WHEEL OF FORTUNE PUTS A NEW SPIN ON THE FREE SPIN
Season 27 Premieres on September 14 With Two Weeks of Shows
Taped at The Venetian and The Palazzo in Las Vegas
Culver City, CA (September 9, 2009) - As America's #1 game show enters its 27th season in syndication on September 14, Wheel of Fortune is saying good-bye to "Free Spin," and introducing a new wedge on the wheel, "Free Play."
"Free Play" will be on the wheel during the first three rounds of play and can be landed on repeatedly, and by all 3 contestants, without losing its value. The wedge gives the contestant immunity on his or her first action. If he or she calls a letter that is not in the puzzle, calls a letter that has already been called or incorrectly tries to solve the puzzle, he or she will not lose a turn. It also allows contestants to call a vowel for free whether or not they have the $250 necessary. Unlike "Free Spin", which had no value when landed on, each correct consonant called during a "Free Play" is worth $500.
Wheel of Fortune will kick off Season 27 with two weeks of shows which were taped in July at The Venetian and The Palazzo in Las Vegas. In February 2010, two more weeks of shows from Las Vegas will air. This season, Wheel of Fortune will also travel to Boston for the first time since 1993 and tape three weeks of shows themed "Historic Boston," "College Week" and "Boston's Got Game," to air during November sweeps.
With last year's introduction of the $1 Million Bonus Wedge, Wheel of Fortune gave away a record $10.1 million in cash and prizes during the 2008/2009 season.
Wheel of Fortune has been the #1 syndicated series since its inception and has earned 5 Emmy Awards. With more than 40 million viewers per week, syndication's most successful series continues to attract a larger audience than many primetime television shows.
Wheel of Fortune is produced in High Definition by Sony Pictures Television, a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company. It is distributed domestically by CBS Television Distribution and internationally by CBS Studios International, both units of CBS Corp.
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