December 2009

 * On December 1, there is a $7,000 Jackpot win by a contestant who solves SHAGGY & SCOOBY-DOO with only the S's revealed.
 * On December 2:
 * Contestant Alex loses $5,700, the Gift Tag, Wild Card, and Million-Dollar Wedge to Bankrupt.
 * Contestant Marisa leaves with only the Prize Puzzle package and no other cash or prizes.
 * No wrong letters are called, although a repeated E is bought in Round 3.
 * On December 3, a car is won for the first time since their reintroduction: specifically, a $23,275 Honda Element, also a now-rare instance of a bonus prize less than $25,000.
 * On December 4, the second-place contestant has $20,000.
 * On December 7, Round 1 is a Before & After of THE CALL OF THE WILD CARD.
 * On December 8:
 * Contestant Cheron mentions that her father was on the show in 1976.
 * The Gift Tag is a $1,000 Sony Reader package represented by an actual Sony Reader in a clear box.
 * Round 2 (a Same Name of LOYAL & CEILING FAN) starts with five consecutive lost turns with the latter three edited out, evidenced by the third spin passing the Sony Reader in the wide shot only to land on it.
 * On December 11, the Mystery Wedge next to the Million-Dollar Wedge is hit three times, including two turns by the same contestant (Tom), who doesn't flip it over but later hits Bankrupt. The second contestant to hit it, Brooke, opts to flip it and finds a Bankrupt.
 * December 14 is Heroes Week, featuring members of the Armed Forces, and the Sears Holiday Sweepstakes. During this week:
 * The Wheel prize this week is a $5,000 Sears shopping spree.
 * Each game has an Around the House or In the Kitchen puzzle in which Pat informs the contestants that the puzzle answer is something that might be purchased at Sears.
 * There is a Before & After puzzle every day, but no Same Name.
 * On December 16:
 * The Round 3 puzzle COMBINATION MICROWAVE/CONVECTION OVEN is the third of only three known uses of a slash.
 * The second-place contestant has $21,000.
 * On December 17:
 * There is an $8,700 Jackpot win.
 * All three contestants give one wrong answer each: Steve on the $1,000 Toss-Up, Frances in Round 2, and Chris in Round 3.
 * Bankrupt is hit four times in Round 2.
 * Steve solves the Speed-Up puzzle LITTLE ROCK ARKANSAS with only the T's revealed.
 * During the week of December 21:
 * The category strips are dark red with gift boxes on the left side. During main-game rounds, the Wheel of Fortune bug is green with a Santa cap over the W.
 * No cars are available in the Bonus Round, perhaps because the week is taped out of order. They return on the 28th.
 * On December 23, contestant Mitch hits $5,000 three times in Round 4.
 * On December 24, the Wheel Prize is $5,200 credit toward electronic coupons on GetYowza.com.
 * On December 29, the Round 3 puzzle THE NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD PUZZLE is the first instance of a What Are You Doing? puzzle not using an "-ING" suffix.
 * On December 30, Pat begins to prompt contestant Janelle to use the Wild Card on $900 in Round 4, but the Final Spin bells cut him off.
 * On December 31, twice in Round 3, Pat does not prompt contestant Courtland to use his Wild Card on $3,500. He later loses it and $24,350 to Bankrupt.

