‘Wheel of Fortune’: Ryan Seacrest Calls Out Contestant After Mistake Has Viewers Screaming
He guessed what? A Wheel of Fortune contestant was called out by host Ryan Seacrest after guessing a letter that didn’t make sense in the puzzle. The contestant got to explain himself after fans were confused.
Jennie Flynn, from Oakton, Virginia, solved the first toss-up on March 30. She has been a kindergarten teacher for 16 years at Stenwood Elementary, where she went as a kid.
Flynn played against Sandra Brown, from Chicago, and Nate Jobe, from New York City. Flynn put $3,000 in her bank when she solved the second toss-up.
She collected the One Million Dollar Wedge on the first spin after guessing a “T.” With only three letters left in the puzzle, Flynn incorrectly guessed an “L,” so the turn moved to Brown, a minister, retired nurse, and breast cancer survivor, who swooped in. She solved “Getting Brushed And Groomed” for $1,850.
During the “Crossword” puzzle, in the category “___ Way,” Jobe was called out for not guessing a simple word. The contestant, a former competitive swimmer who raced against Michael Phelps, later spoke out on Reddit about the mistake.
When there was only one letter left in the puzzle, he guessed a “V” in “MIL_Y.” “I don’t know,” he said. The turn moved to Flynn, who solved “My, Milky, Long, No, Wrong” for $1,000, giving her $4,000.
“I’m not saying I heard screaming at home while you’re watching on the TV, but maybe a little bit there,” Ryan Seacrest said.
“The vowel got me,” Jobe explained.
“It’s tough sometimes to get there. That’s alright,” Seacrest replied. “Sometimes you just can’t get past it.”
Fans bashed the contestant for the mistake. “MILVY WAY 🙄 come on lol,” a Reddit user wrote.
“We were screaming at the TV,” replied another.
Jobe replied, explaining, “I usually solve puzzles very quickly. AND I’m big into amateur astronomy, owning several telescopes that I use to take pictures of literally the Milky Way. I didn’t know it until they said it. My mind was just in another line of thought. I was like ‘omg duh’ when it filled in. I can imagine that’s compounded 10x under the lights in front of everyone.”
Flynn solved the prize puzzle quickly — “Delicious Greek Salad” — and won a trip to Greece. She had a total of $23,898.
Jobe got on the board when he solved one of the three Triple Toss-ups. Flynn and Brown solved the other two.
Flynn solved the final puzzle — “Grilled to Perfection” — for $6,400. This gave her a final total of $32,298.
Jobe went home with $2,000. Brown left with $3,850.
Flynn chose “Phrase” for her Bonus Round category. She brought her partner, Craig, and her friend, Randy, with her.
The game show contestant was given “R,S,T,L,N, and E.” Flynn rounded out her puzzle with “C,D,M, and O.”
Her puzzle then looked like “C_EC_ _O_R _O_CEM_ _L.” Flynn guessed “Check Your Voicemail” and won an additional $50,000. This gave her a total of $82,298.
Wheel of Fortune, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock
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