View source for Wheel of Fortune (1952 game show)

{{short description|Former American game show}}
{{for-multi|the unrelated American game show of the same name that debuted in 1975|Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|other uses|Wheel of Fortune (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Infobox television
| image         =
| caption       =
| genre         = [[Game show]]
| runtime       = {{Plainlist|
* 22–24 minutes (daytime)
* 24–25 minutes (nighttime)
}}
| creator       = Peter Arnell
| company       = Peter Arnell Productions
| presenter     = Todd Russell
| narrated      = Hal Simms
| country       = United States
| network       = [[CBS]]
| language      = English
| first_aired   = {{Start date|1952|10|03}}
| last_aired    = {{End date|1953|12|25}}
| first_aired2  = {{Start date|1953|07|07}}
| last_aired2   = {{End date|1953|09|15}}
| num_episodes  =
}}
'''''Wheel of Fortune''''' was an American [[game show]] which ran from 1952 to 1953 on [[CBS]] in both daytime (October 3, 1952&nbsp;– December 25, 1953) and nighttime (July 7&nbsp;– September 15, 1953). It was presented by Todd Russell and narrated by Hal Sims.
Another [[Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|American game show also titled ''Wheel of Fortune'']], that was produced by [[Merv Griffin]] and which debuted in 1975, had no connection to the original 1952 game show, although both followed a similar type of format, featuring cash and prizes that could be won by contestants, and both had the same respective logo visible in the center of the wheel.
==Gameplay==
The series involved rewarding everyday people who had done good deeds in their life by having their stories told on national TV, then allowing them to spin a carnival-style prize wheel onstage and being awarded that prize. Occasionally, the lucky spin gave the good Samaritan a chance to win up to $1,000 by answering trivia questions.
==Theme==
The show's theme was [[Kay Starr]]'s version of the song "[[Wheel of Fortune (1951 song)|Wheel of Fortune]]", which was released in the first two months of 1952 and beginning on February 8 ran 22 weeks on [[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'s best-seller chart, with a nine-week stretch (March 14 to May 9) at #1.
Her version shared the charts with two other renditions during the same period (Bobby Wayne with [[Joe Reisman]]'s orchestra; the second [[Eddie Wilcox]] & [[Sunny Gale]]), however the latter two were not as popular. The Wayne/Reisman version appeared from February 15 to April 18 (peaking at #13), while the Wilcox/Gale rendition appeared from February 1 to March 7 (peaking at #14).
==Broadcast history==
''Wheel'' debuted on October 3, 1952, at 10:00 AM Eastern (9:00 Central), facing ''Breakfast Party'' on [[NBC]] and local programming on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]. In an odd move, the show debuted on a Friday, where the series aired for a full hour until 11:00 AM (10:00 Central) each week; the second half-hour competed against local shows.
On November 24, ''Breakfast'' was replaced by the children's program ''[[Ding Dong School]]''. On July 6, the Peacock debuted the Henry Babbitt-hosted game ''[[Glamour Girl (TV series)|Glamour Girl]]'' at 10:30, which only competed with the hour-long game on Fridays.
The show's popularity spawned a nighttime version on July 7, 1953, at 8:30 PM, but quickly folded on September 15 against ''[[Break the Bank (1948 game show)|Break the Bank]]'' on NBC and local programs elsewhere.
The daytime version fared little better, having been worn down by ''Glamour'' and ''Ding Dong'' despite the former changing hosts on October 8 from Babbitt to Jack McCoy. ''Wheel'' bowed on November 6, 1953, with ''Glamour'' following suit on January 8, 1954; ''Ding Dong'' remained until the end of 1956.
==Australian version==
Despite its short run in America, the show found success in Australia on radio and television from 1959–62.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://members.iinet.net.au/~powney/gameshow/wof.htm|title=Wheel Of Fortune (AUS) - Australian Game Show Home Page|work=iinet.net.au|accessdate=21 August 2015|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304112956/http://members.iinet.net.au/~powney/gameshow/wof.htm|archivedate=4 March 2016}}</ref> Originally hosted by series producer [[Reg Grundy]], he was replaced by Walter Elliott in 1962.
A similar carnival-style wheel was used in the original 1973 ''[[Wheel of Fortune (American game show)|Wheel]]'' pilot (''Shopper's Bazaar''), although that wheel was operated by a motor. A further (and far more explicit) connection arrived in 1981, when Grundy debuted his [[Wheel of Fortune (Australian game show)|adaptation]] of Griffin's ''Wheel'' which (like its American counterpart) also had a very long and successful run on the [[Seven Network]] until 2006.
A short-lived remake and revival called ''[[Wheel of Fortune (Australian game show)|Million Dollar Wheel of Fortune]]'' hosted by [[Tim Campbell (actor)|Tim Campbell]] and Kelly Landry ran on the [[Nine Network]] for a brief period in 2008. The ''Million Dollar Wedge'' concept has been carried over to the original American version since its 26th season debut in the same year.
==Episode status==
The American series is believed to be [[Lost television broadcast#Wiping|destroyed]] as per network practices of the era. A photo of Russell and the wheel was used in the A&E Biography ''TV Game Shows''.
The Australian version likely suffered the same fate, although clips of an episode were used in the 2006 special ''50 Years: 50 Stars''.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tQZnHbj2GY Clip of Grundy's ''Wheel of Fortune''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730154133/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tQZnHbj2GY |date=2016-07-30 }}</ref> An episode (missing the opening and closing titles) is held by [[National Film and Sound Archive]] as a kinescope recording.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=http://colsearch.nfsa.gov.au/nfsa/search/display/display.w3p;adv=;group=;groupequals=;holdingType=;page=2;parentid=;query=wheel%20of%20fortune%20Media:%22TELEVISION%22;querytype=;rec=6;resCount=10|title=NFSA - Title Details|website=colsearch.nfsa.gov.au|language=en-US|access-date=2018-02-10}}</ref> The survival rate of Australian game shows of the 1950s and 1960s is highly erratic: although around 13 episodes exist of the short-lived 1957 series ''[[Give it a Go]]'', no recordings exist of the popular Melbourne version of ''Tell the Truth''.<ref name=":0" />
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* {{IMDb title|tt0044308}} American version
* {{IMDb title|tt3336916}} Australian version
[[Category:1952 American television series debuts]]
[[Category:1953 American television series endings]]
[[Category:1959 Australian television series debuts]]
[[Category:1962 Australian television series endings]]
[[Category:1950s American game shows]]
[[Category:1950s Australian game shows]]
[[Category:1960s Australian game shows]]
[[Category:Black-and-white American television shows]]
[[Category:Black-and-white Australian television shows]]
[[Category:CBS game shows]]
[[Category:American English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Nine Network original programming]]