Pat Sajak Announces He's Retiring From 'Wheel Of Fortune,' Setting Off Wave Of Disparate Reactions

Pat Sajak is retiring from hosting the classic game show Wheel of Fortune after 41 seasons of playing host to some of America's not-so-brightest. Sajak announced the upcoming season of the show would be his last on Twitter yesterday evening.

Sajak, who's 76 years old, took the hosting gig of Wheel of Fortune in 1981 alongside Vanna White and became a staple of American households, occupying the second half of the 7 o'clock gameshow block behind Alex Trebek and Jeopardy! for years.

Through the years since, Sajak has gamely kept a composed and mildly jovial demeanor (even as some contestants gave him headaches) and earned several Daytime TV Emmys for his work as host.

In response to the news, many remembered Sajak fondly, placing him alongside Alex Trebek and Bob Barker on a proverbial "Mount Rushmore" of game show hosts.

While Sajak's run as Wheel host has been largely well-received, many on social media are more intimately familiar with his Twitter account.

Sajak, a registered Republican, has over 376,000 followers on the website and has drawn criticism from some in the past for right-leaning takes and jokes. In 2014, he faced backlash for tweeting, "I now believe global warming alarmists are unpatriotic racists knowingly misleading for their own ends. Good night."

Sajak's politics, which have never permeated Wheel of Fortune, led some to criticize him in light of his retirement.

At the moment, there is no news on who will succeed Pat Sajak on Wheel of Fortune, though Sajak has said he will stay on for three years as a consultant for the show after he gives up hosting duties.

At the very least, Wheel will hopefully learn from Jeopardy!'s mistakes and make a swift, non-controversial choice.