January 2010

 * On January 1, the top winner has $12,345.
 * The week of January 4 is America's Game.
 * On January 4:
 * Due to being the sixth episode from Heroes Week, three males play.
 * The contestants make four incorrect guesses on the puzzle REGIS PHILBIN & KELLY RIPA by mispronouncing one or both names, the fourth of which happens with the entire puzzle revealed. This is the first known time since April 2004 that a fully-revealed puzzle has been incorrectly solved.
 * On January 5, six rounds are played.
 * On January 7, the Speed-Up puzzle THE HOST WITH THE MOST is solved with only the T's showing.
 * On January 8, the Speed-Up puzzle CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA is also solved with only the T's showing.
 * On January 11:
 * There is a $7,350 Jackpot win.
 * In the last segment, a clip is shown from the December 10, 2009 episode of Jeopardy!, on which a contestant said that watching Wheel of Fortune helped him learn the alphabet as a child. This is followed by Pat announcing that he will appear on the Jeopardy! $1,000,000 Celebrity Invitational on January 21.
 * On January 14:
 * Rounds 1, 4, and 5 (which ends as a Speed-Up) are played entirely by the person who began them.
 * There is a very rare instance of RSTLNE revealing more than half of the bonus puzzle (THE PLOT THICKENS).
 * On January 15, a contestant (who does not solve her bonus puzzle) misses the $1,000,000 by only one envelope.
 * Between January 13 and 15, three contestants in a row take the Wild Card to the Bonus Round.
 * January 18 is Wheel Watchers Club Week. During this week, the intro includes clips of Wheel Watchers Club members who have won.
 * On January 25, six rounds are played.
 * On January 26, a cycle of three lost turns is edited out of Round 1. Although the round's puzzle MICHAEL DOUGLAS & CATHERINE ZETA-JONES contains all five vowels, it is still not known if the cycle was truly "null", as there is unusually no shot of contestant Sacha or her scoreboard after she hits Bankrupt (she supposedly had $1,900 at the time), the first aired spin after the cycle. The edit is referenced twice: first by the Jackpot not being reset, jumping from $6,450 to $6,750, then by Pat saying "There you go" when contestant Willy hits $2,500 despite being her first aired turn of the game.
 * On January 28, for the fourth of only four known times, a Prize Puzzle offers something other than a trip. Pat foreshadows this before Round 1 by saying "They're generally trips — they have been lately — but we're kind of adding some different things to the mix, so they won't necessarily be a trip." The answer WHAT WILL THEY THINK OF NEXT? offers a $5,000 HomeGoods shopping spree.
 * On January 29, six rounds are played.

February 2010

 * February 1 is NYC Salute Week. During this week, various people associated with New York City give greetings: Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa on February 1, Michael Bloomberg on February 2, Sam Champion on February 3, and Regis again on February 4.
 * On February 1, the bonus puzzle QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE is only the second known one under three-and-a-vowel rules to have at least one each of R, S, T, L, N, and E.
 * On February 5:
 * The Wheel Prize includes tickets to Rock of Ages.
 * Pat prompts contestant Katie to use the Wild Card on $900 in Round 3, which she does. This is the first known instance since October 2008 of it being used on a value other than the top dollar.
 * The week of February 8 is Sweethearts Week, taped at the Venetian in Las Vegas. During this week, the board's border is pink and purple.
 * On February 8:
 * The intro is edited to include a shot of Blue Man Group waving to Pat and Vanna from the contestant area.
 * The audience applauds briefly in the middle of the $1,000 Toss-Up.
 * There is a $7,550 Jackpot win.
 * One contestant on the red team gives a wrong answer to the $3,000 Toss-Up while their teammate gives the right answer; Pat ends up ruling them incorrect. This does not affect the outcome, as the red team wins regardless.
 * On February 11, there is an $8,100 Jackpot win.
 * The week of February 15 is taped at the Palazzo in Las Vegas.
 * On February 16, contestant Kerri's letter choices reveal the bonus puzzle VERY HUSH-HUSH completely. Unusually, the chyron disappears as soon as Vanna touches the last H, but before the timer starts.
 * On February 19, the Mystery Round puzzle reveal is preceded by a clip of Pat saying "We thought you should know that tonight's Wheel of Fortune show was taped prior to all the recent fun on late-night TV. Who knew?" over a blurred freeze-frame of the puzzle board. This is done due to the answer being THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH CONAN O'BRIEN, which is canceled by the time this episode airs.
 * Beginning February 22, Feeding America for Hunger Relief receives a $2,500 donation from Maxwell House for each Bonus Round win (counting reruns). The donations are eventually capped at $200,000, but Feeding America plugs continue to air for a short time after the amount is reached. Episodes now feature a Maxwell House plug before the Bonus Round, and a Maxwell House bug in the upper left-hand corner, both of which are also edited into reruns.
 * On February 24, Pat almost forgets to interview the red contestant.

