Updated 10/16/18: Although Jessica Amsterdam of Howell didn’t hit the big jackpot, she still won a nice chunk of change on tonight’s WHEEL OF FORTUNE. That last puzzle was a hard one. Congrats Jessica!
Original story:
HOWELL – Howell residents and game show enthusiasts everywhere will get to see Howell native Jessica Amsterdam fulfill a lifelong dream of hers as she appears as a contestant on Wheel of Fortune.
Tune in to see Amsterdam compete for the grand prize on the October 16 episode of the show.
Amsterdam noted that she has “been a big fan of it [Wheel of Fortune] since I was a little girl.” It was only a matter of time before she went after a coveted spot on the show.
The process began with an online video application, said Amsterdam. Two weeks after she submitted her video, Amsterdam received a letter in the mail notifying her that she was chosen for contestant auditions in New York City.
“It was very exciting,” she said about the NYC auditions. In a room filled with hundreds of people, Amsterdam and other potential contestants played to solve puzzles projected on a big screen. As the number of contestants dwindled, Amsterdam found herself one of the finalists.
It was two weeks later that she found out she was officially chosen for a live taping of the popular game show. Amsterdam flew out to California, bringing her boyfriend and friend along for the ride.
Being on the set “was nerve racking but it was so exciting,” she said.
Not only did Amsterdam get her shot at being on television, but she also got to meet Vanna White, one half of Wheel of Fortune’s famous duo. Amsterdam said that Vanna White gave the contestants a few pointers prior to filming.
“Words couldn’t even describe it,” said Amsterdam about the entire experience.
Amsterdam will appear on tomorrow night’s airing on the show, Oct. 16, at 7:30 p.m. She was not able to say whether she was the big winner; we will just have to tune it to find out.
If Amsterdam were to win the grand prize on Wheel of Fortune, she said that she would use the money to take a big family vacation.
