Fortune strikes couple
Blooming Prairie residents Pete and Mary Kittelson brought the popular television game show, Wheel of Fortune, to town Thursday night, April 30, as they were big winners.
Family and friends of the Kittelsons watched Pete and Mary as contestants on a previously tape recorded episode. The Kittelsons were contestants in January and sworn to secrecy as to what their winnings totaled.
The secret was out as the game show program featuring Pete and Mary aired at 6:30 p.m., Thursday. A public viewing in Blooming Prairie at The Cue Company was attended by Pete and Mary and by family and friends. The airing of the show was also the first time Pete and Mary had seen their appearance.
“We told people if they wanted a good chuckle to come and watch the show with us,” Mary laughed.
Pete and Mary won $13,654 in cash and prizes.
The Kittelsons were sworn to secrecy after taping their show last Jan. 15. “We told people that we were still at our jobs the next day, so that should tell you something about what we won,” Mary said.
Pete works for Central Valley Co-op in Blooming Prairie, driving a fuel truck. Mary is community services director for Worlein Funeral Home of Austin and Blooming Prairie.
“It was a once in a lifetime experience,” Pete reflected.
Pete and Mary competed during “Show Your Disney Side” week. The famous “Wheel of Fortune” set was transformed to represent the iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle and Cinderella Castle.
Disney-loving contestants solved some clever Disney-themed puzzles as they competed for dream vacations. Pat Sajak and Vanna White revealed their own Disney Sides throughout the week with experiences taped at the Disney Parks.
Wheel of Fortune ranks as the longest-running syndicated game show in the United States, with over 6,000 episodes aired. TV Guide named it the “top-rated syndicated series” in a 2008 article, and in 2013, the magazine ranked it at #2 in its list of the 60 greatest game shows ever.
The program has also come to gain a worldwide following with 60 international adaptations. The syndicated series’ 32nd season premiered on Sept. 15, 2014.
Mary shared some interesting statistics about Wheel of Fortune. She said she and Pete were told that over 1 million people a year audition for the show, 10,000 annually get chosen for the show and 600 actually make it to the show each year.
Pete and Mary were placed in the long-time married couples category for the competition. The Kittelsons will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary in July of this year.
The entire process of trying out for Wheel of Fortune actually began about a year ago when Mary’s bowling friends, Judy Esplan, Becky Noble and Carol Heimerman joined Mary on an adventure trip, nothing to do with bowling, she said.
Judy informed Mary that the Wheelmobile of Wheel of Fortune was coming to Minnesota and one of the locations was Grand Casino Mille Lacs. The four women registered for an audition. Mary’s name was chosen after a second audition, which involved a practice round of Wheel of Fortune. She was told that she would be notified if she were to be selected.
Several months passed and Mary received an e-mail in September, informing her that the show was looking for couples. “Because I know Pete is such a good sport, I registered him and explained to him over supper that we would audition in October at the St. Paul Hotel,” Mary said.
Pete and Mary’s audition lasted three hours. No word was heard until the week before Christmas when Pete answered a phone call from Wheel of Fortune organizers. He was told that show taping would be on Jan. 15. “You know what big trouble I would be in if I said no,” Pete told the Wheel of Fortune contact.
Taping of the show was prefaced by five hours of instructions, Mary said. “We also had to agree not to talk about any of the outcomes until the show aired,” Mary said.