March 2010

 * The week of March 1 is America's Game.
 * On March 5:
 * For the second time, a What Are You Doing? puzzle does not contain an "-ING" suffix: (THE TEXAS TWO-STEP, in Round 4).
 * Six rounds are played.
 * On March 8, Pat accidentally rules a contestant's answer incorrect on the $1,000 Toss-Up (WHAT'S COOKING?), but is quickly corrected from offstage.
 * On March 15, there is a $100,000 loss; the puzzle, PUNCH BOWL, previously resulted in a $100,000 loss on October 7, 2002. Also, against 99.6% odds, the $100,000 is hit for the first time this season.
 * On March 17, the third-place and second-place contestants have $13,450 and $27,000, respectively.
 * On March 18:
 * Contestant Barry's nametag falls off and lands under the Wheel during his first spin. It is never retrieved.
 * For the third time, a What Are You Doing? puzzle does not contain an "-ING" suffix: PULL-UPS PUSH-UPS SIT-UPS AND CRUNCHES in Round 3. This and the previous two instances could logically have been categorized as Fun & Games to avoid this oddity, although March 5 also had that category as the $3,000 Toss-Up.
 * There is a $100,000 win.
 * March 22 is Family Week, promoting Beaches Family Resorts. During this week:
 * All Wheel Prizes and Prize Puzzles are trips to various Beaches resorts, all worth $15,000, the highest value for a Prize Puzzle trip.
 * There is a Before & After puzzle every day, but no Same Name.
 * On March 22, the winning contestants exceed $100,000 without hitting that amount in the Bonus Round. Following a $45,000 win there, they leave with $100,850.
 * On March 23, there is a $100,000 win, resulting in the third instance of that amount being won twice in the same month. Against precedent, the winner does not write the contestant blog.
 * On March 24:
 * The third-place team has $12,000.
 * The winning contestants manage to do so without any prizes, making this the first known time where a winner of a prize worth $15,000 or more does not win the game.
 * On March 25, after a family pair buys the I's in the Round 1 puzzle PUBLISHING AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY, the "no more vowels" graphic appears despite the U's having not yet been revealed.
 * On March 23 and 26, both trips are won by the same team. $30,000 is likely the highest total of non-cash prizes won in the maingame.
 * March 29 is Hawaii Week, taped in Culver City. The category strip features a dashboard hula dancer throughout.
 * On March 29:
 * Two males play.
 * In Round 2, contestant Neepa accidentally pulls Free Play off the Wheel after landing on it, resulting in a stopdown. This incident is edited out.

April 2010

 * On April 1, as an April Fool's Day gag, the show does 10 things that are "wrong". Pat and Vanna announce this from backstage before the opening. Home viewers may print out a form to see if they can find all 10 things that are "wrong", and all 10 are revealed at the end of the April 2 episode. They are:
 * 1) Pat walks out on the right and Vanna on the left.
 * 2) Pat, Vanna, and Charlie stand at the contestant area when it is shown during the intro. (The Wheel layout in this shot is from Round 4.)
 * 3) Vanna stands on the left side of the puzzle board at the start of the Jackpot Round.
 * 4) Both Bankrupt wedges say "Bankrut", the Polish translation of the word. The only Bankrupts hit during the game are those of the Mystery Wedge and Million-Dollar Wedge, so it is not known if the scoreboards would have changed accordingly had either "Bankrut" wedge been hit.
 * 5) Pat wears a stud earring in Round 2.
 * 6) Charlie stands in Vanna's place at the start of the Mystery Round.
 * 7) A clip from September 4, 1995 (erroneously identified as 1992) appears during the Final Spin.
 * 8) Pat changes suits before the Bonus Round.
 * 9) Pat (in his original suit) and Vanna are seen sitting behind the winning contestant's family members at the start of the Bonus Round.
 * 10) Pat and Vanna wear nametags at the end.
 * 11) Also, the montage of Hawaii-themed clips at the beginning includes two seconds of rodeo footage, but this is ignored.


