Issue date: 3/6/07 Section: News

Poly student spins to success on 'Wheel of Fortune' episode. [Click to enlarge]

Jack Knoebber is a game show junkie. For the past six months, the art and design junior has consistently watched "Wheel of Fortune" on TiVo every night, stepping up his viewing habits from before. And when he recently received a new phone, he made sure to download the "Wheel" game as soon as possible. He's a self-described obsessed fan.

"I've always liked that kind of stuff," said the art and design sophomore. "I've also always like crossword puzzles, and they're kind of the same thing. "I've always been good at those kinds of things."

But having this object of obsession has finally paid off for Knoebber. Three weeks ago, he drove down to Los Angeles to record an episode, which will appear on television June 6, for the game show.

The process has been long and intense, but ultimately enjoyable for Knoebber.

After signing up two years ago on the "Wheel of Fortune" Web site and not receiving a response, Knoebber made a second attempt four months ago, "not really expecting (to get an e-mail) at all."

But two months later, that's just what he got.

So, on Feb. 2, Knoebber skipped class and drove solo to Culver City to make the 2 p.m. group audition. Once there, prospective contestants were separated into groups of 50. Those groups then played a massive "Wheel of Fortune" replica game, where each of the would-be contestants were called on twice to solve - or try to solve - word puzzles.

It wasn't just about picking the right answers, though. "The whole time they're testing to see if you can be enthusiastic and loud, to see if you can look good on TV," Knoebber said. "Everyone is trying to clap for themselves and be really happy."

Next, they were required to take a written crossword-like puzzle with the goal being to fill in as many of the 30 words as possible in five minutes.

"(Afterwards, everyone) was freaking out, talking about the test, comparing answers and smoking cigarettes… Everyone was really nervous," he said.

Based on these two indicators, the pool was then narrowed from 50 to 20; Knoebber's name was called toward the end of the "very intense" process.

Continued...

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