A Closer Look at Pat Sajak’s Wife, Kids and Why People Think He Is Gay

Pat Sajak’s wife is Lesly Brown with whom he has two children named Margaret “Maggie” Sajak and Patrick Michael James Sajak. He was previously married to Sherrill Sajak from 1979 to 1986. Some people believe that Pat Sajak is gay because, in 2014, a number of news and gossip websites used clickbait headlines like “Sajak Finally Comes Out” when he made it clear that he was heterosexual. 

There are not many more people on American television that are more famous than Pat Sajak, a former weatherman who became the longest-running host of any American game show.

A recipient of three Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host (1993, 1997, 1998) from a total of fifteen nominations, as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2011 Daytime Emmy Awards, Sajak has for more than 38 years served as the host of the Merv Griffin-created game show, Wheel of Fortune, which is also the longest-running syndicated game show in the United States.

What We Know About Pat Sajak’s Sexuality

Pat Sajak's wife
image source

A few people were of the belief that Pat Sajak is gay due to the fact that more than a few news and gossip websites carried clickbait headlines like “Sajak Finally Comes Out”; a pop-culture phrase often used in cases when a celebrity decides to reveal to the world that he or she is gay.

This happened in 2014 when the TV personality did indeed come out, however, as a heterosexual. He did so via a tweet that leftist media platforms, on the other hand, interpreted as a form of mockery to the gay community.

A major indication that proves Pat Sajak is far from being gay is the fact that he is currently in his second marriage. His first marriage, which lasted from 1979 to 1986, was to a woman identified as Sherrill Sajak.

What We Know About His Wife Lesly Brown Sajak

A few years later, the popular TV personality married his current wife Lesly Brown Sajak, a photographer and former model.

Mrs. Sajak, a one-time Miss Georgetown and degree holder in Television Production from the University of Maryland, was born on April 21, 1965, in Gambrills, Maryland. The pair are said to have first met in 1988 in a sports bar in Irvine, California. The meeting has been described as anything but love at first sight as the two were not attracted to each other at first.

However, after a period of time whereby they maintained a friendship, they began to develop strong feelings for each other and soon began dating.

After dating for months, Sajak went down on his knees while holding a three-carat marquise-shaped diamond ring to profess his undying love for Lesly before he asked her to spend the rest of her life with him. The couple eventually tied the knot on December 31, 1989.

Who is Pat Sajak’s ex-wife?

Prior to Brown, Sajak was married to Sherrill James Sajak. They met in 1978 and wed in 1979. The couple divorced in 1986.

Sherrill Sajak was born Sherrill James in 1945 in the United States of America

Does Pat Sajak Have Any Children?

Yes, Sajak and Brown have two adult children, Margaret “Maggie” Sajak, 27, and Patrick Michael James Sajak, 31

Pat and his family Image Source

While what caused a rift between Sajak and his first wife is not public knowledge, their union is not known to have produced any children.

From his second marriage, however, he has become a father of two children; Patrick Michael James Sajak (born September 22, 1990) and Maggie Marie Sajak (born January 5, 1995).

While not much is known about his son Patrick, Maggie has gone for a career in show business. She is a country music singer best known her first single titled “First Kiss”.

How Pat Sajak Started His Television Career

Pat Sajak has often spoken about how he was raised in poverty. He was born on the 26th of October 1946 in Chicago, Illinois to a Polish father named Leonard Anthony Sajdak who worked as a factory worker and a mother named Joyce Helen.

Sajak’s father died when he was young and so his mother remarried. There was no significant change in his life as a result of the union as he went on to complete his education; first at Farragut High School before enrolling at Columbia College Chicago. He found work as a desk clerk at the Palmer House hotel as well as a midnight newsman for a local radio station in order to support himself in college.

Following his graduation, Pat Sajak enlisted in the US Army in 1968 and was subsequently sent to Vietnam where he served as a disc jockey on the Armed Forces Radio. After returning to America from the Vietnam War, he found work as a DJ in multiple radio stations across America in the 70s. He soon made the transition to television after he was hired by WSM-TV in Nashville to first serve as a voiceover artist before becoming a weekend and substitute weatherman.

In 1977, Sajak caught the attention of the Los Angeles-based KNBC-TV who offered him the position of a full-time weatherman, which he accepted. He held the position for about four years before media mogul Merv Griffin offered him the position of host of Wheel of Fortune, a move that received stiff opposition from the then NBC President and CEO, Fred Silverman. The latter was later relieved of his position, giving room for Sajak to make his debut appearance on the game show on December 28, 1981.

Pat Sajak has since then held the role, and gone on to host several other shows on TV as well as appear in several guest roles in movies. In 2019, he surpassed Bob Barker, who hosted Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, as the longest-running host of any game show in America. His current contract as host of Wheel of Fortune will expire in 2022.

Chinedu Ndubueze
Chinedu Ndubueze
Chinedu holds a B.SC in Mass Communications with several years of writing and editing experience. He is an advocate of closed-back headphones, horror movies, and dark humor; He believes that Peter Griffin and Stan Smith should be real people. Outside of having to write, edit, and work on other forms of content, Chinedu may keep up with the EPL or listen to everything Eminem and Jon Bellion.

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