A Wheel of Fortune winner is attributing his success to his son.
The game show brought another heartwarming moment to viewers’ screens during the Monday, Feb. 10 episode when contestant Matt Popovits revealed how he ended up on the show. Joined by his family on stage, Popovits shared that one of his children encouraged him to apply.
“I have two great kids – Ava and Jack,” he explained. “And when Jack was diagnosed with dyslexia, we said, ‘Let’s watch Wheel as a way of helping him learn to read and spell.’”
“So, we started watching Wheel and he said, ‘Dad you should audition,’” Popovits continued. “And I said, ‘I will if you help me, and he did and here we are!’”
Popovits ended the game with $16,350 and a trip to Mexico, and later ended up correctly guessing the answer to the Bonus Round question. When host Ryan Seacrest announced that Popovits would be taking home $56,000, his family rushed toward him to celebrate.
“What do you think of dad?” Seacrest asked his son Jack.
“Amazing!” Jack replied, excitedly.
After the episode aired, Popovits shared a series of photos and videos on Instagram, showing a viewing party and clips from the episode.
“This will go down as a top ten moment in my 44 years of life,” he wrote in the caption. “But what has made it so great isn’t the fact that I got to play an iconic game or win the bonus round.”
“It was sharing that moment with my family and then celebrating it with all of you,” he continued.
“Also, Ryan and Vanna [White] are the real deal – so very kind,” he added of the co-hosts.
Several days before, Popovits took to social media to reveal that he’d be appearing on the fan-favorite show. In the video, he was flaunting a Wheel of Fortune shirt and encouraging people to tune in.
“I’ve always loved Wheel of Fortune,” his caption began before he shared how Jack inspired him to watch the show. “Together we made a video and sent in an audition tape. And just a few weeks later, we were all at Sony Pictures Studios, filming an episode of Wheel!”
He concluded: “We would LOVE for you to tune in and cheer us on. You never know what could happen. We could befriend the bankrupts and come home empty-handed, or we just might win a million dollars.”
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Wheel of Fortune airs weeknights on (check local listings).
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