Wheel of Fortune to Celebrate International Versions

“Wheel Around the World” week, which will kick off on April 17, is set to showcase five international versions of the classic game show Wheel of Fortune.

This season, Wheel of Fortune worked with Spain’s La Ruleta De La Suerte, Slovakia’s Koleso Stastia, Germany’s Glucksrad, the Netherlands’ Rad Van Fortuin and Romania’s Roata Norocului to secure video messages from the local hosts and to introduce Pat Sajak, Vanna White and the American viewing audience to these versions of the show. Each treatment features a wheel, puzzleboard and puzzles in the local language, with the individual productions bringing a unique cultural spin to the format.

“Everyone at Wheel of Fortune thoroughly enjoys seeing our format adapted for other cultures and we thought our viewers would enjoy it too,” said Harry Friedman, executive producer on the show. “The response has been tremendous, so we’ve made ‘Wheel Around the World’ week an annual event.”

“Wheel of Fortune licensees enjoy participating in ‘Wheel Around the World’ as it brings them much deserved attention and introduces their show to the U.S. audience,” said Paul Gilbert, the senior VP of international formats at CBS Studios International, which distributes Wheel of Fortune. “Additionally, the U.S. contestants have the opportunity to win trips to the licensees’ countries.”