With the news that Ryan Seacrest would be succeeding as the new host of Wheel of Fortune, it makes us wonder how, for decades, this show has been able to pull in TV audiences every season. One of the main reasons that the show is such a cultural phenomenon is its host Pat Sajak. With the success and longevity of Wheel of Fortune, Pat Sajak has easily become one of the most recognizable faces in Hollywood. After hosting the show for more than three decades, Pat has rightfully earned his retirement.
As Pat Sajak is looking forward to the new normal of his life, let us all look at the constant in his life; his wife Lesly Brown. So who is Lesly Brown with whom Pat Sajak has been committed for almost as long as his time with Wheel of Fortune?
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Lesly Spent her Early Days in Maryland
Lesly Brown was born on February 18, 1965, in Maryland, USA to Michael Brown, a dentist and Maria Brown. She grew up alongside her two sisters, Wendy and Kelly. After finishing high school in the same town, she attended the University of Maryland. There she started majoring in television production and finally graduated with a bachelor’s degree in the same in 1986.
Lesly is a Photographer and Former Model
Lesly had always been passionate about working in TV and movies. After graduating from college, she started doing different modelling gigs. She has also been photographed by Playboy magazine for its Women of Washington issue. For the issue, the 23-year-old was named ‘Miss Georgetown’.
Lesly at some point in her life wanted to get a law degree but after meeting Pat Sajak her priority shifted and she decided to give her family more of her time. As of lately, she is said to have taken photography as a career.
Lesly and Pat Were Friends Before Engaging in a Relationship
In 1988, Lesly and Pat met at the grand opening of a mutual friends’ sports bar. Their first meeting was nowhere near anything romantic. In an interview with PEOPLE, recalling their first encounter, Pat said, “There was no electricity in the air.” “The subject of you didn’t come up in my car ride home,” he continued teasing his wife.
After that night, they continue to talk to each other but only as friends. Even though their initial approach was purely platonic, they could not help but fall for one another over the course of several months of talking to each other.
Lesly Appeared in The Dating Show
Since Lesly was working as a model and also aspiring to be an actress, her perfect opportunity to gain some visibility came in the form of a reality dating show called The Dating Show. At the end of the show, she is chosen by the bachelor to go on a trip to Mexico with him.
While the show might not have done what Lesly wanted it to do to her career, it did end up helping her in some way. As she was seen acting close with someone else, Pat started feeling jealous over it. Regarding the incident, Pat told People:
“Frankly, I was a little annoyed at that. There was definitely borderline jealousy. That was good.” “I knew she was the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.”
The incident that made him realize how much he wanted Lesly to be a part of his life.
Lesly and Pat Got Married in 1989
Soon after the dating show incident, Lesly and Pat finally started to embrace the love and affection they had for one another. In the summer of 1989, Pat proposed to Lesly with a 3-carat marquise-shaped diamond ring. Following their engagement, the couple did not hesitate to tie the knot. On New Year’s Eve of 1989, the couple exchanged vows in front of their friends and family at a Catholic church in Annapolis, Maryland.
Dan Miller, Pat Sajak’s long-time friend and his sidekick on the short-lived CBS talk show The Pat Sajak Show, was his best man at his wedding. The reception was held in the backyard of Lesly’s childhood home with the attendance of 150 guests including the Wheel of Fortune co-host Vanna White.
Lesly is Pat’s Second Wife
Before being married to Lesly for more than three decades, her husband Pat Sajak was previously married to Sherrill Sajak. They met in 1978 and got married the following year. The couple were together for almost seven years before calling it quits in 1986. During the course of their marriage, the ex-couple did not have any children. The present whereabouts of Pat’s first wife is unknown to the public.
Lesly is a Mother of Two Kids; Patrick and Maggie
On September 22, 1990, Lesly welcomed her first son with her husband Pat. They named their baby boy Patrick Michael James Sajak. Five years later, on January 5, 1995, the couple became parents to their baby girl, Maggie Marie Sajak.
When Maggie and Patrick were still young, they made a special appearance in one of the episodes of Wheel of Fortune. They diligently closed the show and even shared the advice they received from their father and co-host Vanna White.
Her son Patrick is a doctor
Despite his father’s successful stint as the TV host, Patrick has opted out of being in front of the camera. His parents also have let their son have all the privacy that he wants. However, in 2021, Pat Sajak could not help but mention terrific news regarding his son.
“Do you mind if I do a little parental bragging here?” Pat asked his co-host Vanna White on the episode of Wheel of Fortune. “So you know my son, Patrick, you’ve known him all his life. Well, he’s made it through medical school, and he is now officially Dr Sajak, and we’re all thrilled.”
Apparently, Patrick insists that his dad refers to him as ‘Dr. Sajak’. Pat added that both Lesly and him are incredibly proud of their son.
Her daughter Maggie Pursued Music
While the couple’s son has remained away from the media, their daughter Maggie has embraced the attention that comes with being Pat Sajak’s daughter. With her growing passion for music ever since she was very young, she has delved into creating her own music.
She released an album called If I Was Gonna Go in 2012. During an interview with Teen Vogue in 2013, Maggie revealed that she had started playing the guitar at the age of seven or eight and when she was 13, she got her first real guitar.
Additionally, Maggie has also taken a recurring job on the Wheel of Fortune show. In January 2020, she stepped in as a guest letter-turner following the absence of her father. She has also been conducting interviews for the show’s College Week.
Along with working on her music and as a correspondent in the show, the Princeton graduate is studying to get her law degree.
Lesly And The Children Were Pat’s Support System During Health Scare
In 2019, Pat Sajak was admitted to the hospital after he was diagnosed with a blocked intestine and had to undergo emergency surgery. In an interview with Good Morning America, Pat talked about the pain he suffered at that time explaining that the doctors gave him various medicines for the pain.
Throughout this period of his life, It was his wife and children who were right at his bedside. In an interview, he said:
” In the background at the hospital, I could hear my wife and daughter talking. It sounded like they were a mile off, but they were talking to each other”.
In the same interview, Pat revealed that he really thought he would die. He said:
“And I remember thinking, not in a morbid way,’ I think this must be death. This must be what death is like.’ Hearing their voices, I thought, ‘Boy, their lives are gonna change now.’ and I felt bad for them.” “I didn’t feel bad about dying. I felt bad that they were gonna have to deal with the aftermath. As it turned out. I was just high.”
Following his successful surgery, Pat has been feeling better. This health scare is probably one of the reasons why he is finally retiring from hosting Wheel of Fortune. But we are sure that throughout everything his wife Lesly Brown will always be there to love and support him.