Report of Wheel of Fortune's choice of new host

[Gus]

"Ryan Seacrest Named New Host of ‘Wheel of Fortune’" - New York Times

I'm truly humbled to be stepping into the footsteps of the legendary Pat Sajak. I can say, along with the rest of America, that it's been a privilege and pure joy to watch Pat and Vanna our television screens for an unprecedented 40 years, making us smile every night and feel right at home with them. Pat, I love the way you've always celebrated the contestants and made viewers at home feel at ease. I look forward to learning everything I can from you duing this transition.

Many people probably don't know this but one of my first jobs was hosting a little game show called "Click" for Merv Griffin 25 years ago so this is truly a full circle moment for me and I'm grateful to Sony for the opportunity.

I can't wait to continue the tradition of spinning the whee and working alongside the great Vanna White.

— @RyanSeacrest on Twitter

[Jimmy Owen]

Not a surprise

[Hastin]

The extremely safe option whose primary purpose is a face will look great and relatable on all those new IGT Wheel of Fortune slot machines.

[BrandonFG]

That was quick, but great move IMO. My guess is Ryan was their man the moment Pat announced his retirement, if not long before that, and they just needed to iron out availability.

[tvmitch]

That was quick, but great move IMO. My guess is Ryan was their man the moment Pat announced his retirement, if not long before that, and they just needed to iron out availability.

Reckless speculation that this was in the works even before that - it could have been part of the discussion prior to February's announcement that he was leaving "Live."

[Stackertosh]

I am not surprised he's a safe choice he's a big name. He hosted live with Kelly Ripa for a few years so it makes perfect sense to move him over.

[TimK2003]

I heard he was "guest  hosting" with Ripa this morning on Live...  is that where he first dropped the news?

[clemon79]

Given some of the options they could have gone with, this is a pretty insanely good choice.

[Joe Mello]

I'll be the mark who appreciates the Click reference.

Been wondering what was "The Role" for Seacrest before Idol and I guess it was just holding down his radio gig rather than any of his TV stuff.

/Thank you Wikipedia for reminding me of Reality Check and Radical Outdoor Challenge

[Gus]

I heard he was "guest  hosting" with Ripa this morning on Live...  is that where he first dropped the news?

The Lives he's on are reruns and/or prerecorded. Based on Twitter mentions, it looks like John Koblin at the NYT broke the news first; Ryan posted on his socials about 10 minutes later and Wheel on theirs a few minutes after that.

Also I love seeing all the people complaining that he's bland and overexposed, as if bland and overexposed emcees haven't been the MO of the medium since its inception.

[SamPrainito]

Huh.  Not surprising, but also a solid choice. Quick announcement too.  Must have been in the works for awhile.

Interesting he mentioned Vanna.  So, she’s staying put?  I thought she’d leave with Pat.

[ClockGameJohn]

While not my top choice, Sony got this one right by not undergoing loads of tryouts, wetting everyone's whistle, and then getting stuck having to make a politically correct decision.

[BillCullen1]

The other candidates didn't get a chance to update their resumes. But Ryan was the best choice for the job. He started out on a Merv Griffin show (Click) and now he may retire hosting one. I was rooting for an underdog like Tom Bergeron, but good for Ryan. At least Whoopi has her job on The View to fall back on. 

[Kevin Prather]

Interesting he mentioned Vanna.  So, she’s staying put?  I thought she’d leave with Pat.

If the clickbait articles are to be believed (which they're probably not), Vanna's taking this opportunity to demand a long-overdue pay raise.

[BrandonFG]

Apparently I thought Ryan would've been a good host a few years ago, albeit in an alternate universe where Brian Dunkleman become the main host of American Idol...