Today, Pat Sajak is known for the game show where contestants spin a wheel. But a few decades ago, he was spinning records as a Vietnam War DJ.
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That’s right, the charming, witty host of the long-running popular game show, Wheel of Fortune, was once dabbling in the music world. Who knows, if he never got his gig on the show, he might have become the next Dick Clark.
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Several years ago, in an article for the USO, Sajak recounted his time spinning vinyl (not the well-known wheel), writing, “‘Good morning Vietnam!’ It was a phrase I shouted virtually every weekday at 6 a.m. from the studios of the American Forces Vietnam Network in Saigon between October 1968 and December 1969.
“I wasn’t the first to use those memorable words—that was Adrian Cronauer, who was famously portrayed by Robin Williams—but that became the signature sign-on of every early-morning DJ on AFVN,” he wrote.
But how did he find himself in this place?
Joining the Army
Sajak said he joined the army and was quickly trained as a typist. And he was sent to Vietnam to work “as a finance clerk.” But soon his ability to entertain and charm the masses shone through.
“After repeated attempts, I had been transferred to Saigon to be a disc jockey, as I had been in civilian life. The Army can work in mysterious ways,” he wrote.
He continued, “I used to feel a bit guilty about my relatively ‘soft’ duty. After all, I was billeted in a hotel, and there were plenty of nice restaurants around. But I always felt a little better when I met guys who came into town from the field and thanked us for bringing them a little bit of home.”
Spending time in the army, Sajak explains, has since given him a resolved appreciation for those who serve in the armed forces. And when those folks end up on his now-famous show, it pleases him. He says, “On Wheel of Fortune, my favorite weeks are those which feature military personnel.”
One Significant Presidential Miscue
The former DJ-turned-television show host recalled one time when he was meant to cut his music and vinyl record broadcast to let the address from the newly elected President Nixon be heard by the troops in Vietnam. After he let the radio signal come in (there was no TV broadcast), Sajak listened to the President and when he thought he was finished, he brought the music back up.
But, he says, “to my horror, I discovered that they weren’t discussing the speech—the president was still speaking!”
He then had to decide whether to admit his mistake and stop the music and let the President’s address back in on the air. So, what did he do?
He let the music play.
He joked, “The devil made me not do it.” And added, “It is with pain and embarrassment that I confess the secret of my Pat Sajak Vietnam DJ Days—that my comrades in Vietnam never heard the president’s words to them back in 1969. So, very belatedly, I want you all to know that Richard M. Nixon wishes you a very merry Christmas.”
Check out a broadcast from Sajak’s old days here below.
Photo by Jason Merritt/FilmMagic
