The "If Only I Could Have Had A Chance To Beat The Wheel! Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading about a fellow named JP Welliver (that has to be a made-up name!") who lives in nearby Lititz, Pennsylvania.  I'm sure you have never heard his name unless you watch "Wheel of Fortune" on your TV.  Seems that when JP had his final audition for "Wheel of Fortune" in April 2023, he wondered why he had to wait an entire year before taping with the show.  Well, the wait was due to producers and casting directors wanting to keep him for one of the shows last tapings with host Pat Sajak as the MC.  Welliver, 36, of Lititz, PA, appeared on "Wheel of Fortune" not long ago, competing against fellow contestants Nonie Lewis and Allison Willis.  The episode aired at 7:00 P.M. on CBS and was one of the last episodes Sajak filmed with the show; Sajak's final episode aired Friday,  June 7.  Welliver finished in second place with a final score of $14,000, falling just $400 short of winning contestant Willis.  

JP Welliver on Wheel of Fortune

Welliver answered every single toss-up puzzle, rapid-fire rounds where contestants buzz in to answer as more letters are shown on the screen.  But, when it came to spinning the wheel, Welliver didn't have as much luck.  He said, "I played a (darn) good game.  I do well under pressure.  If I could have just gotten $400 more dollars."  But, Welliver still felt like a winner on set.  "The puzzle board, the wheel, .... is just as beautiful as it looks on TV," he said.  Welliver, an active member of the local arts community, is one of the building managers at the Ephrata Performing Art Center and the music director for St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Penryn.  He works full-time as an account manager for the Webstaurant store and part-time at the Lititz Apothecary.  To celebrate his performance, Welliver held a watch party at Penn Cinema with his family and friends.  "The thing I appreciated the most about this whole experience is just seeing so much love and support from so many different people, literally, people all across the world," Welliver said.  "I just want to live in this moment forever, because it just feels so special."  As for me...."Wheel of Fortune" is one of my favorite TV quiz shows.  The dual feature of "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy" are always part of my TV watching on week-day evenings.  Wouldn't miss either one of them except if a Phillies game happened to be on at the same time.  Nothing can top Phillies Baseball!  Now...I have been known to record "The Wheel" and "Jeopardy" so I could watch them after the Phillies had won.  But, if the Phillies lost, that was the end of TV watching for that evening!  I often wanted to be on "Wheel of Fortune", but was never able to find where I could go to get a try-out for the show.  And, I know I'm not smart enough to be on Jeopardy. Hey....I'm still hoping that I might still get my chance to play the game on TV.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.