 * On April 2, the $1,000 Toss-Up (HAWAII FIVE-O) is the only appearance of Classic TV between May 6, 2008 and January 9, 2013.
 * On April 5, the bonus puzzle BUZZING WITH EXCITEMENT is the third-longest known bonus puzzle to be used on the show, and the longest under three-and-a-vowel rules, at 21 letters.
 * On April 7, Pat and Vanna eat a replica of the Wild Card during their chat.
 * On April 8:
 * There is a $10,300 Jackpot win.
 * The bonus puzzle HONEYMOON PERIOD is categorized as Thing instead of Event.
 * On April 9, the bonus puzzle WORKBENCH is categorized as Thing. The last two times it was used (December 3, 2002 and May 5, 2005), it was categorized as Around the House.
 * On April 12, for the first time since October 9, 2009, neither Before & After nor Same Name is used. In addition, Rounds 3 and 4 are Phrase, suggesting that Round 3 may have originally used one of those categories, but was thrown out and replaced. The Round 3 puzzle, THAT'S MY STORY AND I'M STICKING TO IT, could also have been categorized as Song Lyrics to avoid the duplicate category.
 * The week of April 15 is America's Game.
 * On April 15:
 * The Million-Dollar Wedge is picked up on the first turn of the game, then lost to Bankrupt immediately after.
 * No vowels are bought in Round 1.
 * Six rounds are played.
 * On April 20:
 * Contestant Brett loses $30,600 to Bankrupt in Round 3, which may be a record concerning spendable cash.
 * A total of $46,900 ($45,900 and the Gift Tag) is lost to Bankrupt, very likely a record until January 2015.
 * On April 21:
 * Bankrupt is hit nine times.
 * The bonus puzzle has a redundant A at the beginning (A FOREIGN LANGUAGE), something which almost never happened after A GULF in September 2005.
 * On April 21 and 22, two contestants in a row leave with $52,550 after winning $35,000 in the Bonus Round.
 * April 26 is World Capitals Week. All week long, the first Toss-Up is the name of a world capital.
 * On April 26, the bonus puzzle is the grammatically-incorrect WAIT A WHILE, when it should have been WAIT AWHILE.
 * On April 29:
 * Bankrupt is hit four times in the Jackpot round.
 * The winning contestant leaves with only $7,907, likely the lowest winning total between the start of Season 23 (when Prize Puzzles began occurring daily) and January 2017.
 * On April 30:
 * A dramatic organ riff sounds instead of the normal Mystery Wedge sound when contestant Austinae lands on one, to which Pat comments "I see we broke into the record library there."
 * Austinae loses the $10,000 Mystery Wedge and the Gift Tag (but no spendable cash) to Bankrupt immediately after picking up both in succession.
 * In Round 3, Pat prompts contestant Alison to use her Wild Card on $3,500; she declines, solves the puzzle, and ends up taking the Wild Card to the Bonus Round, which she solves.

May 2010

 * May 3 begins the Thanks a Million Sweepstakes, which lasts the entire month. A SPIN ID is drawn at the top of each show and another before the Mystery round. Any viewer who confirms that his or her SPIN ID was drawn receives a chance at winning $25,000.
 * The week of May 3 is a salute to Chicago, taped in Culver City. On the sixth show of this taping session (which had aired on April 16), there are clips in Chicago promoting National Train Day on May 8, although it is not mentioned during the rest of the week.
 * On May 3, the $1,000 Toss-Up THE WINDY CITY is solved with only the first Y showing.
 * On May 4, the $1,000 Toss-Up NAVY PIER is also solved with only the Y showing.
 * On May 6:
 * There is a $6,800 Jackpot win.
 * Contestant Jen risks the Million-Dollar Wedge on the Mystery Wedge, finding $10,000 on the reverse; however, she loses both to Bankrupt later in the round.
 * During the week of May 10 (State Fair), the category wipe is pigs running across the screen.
 * On May 10, during the closing segment, Pat and Vanna promote the Wheel of Fortune Hall of Fame which had just opened at Stage 11.
 * May 17 is Dads & Grads Week.
 * All five Bonus Rounds are lost on the week of May 17, part of a six-day losing streak. This is also the only all-loss week this season.
 * May 24 is Great Northwest week.
 * On May 24, Round 4 is only the third known instance of Occupations.
 * On May 25, a contestant pronounces the H in "heir" when solving the Round 4 puzzle HEIR TO THE THRONE. Against precedent, the answer is accepted.
 * On May 26, another mispronunciation is accepted as a correct answer: "Crusoe" as "Caruso" when solving AND HERE'S TO YOU MRS. ROBINSON CRUSOE in Round 3.
 * On May 28:
 * There is a $10,600 Jackpot win.
 * The winning contestant (who fails to solve the bonus puzzle) misses the $100,000 by only one envelope.
 * On May 31, all three contestants ring in but do not solve the $1,000 Toss-Up, TREASURE MAP.

June 2010

 * On June 2, contestant Eric wins by $50.
 * The week of June 7 is America's Game.
 * The week of June 7 has a Before & After puzzle each day, and no Same Name puzzles.
 * On June 7, Vanna nearly forgets to touch an R in the Speed-Up round.
 * On June 8:
 * The Round 3 puzzle AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT is inexplicably categorized as Phrase instead of the more logical Quotation.
 * Contestant Marisa leaves with $62,141 despite failing to solve the bonus puzzle for $45,000.
 * On June 11, for the second time this season, the winning contestant (who fails to solve the bonus puzzle) misses the $100,000 by only one envelope.